Freezing wild garlic: this is how it works + information about shelf life

March is marked by early bloomers and the first aromatic plants that you can harvest in the German forests or in your bed. A classic of spring is wild garlic, which should not be missing in any kitchen due to its distinctive aroma. The leek plant is ideal for herbal mixtures or fresh in numerous dishes, but is difficult to dry. However, you can maximize the shelf life of the forest garlic by freezing it.

Freezing

Why freeze

Wild garlic is a classic culinary herb and has been used by humans for centuries. Allium ursinum unfolds its greatest aroma fresh after harvest and should therefore be used directly or can be processed within a few days, but this is not always due to the amount collected possible. In general, the sooner you freeze wild garlic, the longer it will last. In comparison to other herbs, wild garlic cannot be dried because it loses its aroma far too quickly and in the end only tastes weak. For this reason, freezing is the best way to improve the shelf life of the herbs.

Note: Please pay attention to the harvest, at the latest when preparing to freeze the wild garlic Be careful not to do this with other poisonous plants such as the lily of the valley or the autumn crocus confound. Rub the leaves between your fingers to be on the safe side, because the wild garlic exudes its characteristic garlic aroma.

preparation

Before you can further process and freeze the leaves, you must first prepare them. This is especially true for the harvest from forest stands, as it can happen that the plants are marked by roaming wild animals, above all the fox. Since the animals often carry the so-called fox tapeworm, you and your family can eat its eggs, which get onto the plants through excretions, especially urine. As a precaution, do the following to prevent this from happening.

• transfer the collected leaves to a sieve
• wash all the leaves thoroughly with hot water
• Be careful not to crush the leaves or grind them too hard
• then dry carefully

This procedure will help wash off the tapeworm's eggs as they cannot tolerate the hot water. Then you can take care of the next steps to make your harvest durable. Please make sure that only the fresh leaves can be frozen effectively. If these have been lying around for too long, it is no longer worth freezing them as they lose some of their aroma even when they are stored in the freezer. So freeze your wild garlic harvest as soon as possible.

Tip: So that you can reduce the risk of infection by the fox tapeworm even more, though For this, washing is sufficient, you should move your Allium ursinum away from paths and deer collect. The animals orientate themselves on the already existing paths in order to quickly check their territory.

Freeze

After you've prepared the wild garlic, you can proceed to freezing the leaves. Since the forest garlic should be processed very quickly, there are a variety of freezing methods that make the spice long-lasting and enable it to be used again quickly. Use the following methods to increase the shelf life of the sensitive spice.

• freeze dry
• Ice cubes
• puree
• butter

One advantage of the methods is the gentle processing of the seasoning leaves, which thus retain most of their aroma. This makes later use easier, as the individual leaves do not really lose their aroma even over a period of several months, it only becomes slightly weaker.

Freeze dry

If you choose this method, use the classic variant to freeze large quantities of wild garlic quickly and easily. It is particularly important to prepare the leaves thoroughly and then dry them off with them there are no water droplets inside the container, otherwise the leaves could become muddy or glue together. The following storage means are suitable for freezing the wild garlic leaves.

• Freezer or vacuum bags (the latter gives off less aroma to the freezer)
• Mason jars
• Freezer containers

After you have decided on one of the storage options, you should check again whether the leaves you have collected are dry. Then fill either the freezer bags or the other containers with the wild garlic. You don't have to pay attention to any particular order or spacing, just put the sheets in. It is not advisable to cut the wild garlic for this method, otherwise it would lose its aroma too quickly. Then close the container or bag. There shouldn't be too much air in the freezer bag. The shelf life of this method extends into winter.

Tip: When you have collected the wild garlic flowers in addition to the leaves, you can freeze them in the same way. A freezer bag is not recommended here, however, rather rely on a special plastic freezer container.

Ice cubes

Freezing in the form of ice cubes is a popular method for actually all kitchen herbs, which can be added quickly to a dish in a handy form. For example, fresh, frozen leaves are better for marinating meat or fish are the wild garlic cubes for sauces, soups and generally for steaming dishes suitable. In addition, you can do without drying the leaves thoroughly, as they are chopped and frozen after washing.

Proceed as follows:

• choose one or more ice cube molds
• prepare a clean knife or chopping knife
• cut the wild garlic as small as you can
• the smaller the pieces, the more flavor the ice cubes contain
• fill each ice cube tray with wild garlic and water in a ratio of 2: 1
• seal the cubes with a freezer bag
• Take special care not to spill the mixture

The ice cubes can be kept for several months and can simply be removed from the mold and used in the pan or pot without hesitation. A big advantage of this method is not only the long shelf life of the wild garlic, but also the effect that the spice does not give off its aroma to the other dishes in the freezer. As a result, the ice cubes retain up to 90 percent of their fresh taste, which is particularly tasty.

puree

A beneficial alternative to ice cubes is the production of wild garlic puree. While the classic wild garlic pesto is typically not frozen, the puree can easily be stored in the freezer after production. The puree is also very easy and can be produced in large quantities, which is ideal for later use.

You prepare the puree as follows:

• put the leaves (about a bunch) in a bowl with 200-300 ml of unflavored oil
• Add 2 - 3 pinches of salt (can be left out depending on your taste)
• Now puree with the hand blender or the stand mixer
• make sure to puree the mixture completely so that no large pieces remain
• put the puree in a freezer to freeze
• put these in the freezer

With this variant, the wild garlic can be kept for up to a year and can be reused without any problems. Only the portioning is a bit difficult because the mass freezes. Smaller bowls or ice cube molds can also be offered here.

butter

A wild garlic butter is a unique pleasure with a lot of natural aroma. This is very easy to make and has a shelf life of up to about a year in the freezer.

This is made as follows:

• mix crushed butter without flavoring and wild garlic in a ratio of 3: 1
• the butter must be at room temperature for this
• the wild garlic should be cut as finely as possible
• mix in the herb evenly with a fork
• then wrap them in foil rolls or fill them in freezer containers or glasses
• A porcelain bowl with a matching lid would be ideal

If you want to use the butter immediately, you can also store it in the refrigerator. The shelf life here is two to three weeks, so it is recommended for small portions over the spring. Otherwise you can always take some of the butter out of the freezer and use it. Since butter takes a long time to thaw, the coveted wild garlic aromas remain in the butter.