Wild Garlic and Scallion Pancakes

Blog by Jody Klocko

My Favorite go to edible is a wild edible that is part of the Onion/Garlic (Allium) family, and widespread in Pennsylvania and that is wild garlic (Allium Vineale).

Wild garlic can be used for any dishes that call for onions, chives, leeks or garlic.

I use wild Garlic in soups, sauces, dinner items, and pretty much anything needing that extra flavor.

Because of how strong wild garlic is, I prefer it in cooked or baked dishes, but can be consumed in a raw state.

Key features:

Allium Vineale) grows abundantly in large, easily gathered clumps, mostly in farm fields, lawns, tree lines, woodland areas. You will find it grows from organized slender fashion to Chaotic and like a wild hair do.

Wild Garlic is usually one of the first thriving wild edibles to emerge from the ground late winter into spring, then again during fall. This perennial is very resilient and hardy without lots of rain, going dormant in the summer.

Not to mistaken them for other grasses, or plants! Think of chives that you would buy in the supermarket.

It’s best to do a field test by snipping the top and smell, then taste. If you don't sense or taste garlic/or onion aromas you may have another field green. The spring wild garlic is very aromatic! Pungent! If you experience unpleasant bitterness, sourness, or peppery notes, It’s not wild garlic or wild onions.

Visually it grows in groups or clusters, not singular, very green, tall 5” to over 12” and slender, tubular, hollow center. It’s best to find wild garlic in areas away from highways, or fertilized yards, Areas without a lot of foot traffic.

A few tips:

Cross cut your wild Garlic and you will see that they are tubular shaped, not flat or blades of grass.

Purple-rose colored skin near the bottoms. Depending on the season it may be all white or yellows.

The skin at the bulb area is papery, thin textured.

                                             “When in doubt! Throw it out!”

The Recipe:

Asian inspired Bing Bread also known as scallion pancake or "green onion pancake, is a crispy, flaky, aromatic spin off of unleavened or yeasty flat bread, perfect for outdoor cooking.

 

Dough

• 2 cups, all-purpose flour (plain flour)
• 3/4 cup heated or warm water
• 1/2 teaspoon salt     

Filling

• 2 tablespoon melted lard, vegetable  or coconut oil
• 2 tablespoon all-purpose flour (plain flour)
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup of finely chopped scallions
• 1 Tablespoon sesame seeds
• 1 Tablespoon of chopped wild garlic
• Salt and pepper to taste

For Frying

• 2 tablespoons neutral cooking oil or lard/bacon grease.

For serving (optional)

• Light soy sauce, Sriracha, or your favorite dipping sauce. Add in chopped wild garlic, toasted sesame seed.

 

INSTRUCTIONS:

Mix the dough like Coalcracker bushcraft dumpling dough.

• Put flour & salt into a bowl or bush pot, pour in warm water. Stir with your hand or spoon, until no more loose flour or water can be seen. Use your hands to combine the mixture into rough-looking dough. You may need more water or more flour if dough is sticky or to dry.
• Cover the dough with cloth and leave dough to rest for 15 mins to 30 minutes to relax the dough. This can be made a day ahead as well.

 

Prepare the filling

• Trim and chop up scallions and finely chop wild garlic.
• Toasted sesame seeds ( optional)
• Oil
• Salt & pepper

Shape the pancakes

• Divide the Dough into 6 or 8 pieces
• take one of the dough balls, Flatten the dough into a thin, rectangular piece.
• Brush the flattened dough with water, oil, bacon fat, whatever you have available, then sprinkle finely chopped wild onion, scallions, sesame seeds, salt and pepper.
• Roll up filling into a log.
• From the shorter side of the dough piece, roll the dough into a snail or rope. (Don’t make it too tight).
• Roll into snail shape

    

 

 

 

Fry the pancakes:

Slightly flatten the snail roll with your hands into a flat bread, or pancake to thin it out slightly.

• In a cast iron frying pan/skillet, heat oil over high heat until hot. Drop a piece of scallions in to test. If it sizzles, the oil is hot enough.
• Turn the heat down to medium and put on the pancakes into your fry pan.
• You may cook 4 pancakes all at once in a large pan or 1 thin pancake at a time.
• Fry until very brown and slightly charred.

And lastly Enjoy!