# Ramps (wild leeks)



## ericjaenicke (Oct 27, 2007)

I found a nice patch of these while I was wondering in the woods during my daughters t-ball game. I just learned about them growing around here a couple days ago. Anyone ever go out specifically looking for these?


----------



## JBooth (Sep 21, 2009)

A lot of people go out looking for those. Restaurants pay big money for them. They are delicious.


----------



## GILLSWEEPER25 (Feb 27, 2014)

What restaurants buy them because I know where there are Thousands of them


----------



## zig (Aug 5, 2009)

Up until this year, I had not gone out to specifically look for them. However, I will every year going forward. I found several huge patches of them this spring. They really are a unique item. Check them out on Wikipedia, you'll find some interesting facts. I have seen ramps sell for $10-$12 a pound at farmers markets. They are extremely versatile. They are great with eggs, mushrooms, in sauces, salads, etc. Just last night I finely minced some ramps, mixed with olive oil, salt, pepper, white wine vinegar, and a little sugar, and slit holes in a pork tenderloin and rubbed that all over and in the areas I cut, then grilled it on high heat then let it sit, it was awesome. I didn't have time this year due to a number of things, but my intention next year is to pick quite a few and pickle them. They truly are a treasure of early spring, and not very well known to most people. I picked so many that I had plenty to give away. Of the 6-7 people I gave them to, not one had any idea what they were.....


----------



## itchn2fish (Dec 15, 2005)

If you find a clump of them, there will usually be thousands of them in the area. My favorite spring meal is ramps, morels, brookies & fiddleheads.


----------



## CHASINEYES (Jun 3, 2007)

Sounds like you fella's have some good cooking ideas. Thanks for sharing.
I've never tried them, but would like to. Looking for morels this spring I seen a small patch and can't remember where. Time to do some backtracking. Lol Found an interesting video for sustainable harvest of leeks.


----------



## Oldgrandman (Nov 16, 2004)

CHASINEYES said:


> Sounds like you fella's have some good cooking ideas. Thanks for sharing.


Got your back with a PM.....


----------



## WAUB-MUKWA (Dec 13, 2003)

itchn2fish said:


> If you find a clump of them, there will usually be thousands of them in the area. My favorite spring meal is ramps, morels, brookies & fiddleheads.
> View attachment 63543
> View attachment 63544
> View attachment 63545
> View attachment 63546


The best flavor for any food to cook with. I seek out new patches but leave some for next time and regeneration. But like you say there are a lot of them when you find them.


----------



## Petronius (Oct 13, 2010)

I started to do some research on ramps last year. All of the info I found pointed to picking them while they are young. I'm glad the guy in the video showed what they look like as they mature. I'll leave to patch I found last week for a little longer.


----------



## Mushroom Jack (May 28, 2009)

Wait till mid summer and fall and they'll be huge. They look like this in the summer and turn to purplish black in the Fall. The green seeds are edible just like the leaves in the Spring.


----------



## zig (Aug 5, 2009)

Mushroom Jack said:


> Wait till mid summer and fall and they'll be huge. They look like this in the summer and turn to purplish black in the Fall. The green seeds are edible just like the leaves in the Spring.


 
How late in the season can you dig them up and eat them? I just got into these last year, but I notice I only see them in the farmers markets early/mid spring.


----------



## Mushroom Jack (May 28, 2009)

As long as you can find them, you can dig them. The white flowers will turn into green seeds that you can eat too.


----------



## Scottygvsu (Apr 19, 2003)

If any of you married guys want to be single again, fill your dehydrator up with leeks and go to work. The sweet smell of leeks will embed in every piece of cloth in the house. For a few days after I did it, I'd hear the occasional "damn you!". This would happen every time the wifey would pull on an onion flavored sweatshirt, or lay down on an onion flavored couch. The French onion soup in February was worth every cuss out though!


----------



## Crayfish Trapper (Dec 19, 2010)

When we hunt morels near Mesick, there are wild leeks as far as the eye can see. You can harvest them until you drop from exhaustion.

We saw a family up there last month harvesting hundreds of pounds a day for sale to a distributor for restaurants and farmer's markets.


----------



## CHASINEYES (Jun 3, 2007)

Scottygvsu said:


> If any of you married guys want to be single again, fill your dehydrator up with leeks and go to work. The sweet smell of leeks will embed in every piece of cloth in the house. For a few days after I did it, I'd hear the occasional "damn you!". This would happen every time the wifey would pull on an onion flavored sweatshirt, or lay down on an onion flavored couch. The French onion soup in February was worth every cuss out though!


Lol

And mine sometimes complains a day after an indoor fish fry or when smoked fish scraps are in the indoor garbage. I really need to find some leeks. Lol


----------

