Pickled Ramps ~ Recipe for Canning (2024)

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May 11, 2018 by Ashley Adamant 15 Comments

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Pickling ramps allows you to enjoy this wildspring ephemeralall year round. The vinegar and salt also help to bring out the flavor in this spicy crisp vegetable.

There are a number of ways to preserve ramps, each with its own pros and cons. Most methods prepare ramps for use in a recipe somehow.

Ramp pesto or compound butter add ramp flavor to something else that’s happening in your kitchen. The best part about these pickled ramps is that you can enjoy them all on their own.

Ramps have a pungent garlic and onion flavor, and when pickled with salt and sugar they get a bit of sweet and sour goodness. For this recipe, I’ve kept it simple and seasoned them with black peppercorns and a little fresh thyme from our greenhouse.

I’ve seen other recipes that use coriander and fennel, or mustard seed and allspice. Still others that make them a bit middle eastern with saffron and turmeric, and some that go spicy with hot pepper flakes. Really, the sky’s the limit.

Choose your spices for yourself, but make sure that any recipe you choose includes plenty of vinegar for pickling.

At a minimum, the brine should be half water and half vinegar. In this recipe, I’m using 2 parts vinegar to 1 part water so they’re a bit sourer than most. Feel free to use straight vinegar if you want them extra sour.

Salt and sugar ratios also vary widely, with some recipes including so much sugar I’d call them candied ramps rather than pickled. A good safe amount is about 1 tablespoon of sugar and 1/2 tablespoon salt. Add more or less to your own tastes.

Ramp leaves don’t hold up well to pickling. It’s best to save those for another use, like ramp pesto or ramp compound butter. Something that will use them fresh and green and really make them pop.

This pickled ramp recipe is minimally seasoned so you'll taste mostly ramps along with a bit and sweet and sour tang. Feel free to skip the canning process and just store these in the refrigerator, or process them in a water bath and they'll be shelf stable until opened.

Ingredients

2 cups ramp bulbs and stems
1 cup vinegar, white or apple cider
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tbsp salt
1 tsp peppercorns
1-2 sprigs thyme, fresh, or 1/2 teaspoon dried

Instructions

Clean the ramps thoroughly and remove the small roots. Cut off the leaves and reserve them for another use (like ramp pesto or compound butter). If canning, prepare a water bath canner now.
Pack the ramp bulbs into a clean pint mason jar. Arranging them bulb side down and slotting them in helps to fit more into the jar.
Add peppercorns and thyme directly to the mason jar with the ramps.
Bring vinegar, water, sugar and salt to a boil on in a saucepan and pour the brine over the ramps, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Cap with a two-partmason jar lid and either store in the refrigerator or process in a water bath canner for 10 minutes.

Notes

Allow the flavors to infuse for at least a week before eating.

Nutrition Information:

Serving Size:

1 grams
Amount Per Serving:Unsaturated Fat: 0g

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Comments

Michele Martin
May 21, 2019 at 5:28 pm
hi just tried this one out, can’t wait to taste the results! thank you!
Reply
Nick
June 9, 2019 at 5:26 pm
I substituted dill weed for the thyme and added a hot a dried hot chili pepper in each jar. Can’t wait to taste the results!
Reply
- Ashley Adamant
  June 9, 2019 at 6:10 pm
  Sounds delicious!
  Reply
Dave Mazon
April 2, 2020 at 12:08 am

Spent the evening cleaning ramps for pickling & canning. We’ve started our patch about 12 years ago and it’s really taken off. How awesome it will be to pull a pint of these off the shelf and share with the friends Thanks so much for sharing!
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Best to you and yours, from Wild & Wonderful WV!
Reply
TED E DRUM
April 23, 2020 at 4:52 pm
Just found your post, going to try saving some of our ramps!
THANKS
Reply
MeiLee
May 5, 2020 at 4:18 pm
I’ve seen some recipes calling for blanching the ramps before putting them in the jars. What does blanching do?
Reply
- Admin
  July 22, 2020 at 8:35 pm
  blanching kills off any microorganisms, removes dirt, preserves their color and nutrients. It also helps wilt your ramps, thus making them easier to pack in jars.
  Reply
Cheryl
May 19, 2020 at 2:37 pm
Looking forward to trying this after I forage today. How long will they last in the fridge?
Reply
- Ashley Adamant
  June 1, 2020 at 1:13 am
  Quite a long time… Months? Ours didn’t last all that long because we ate them, but actually fully pickled they should keep in the fridge a very long time.
  Reply
Tina Hoffman
October 26, 2021 at 1:56 am
Can I use this recipe on leeks? I was thinking they are about the same and I realize that canning low acid foods are dangerous. Thank you
Reply
- Administrator
  October 26, 2021 at 2:29 pm
  You could definitely use this recipe on leeks.
  Reply
Theresa
April 28, 2022 at 2:02 pm
Do you have to use salt and sugar?
Reply
- Administrator
  April 29, 2022 at 4:23 pm
  The salt and sugar in this recipe are for flavor. You can adjust them to suit your taste.
  Reply
Daryl Warren
April 7, 2023 at 6:06 am
Will share your recipe with those who have purchased wild leeks from me at $20 per pound and give you and your website full credit.
Reply
- Ashley Adamant
  April 8, 2023 at 1:09 pm
  Wonderful, I’m so glad =)
  Reply