Garlic mustard: where to find this delicious plant, what it tastes like and how to use it

All you need to know about the tasty plant garlic mustard

By

Published: Tuesday, 20 August 2024 at 11:51 AM

Garlic mustard is a favourite for foragers due to its distinctive flavour and versatility in the kitchen. It is also rich in vitamins A and C.

What does garlic mustard taste of?

As the name suggests, the leaves of garlic mustard Alliaria petiolata do have a flavour combining mild elements of both garlic and mustard, although with an unusual lingering and delightful cheesiness.

Where is garlic mustard found?

Garlic mustard is found in shade beside country tracks, field edges, hedgerows and roadsides.

How to use garlic mustard

The leaves are at their finest in June; nevertheless, new leaves begin to appear in March and are perfect for an early spring salad.

Larger leaves are delicious when blanched and stuffed with rice or couscous salad.

With appropriate permission the roots can be dug and are delightfully pungent and spicy. Actually, it’s well worth growing the plant simply for the root. Seeds can be harvested with relative ease on well established plants and are lovely sprouted or dried and ground up with pepper.

Another good reason for cultivating the plant is to attract the pretty orange tip butterfly to your garden. Indeed, its fluttering presence on a sunny June day often indicates that garlic mustard is close at hand.

Garlic mustard pesto recipe

Serves: 2

Prep time: 10 mins

Ingredients:

Method: Liquidise the chopped root and sliced garlic with the oil, then add the chopped leaves, lemon juice and seasoning. Liquidise to a paste. Spoon into clean jar and refrigerate. You can adapt this recipe with the addition of pine nuts, cashew nuts or olives.

You might also enjoy this recipe for wild garlic pesto

More foraging inspiration