17 Ramp Recipes So You Can Get ‘Em While They’re Good
We’ve gathered together these ramp recipes for you, because ramps. Do we really need to say more? There’s a reason that, each early spring, a.k.a. ramp season (a very short season), chefs clamor to get these wild onions into their kitchens: They’re delicious, like garlicky leeks, and can be pickled, fried, grilled, turned into pesto, and more.
Unfortunately, the alliums, which are native to the forests of eastern North America, are getting harder to find because of over-harvesting. Some people have even taken to farming them, which requires patience, as the plants can take seven years to reach maturity, as well as a good patch of shady, damp woodland. If you’re interested in foraging for wild ramps, just be sure to respect the patch: Cut off one leaf, leaving the ramp bulb and another leaf to continue on growing, and avoid taking too much, especially from one area.
Once you’ve returned home with your (small) haul, cook them however your heart desires: Make a compound ramp butter, mix them into a quiche or risotto, or blend them into ramp soup. Below, you'll find our favorite ramp recipes so you’re ready when the time comes.
Gentl & Hyers1/17Pasta With Ramp Pesto and Guanciale
You may be tempted to blitz raw ramps with olive oil and Parmesan, but this ramp recipe asks you to take one more step: Briefly cook the green leaves in a large pot of boiling salted water, then cool them in ice water before you purée them. This is how to keep your pesto fresh-looking instead of khaki-colored.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Thu Buser, Prop Styling by Stephanie De Luca2/17Chicken Primavera
Primavera means spring in Italian, so feel free to bring any of the season’s green veggies into the mix: fava beans, sugar snap peas, or, yes, wild ramps for that wild garlic and onion flavor.
Ted Cavanaugh4/17Toast With Ramp Kimchi and Poached Eggs
They look like spring onions, but there is no mistaking that garlicky flavor: Those are ramps on that toast, and they’ve been mixed with gochugaru, fish sauce, and ginger to wake you (and your taste buds) up. It’s springtime, after all.
Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Susie Theodorou, prop styling by Elizabeth Jaime5/17Shrimp Ramp-y
The name says it all: Shrimp with a garlicky, pungent, buttery scampi sauce. (The combination of garlic and ramps may seem like overkill, but we promise it’s not.) Bonus: This makes for an easy gluten-free supper.
Danny Kim6/17Buttermilk-Fried Ramps
You will need a deep-fry thermometer if you don’t already have one, but believe us when we say it’s worth it. These buttermilk-fried ramps are the martini accompaniment of your wildest, most delicious dreams. The Bloomin’ Onion could never.
Danny Kim8/17Grilled Ramps With Sherry-Ramp Vinaigrette
This recipe is an excellent place to start if you’re having ramps for the first time. You’ll get to enjoy them two ways (both raw and grilled) and see them in full, so closely resembling their cousins, scallions. Eat it as an appetizer alongside cocktails or as a side dish for grilled steak or fish.
Ted Cavanaugh9/17Ramp and Walnut Pistou
You’ll often see pistou as an accompaniment to a soup recipe: Soupe au pistou is a Provencal classic. Here, we’ve made a walnut and ramp version, which you can drizzle on soup, dollop over roast chicken, or scoop up with a slice of baguette.
Alex Lau10/17Ramp Kimchi
Want those ramps you snagged at the farmers market to last? Ferment them with this recipe for kimchi, which will preserve the ramp leaves and bulbs for up to one month.
Danny Kim11/17Ramp Pesto Spaghetti
This sauce recipe is akin to classic pesto but with a few changes: Instead of Parmesan, it uses pecorino. Instead of pine nuts, walnuts. And instead of basil, ramps. Serve topped with a little more pecorino and some lemon zest; your guests won’t know what hit them.
Danny Kim12/17Ricotta Scrambled Eggs And Buttered Ramps On Toast
Breakfast just got a major upgrade. All you need are toast, butter, eggs, ricotta, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper, and those east coast springtime gems, ramps.
Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich13/17Ramp Fritters
If you can’t find ramps, you can use thin scallions for this recipe—but do try to find ramps. These crispy little fritters give you the comfort of onion rings with the garlic factor of the wild leeks.
Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Susie Theodorou, prop styling by Heather Greene14/17Butter-Roasted Halibut With Asparagus and Olives
Ted Cavanaugh15/17Spaghetti With Ramps
If you need your faith in life restored, ramp pasta is the answer. The combination of al dente spaghetti, alliums, Parmesan, and lemon zest will pick you up and move you forward.
Gentl & Hyers17/17Poached Eggs on Toast With Ramps
This ramp recipe makes for the ultimate easy spring brunch dish. Sauté the ramps, poach the eggs, toast the bread, put it all together, and finish with flaky sea salt.