Garlic Scape: What is It and Why You Should Use It

Oh, if ever there was a flavor intended for the best of us, it must be garlic! Garlic adds such a notable tinge to every dish in which it is included. Why it tastes so grand that the aftereffects—garlic breath—are hardly a price to pay for the privilege of eating it.

Truth be known, those of us enticed by the allium family, that lovely clan that includes onions, leeks, and the aforementioned garlic, love to appreciate the subtleties of each version we can find. We love ramps! We love those spicy red onions any way we can have them. We love soft, oven-roasted garlic that goes all gooey.

With that in mind, for those fans who haven’t yet endeavored with the garlic scape, there is a wonderful new treat in town. It’s a wonderful, far too often overlooked treat that comes with every hard neck garlic grown.

What is a Garlic Scape?

Source: The Garlic Grower/Youtube

Before delving into what the garlic scape is, we have to learn a little about garlic. In essence, there are two types: soft neck (Allium sativum) and hard neck (Allium sativum ophioscorodon). Elephant garlic (Allium ampeloprasum) is sometimes mistakenly categorized with garlic, but it is more closely linked to leeks.

Generally, we buy soft neck varieties at the supermarket. Hard neck garlic tends to be larger and easier to peel, but it has a more pronounced garlic flavor. However, hard neck varieties don’t have quite the same shelf life. They only last for a few months in storage.

Garlic scapes are only harvested from hard neck garlic. They are the often-curly stem upon which garlic plants produce bulbils, which are somewhat like flowers. With bulbils, a little garlic bulb, we could grow a new garlic plant. In nature, they are part of the plant’s reproductive methodology.

Why Use Garlic Scape?

Source: Learn To Grow/Youtube

However, many gardeners prefer to harvest garlic scapes when they are young. The thought is that the bulbils take energy from the head of garlic growing underground; thus, it is better to get rid of them. So, the scapes are cut away in the springtime when they are still tender and young. Luckily, they are delicious and provide an extra harvest from each garlic plant.

Garlic scapes, like green onions, are a milder version of the actual vegetable growing beneath the ground. They are versatile vegetables in their own right, mild enough to enjoy raw (a stretch for a garlic clove), and sturdy enough to cook.

How to Use Garlic Scapes

Source: TheWildYam/Youtube

Garlic scapes, also called garlic greens or garlic stems, can be used as a raw component in lots of our favorite dishes. Anywhere we’d put spring onions or chives, thinly sliced garlic scapes will do the same work, with a touch of garlicky grab to pull you in. That means they work well sprinkled into salads, over baked potatoes, tofu scrambles, or atop bean soups.

Scapes can withstand cooking, too. They are amazing sautéed as a vegetable on their own or mixed with other fresh spring greens, such as kale, collards, or chard. They can also be tossed into risotto or rice, paired with asparagus for a pureed soup, or included in a favorite pesto recipe. They can also be put in vinegar to make garlic scape refrigerator pickles.

Growing Your Garlic Scapes

Source: MIgardener/Youtube

For those doing it on their own in the garden, growing garlic scapes (and garlic) is extremely easy. The main trick here will be getting hard neck garlic versus soft neck. Some of the most popular hard neck varieties are Romanian Red, Northern White, and German Extra Hardy, which are “porcelain” garlic, as well as Amish, German Red, and Spanish Red, which are “rocamboles” garlic. There are (at least) two other categories of hard neck garlic: purple striped and marbled.

For the quickest return, plant the garlic cloves in the early fall, allowing enough time for them to develop some roots. In the spring, they’ll come back with a vengeance, and the scapes will appear shortly thereafter. Harvest the scapes in the spring, then bulbs in late summer. Don’t forget to use a couple of garlic bulbs to sow next year’s harvest.

Related Content:

• How to Grow Your Own Ginger and Garlic
• Making the Most of Your Garden Space: Exploring Vertical Space from Below the Soil to Atop the Trellis
• 15 Ways to Boost Your Recipes with Roasted Garlic!
• The Lowdown on Growing Garlic as a Perennial

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