Medicinal Monday - Ramp it Up!

Ramps or wild leeks are one of the earliest wild edibles to emerge in the spring. Technically they are not leeks, they are not scallions and they are not shallots. They look like scallions except they are smaller and more delicate and taste stronger than a leek. Typically ramps are foraged like truffles. High in vitamins, ramps have been a delicious culinary delight for centuries.  Native Americans enjoyed eating them and also found several medicinal purposes for this spring ephemeral. 

About Ramps
A recent video by the Institute of American Indian Studies shows how to identify, harvest, and cook with ramps that have distinct onion garlic-like flavor. To see this video click here.  Allium tricoccum is a native member of the onion family. Ramps appear at higher elevations in eastern North America and can be found in Connecticut. They can be easily identified by their 1, 2, or 3 broad leaves that measure 1 to 2 and 1/2 inches wide and four to 12 inches long. Both the leaves and flowers smell like onions. 

The leaves appear in April and last through mid-May. As the temperatures begin to warm up in May, the leaves turn yellow and die. After the leaves die back a lone flower stalk emerges, seeds mature by late summer.  The seeds fall close to the mother plant but can take up to two years to germinate. Ramps can be found in well drained moist soil in the hardwood forests. They usually grow in dense clusters because of the way they reproduce.

Medicinal Uses
The Chippewa and the Iroquois decocted the rood to induce vomiting and to get rid of worms in children. The Cherokee ate the plant to soothe colds and coughs. Many Native communities use the warm juice of this plant to treat earaches and bee stings. 

Culinary Uses
Ramps are one of the first greens to appear in the spring and this plant is eaten as a spring tonic. Many Native American communities boiled or fried the young plants or ate them raw. They also dried and stored parts of the ramp for use in the winter months. 

Did You Know
There are ramp festivals in Appalachia to celebrate the tradition of mountain food where eggs are served with fried potatoes seasoned with ramps. In West Virginia ramps are fried in bacon grease and served with ham and potatoes.

There are wild lilies that have similar leaves to ramps but they are not edible, so it is best to bring a field guide and make sure that they smell like onions.

According to Natural New Haven ramps are now on a watch list. When harvesting it is recommended that only a portion of the greens be taken from the plant. Leaving some of the greens allows ramp, a perennial bulb to continue to produce and spread.

Ramps have become a delicacy found on menus of many top restaurants.

Being in the same family as garlic they contain the same sulfur compounds including kaempferol that works to protect the lining of your blood vessels against damage and supports the liver in the elimination of cholesterol.

Ramps are high in iron and in antioxidants, specifically TPC.