Rocambole garlic ✦

Ail rocambole

What it is

Rocambole is a German word gone French - Rockenbolle, the rye bulb - and the plant is not garlic at all but a sand leek, Allium scorodoprasum. What is sold is the bulbil head at the top of the stem, which coils into a loop before it straightens, and the taste sits closer to a mild leek than to a clove.

In the kitchen

Pickle the bulbils in a light vinegar brine and serve them whole like capers, at the end of cooking. Cut the scapes while they are still curled - once the stem has straightened it is fibrous.

Goes with

Butter Olive oil Potato Egg Cream Lemon Parsley Goat cheese

Same species

Arleux smoked garlic Banana shallot Black garlic Calçot Cévennes sweet onion Chives

In season alongside

Spring onion Broccoli Cucumber Elephant garlic Broad bean Garlic chives

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