Garlic Mustard Pesto

https://foragerchef.com/garlic-mustar...

One of the more palatable ways to cook one of my least favorite plants. Garlic mustard is highly invasive, intensely bitter, and also a good introductory plant for new foragers as it has no poisonous look alikes and is easy to find in quantity. Unfortunately, it's crazy bitter.

Making pesto with it allows you to tame the bitterness somewhat, but it will always be present. One of the keys to taming it is soaking the greens overnight in water. Soaking is optional, but it will reduce the bitterness somewhat. If you make garlic mustard pesto and don't like it you don't have to give up. The mildest tasting parts of the plant are actually the young shoots, and they're remarkably less bitter than the basal leaves. My recipe with ramp butter below is my favorite way to have them.

https://foragerchef.com/garlic-mustar...

Since the plant has such a strong flavor the ratios are very different from other pestos I make. More cheese, more nuts, more seasoning, and I also recommend adding a little basil if you have some, about 25% of the total weight of the garlic mustard you're using.

Full recipe in the link at the top of the video description.