How to make cod with wild garlic, miso and clams

Forget daffodils... wild garlic is the true harbinger of spring, and also one of its biggest joys

Wild thing: often whipped up into a pesto, the fragrant plant is natural partner to potatoes, but here we’ve paired with seafood (Photography by Julia Platt Leonard)

Crocuses and daffodils may get the attention, but I’d vote for wild garlic as the true harbinger of spring.

You can find wild garlic (or ransoms) growing like weeds throughout the countryside come March.

In fact, it grows so profusely that it’s often treated like a weed by over zealous gardeners.

Shame, since wild garlic is one of the true joys of the spring cooking calendar. Yes – as its name implies – it tastes of garlic but it also has a fresh, grassy flavour with a hint of sweetness. Chop it roughly and toss it into soups or stews or puree it to make an alternative pesto.

Do taste a leaf or two first as some leaves will have a more pronounced garlicky flavour than others.

Wild garlic is a natural for potatoes, eggs, chicken and quickly steamed greens. It’s also a fan of fish and seafood like this dish of cod and clams.

One of the joys – and there are many – of wild garlic is that when it’s pureed, it’s a gorgeous, vibrant green, just the thing to perk up a plate of food.

The addition of sweet, white miso and mirin tame the garlic tones, while rice wine vinegar gives it a welcome acidic note.

(Julia Platt Leonard)

Cod with wild garlic, miso and clams

Serves 2

2 cod fillets, weighing approximately 200g each, skin on
150g clams
12g wild garlic leaves
2 tbsp white miso
2 tbsp  mirin
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
25g butter
4g arame, dried seaweed (optional)

If using the arame, rinse, place in a bowl and cover with water. Let sit for 10 minutes then drain thoroughly and set aside. Note: the seaweed will double in volume.

To make the wild garlic and miso sauce, wash and roughly chop the wild garlic, reserving one large leaf to use as a garnish. Place the mirin, oil, vinegar and chopped wild garlic into a blender and blitz under smooth and pureed. Alternatively, you can use a handheld stick blender. Taste and season with salt. Set aside.

Season the cod fillets generously with salt and pepper. Heat a pan over a medium heat, melt the butter and place the cod fillets flesh side down. Cook for 3-4 minutes, depending on the thickness, turn and cook skin side down until cooked through. Remove the fillets from the pan and keep warm until ready to serve.

Wipe the pan clean, add a few splashes of water and the clams. Cover and cook until the clams have opened up. Throw away any clams that don’t open.

Place the cod fillets in bowls or on plates. Divide the clams and seaweed (if using) and top with the wild garlic and miso sauce. Chop the remaining leaf of wild garlic into thin strips and garnish.

@juliapleonard