Grilled Ramps

Grilling ramps enhances their sweetness and gives them a tender-crisp crunch. It's the ideal way to cook this great wild spring vegetable.

J. Kenji López-Alt

Updated August 26, 2024

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A mess of grilled ramps, strewn on a white background. — Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

Why It Works

Grilling ramps helps their natural complex sugars break down into simpler sugars like glucose and fructose, making them incredibly sweet and tender.

Sometimes the simplest methods are the best. Strike that. Usually the simplest methods are the best. We continue our rampage with my favorite cooking method: simple grilling. Fresh spring ramps, tossed in a bit of olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper, and cooked over a roaring hot fire. It's the ideal way to enhance the natural flavor of this awesome wild spring vegetable.

There's nothing complicated about it. Just build a fire, oil and season the ramps, and throw 'em on. Then get ready, because these suckers cook fast.

Ramps arranged on a charcoal grill. — Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

Ramps are sweeter than either scallions or leeks, their closest counterparts in the standard supermarket, and grilling enhances that sweetness. See, as they cook, their natural complex sugars break down into simpler sugars like glucose and fructose, which then go on to recombine, break down again, recombine again, and so on, without even taking a break for lunch. The result is a sweetness that is far more complex and satisfying, just as caramel is more flavorful than plain white sugar.

The best part? They're done and ready to serve in just about two minutes. So sweet and tender I like to serve them for dessert after an afternoon of grilling.

May 2013

Recipe Details

Grilled Ramps Recipe

Prep 5 mins

Cook 30 mins

Active 5 mins

Total 35 mins

Serves 4 servings

Ingredients

32 ramps, cleaned and trimmed
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Place ramps on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Toss until well coated.
Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange the coals on one side of the charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Alternatively, set half the burners on a gas grill to the highest heat setting, cover, and preheat for 10 minutes. Clean and oil the grilling grate.
Place ramps on hot side of grill and cook, turning occasionally, until tender and charred, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a serving platter, drizzle with more olive oil, and serve.
Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

Special Equipment

Rimmed baking sheet, grill, chimney starter (optional)

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
78	Calories
7g	Fat
4g	Carbs
1g	Protein

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories	78
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 7g	9%
Saturated Fat 1g	5%
Cholesterol 0mg	0%
Sodium 88mg	4%
Total Carbohydrate 4g	2%
Dietary Fiber 1g	5%
Total Sugars 1g
Protein 1g
Vitamin C 11mg	53%
Calcium 41mg	3%
Iron 1mg	5%
Potassium 157mg	3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.