How to Pickle Garlic Scapes in Canada (Two Methods)

Garlic scapes appear for about three weeks every June. If you grow hardneck garlic you trim them off so the bulb gets bigger; if you don’t, the farmers’ market has bundles for a few dollars. They taste like a milder, greener version of garlic, halfway between a scallion and a fresh garlic clove.

The classic Canadian thing to do with a glut of them is pickle them. This guide covers both paths: the quick refrigerator method (most beginner-friendly) and the water-bath canned method (shelf-stable but slightly softer).

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When and where to get them

• Mid-June to early July across most of Canada, depending on your zone. Earlier in southern Ontario and BC interior; later in the Maritimes and parts of the Prairies.
• Farmers’ markets and U-pick farms are the easiest source. Bundles of 30–50 scapes for $3–6.
• Your own garden if you grew hardneck garlic last fall. Scapes appear about a month before bulb harvest; cutting them off improves the bulb size by 20–30%.
• Some grocery stores in larger Canadian cities carry them briefly. Look in the produce section near the fresh herbs.

You want scapes that snap cleanly when bent — fresh, not bendy or fibrous. The curl pattern doesn’t matter; trim and pickle them all the same.

Path A: Quick refrigerator pickles (no canner)

The easiest first project. Done in 20 minutes, ready to eat in 24 hours, fridge-stable for about 4 weeks.

What you need

• About 500 g garlic scapes (a hefty bundle)
• 2 × 500 mL Bernardin jars (or 4 × 250 mL)
• 2 cups (500 mL) 5% white vinegar
• 2 cups (500 mL) water
• 2 tbsp pickling salt (or kosher salt — never iodized)
• Per jar: 1 tsp mustard seeds, 1 tsp peppercorns, 1–2 dill heads or a generous tsp of dried dill seed, 1 small dried chili (optional)

Method

1. Trim the scapes. Cut off the flower bud at the top and the woody bit at the bottom. The remaining curly stalk goes into the jar. Cut to fit your jar — 500 mL jars take ~10 cm pieces; 250 mL jars take ~8 cm pieces.
2. Prep the jars. Wash in hot soapy water. No sterilization needed for refrigerator pickles.
3. Build the brine. Combine vinegar, water, and salt in a saucepan. Bring to a boil; stir until salt dissolves; remove from heat.
4. Pack the jars. Drop spices into the bottom of each jar (mustard, peppercorns, dill, chili). Pack scapes vertically, as tightly as you can without crushing them.
5. Pour the hot brine over the scapes, leaving about 1 cm headspace. Tap the jar gently to release trapped air.
6. Lid and chill. Screw on a clean SNAP lid and band. Wait until the jar cools to room temperature, then refrigerate.
7. Wait at least 24 hours before tasting. Best after 3–5 days. Crispest in the first 2 weeks; still tasty (if softer) at 4 weeks.

These are refrigerator-only — they’re not safely shelf-stable because they haven’t been water-bath processed.

Path B: Water-bath canned (shelf-stable for a year)

Same ingredients, same prep, with the canning step at the end. Result: jars you can store in the pantry for 12 months and gift through the winter.

Additional equipment

• Boiling water bath canner (any tall stockpot with a rack)
• Jar lifter
• Headspace tool
• Fresh SNAP lids (single-use — see why SNAP lids cannot be reused)

Method (the additions to Path A)

1. Heat the canner with water enough to cover jars by 2.5 cm; bring to a simmer.
2. Warm the jars in the simmering water until you’re ready to fill them.
3. Pack scapes, spices, and brine as in Path A, leaving 1 cm (½ inch) headspace.
4. Run a headspace tool around the inside of each jar to release trapped air. Re-check headspace.
5. Wipe the rims with a clean damp cloth. A clean rim is the single biggest factor in a good seal.
6. Apply fresh SNAP lids and bands fingertip-tight.
7. Process in the boiling water bath for the time published in your Bernardin recipe at your altitude band. Start timing when the water returns to a full rolling boil. Open your Bernardin Complete Book of Home Preserving for the exact minute count; our altitude-adjustments guide explains the four-band Canadian system.
8. Cool 12–24 hours undisturbed. Check seals: the SNAP-lid centre should be firm and concave. If a jar didn’t seal, the 24-hour rule applies — refrigerate and use within a month, or reprocess with a fresh lid within 24 hours.

Shelf-stable for 12 months in a cool, dark place. Best quality in the first 6.

The brine ratio in plain English

The widely-published Canadian standard pickling brine ratio (from Bernardin and decades of farm cookbooks) is roughly:

• 1 part 5% vinegar : 1 part water by volume
• About 2 tbsp pickling salt per litre of finished brine

That works out to:

• 2 cups (500 mL) vinegar + 2 cups (500 mL) water + 2 tbsp salt = ~1 L brine = enough for about 4 × 500 mL jars

You can’t reduce the vinegar without making the brine unsafe for water-bath canning — the acid is what makes the recipe safe. For refrigerator pickles you have more flexibility, but stick to at least 1 part vinegar to 2 parts water; below that the brine becomes too mild to inhibit bacterial growth even in the fridge.

Common failures (and how to avoid them)

• Soft pickles. Most common with water-bath canned scapes. Use fresh-cut scapes, add a grape leaf or oak leaf to each jar for tannins, don’t over-process, cool jars promptly.
• Cloudy brine. Usually mineral content in your water (calcium, magnesium). Use distilled or filtered water for the brine if your tap water is hard. Cloudy brine is fine to eat as long as it doesn’t smell off; if accompanied by foaming or an off odour, discard the jar.
• A jar didn’t seal. The 24-hour rule. Refrigerator pickles in that jar instead.
• Garlic turned blue or green. Harmless — a reaction between sulfur compounds in the garlic and trace metals in the water. Doesn’t affect safety or flavour, just looks weird.

Other things to do with garlic scapes

If pickling 50 scapes feels like a lot:

• Garlic scape pesto. Blend scapes with olive oil, parmesan, pine nuts (or sunflower seeds), salt, and lemon. Freezes well in ice-cube trays for winter pasta.
• Chopped raw into salads, eggs, fried rice, or grain bowls. Milder than raw garlic, with a green vegetal note.
• Grilled or roasted whole. Toss with olive oil and salt, grill 3–5 minutes a side until charred and tender.
• Garlic scape compound butter. Soft butter + minced scapes + a pinch of salt; roll in plastic wrap, freeze. Slice off rounds onto steak, eggs, baked potatoes.
• Frozen raw. Chopped, in freezer bags. Lower quality than fresh but workable for cooking applications all winter.

When you’ll see them again

About 350 days from now. Set a phone reminder for early June if you missed this season — they’re easy to forget about until they’re gone.

Next steps

• Water-bath canning pillar — full method context if Path B was your first canning project.
• SNAP lids reuse rules — important if you canned and one didn’t seal.
• Canning altitude adjustments — for the processing-time math.
• Coming next: dill pickles (cucumber, fresh-pack) for early July, then bread-and-butter pickles.