Garlic Scapes Substitutes, Ranked by the Job Scapes Are Doing

Garlic scapes are the stiff flower stalks of hardneck garlic.¹ Growers snap them off because a scape left on the plant reduces the size of the bulb.¹ Young chopped scapes give a mild garlic flavor, according to UMaine,¹ and Nebraska Extension calls them milder than garlic cloves.² They are also seasonal: Nebraska gives May through July and says they turn up more often at farmers markets than in grocery stores.² Out of season, the right substitute depends on whether you need the scapes’ green crunch, their garlic flavor, or both.

Quick answer

No published ratio exists for any of these swaps, so every starting point on this page is a Method starting point.

How the ratios on this page are labeled

Every ratio carries one of four labels.

• Computed: based on a measurable physical relationship, with the source named.
• Attributed: a named source publishes this ratio. We quote it as theirs.
• Disputed: named sources give different answers to the same swap. We show each one and do not average them.
• Method: we found no published ratio. We give a direction and a cautious starting point, and say so.

If scapes are mild garlic flavor, chopped

UW-Extension’s advice for scapes is to cut them into small pieces and use them as you would garlic in a recipe.³ Nebraska suggests them in stir-fries, eggs, salads and hummus and on pizza.² In all of these, a milder, greener garlic is what you are after.

1. Green garlic

Green garlic is young garlic pulled before the bulb matures. Tasting Table describes it as “a young, unmatured version” of the familiar bulb, with a less intense flavor than the standard bulb.⁴ That is the same direction as scapes, which are also milder than cloves.² No source compares the two directly.

Ratio (Method): No published ratio was found. Use the same volume, chopped, and taste. The white and pale green parts are, in our judgment, the most garlicky; use more of the dark green tops if the flavor is too strong.

2. Garlic chives

Garlic chives (Allium tuberosum) have a mild garlic taste and smell.⁵ They are softer than scapes, so in our judgment add them at the very end of cooking.

Ratio (Method): Use the same volume, chopped, and taste. See garlic chives.

If scapes are a crunchy vegetable in a stir-fry

Here texture matters as much as flavor. The closest match we know of is another flower stalk.

1. Garlic chive flower stems

These are the flowering stalks of garlic chives, sold in markets with tender, unopened flower buds on top.⁶ The Woks of Life notes they are more seasonal than the leaves, since the plant generally flowers once per season.⁶ In our judgment they are the nearest thing to a scape in shape and bite.

Ratio (Method): No published ratio was found. Use the same amount, cut to the same length.

2. Green beans or asparagus with garlic

If you have neither, in our judgment a crisp green vegetable cut into short lengths, stir-fried with a little minced garlic, gives the look and crunch. NDSU treats one medium clove as about 1/2 teaspoon minced.⁷

Ratio (Method): Use the same volume of vegetable, plus one small clove of garlic per cup, and taste.

If scapes are the base of a pesto

Scape pesto depends on raw scapes for both bulk and garlic. Swap in a tender green for the bulk and add garlic for the flavor.

Ratio (Method): No published ratio was found. For each cup of chopped scapes, use one cup of chopped scallion greens or garlic chives plus one small clove of garlic, then taste before adding more. America’s Test Kitchen finds that finer cuts of garlic taste stronger and that minced garlic left sitting keeps developing stronger flavor,⁸ so blend, taste, and adjust at the end.

Storing it safely. Pesto made with raw garlic is garlic in oil. UC ANR warns never to store garlic in oil at room temperature, and to keep homemade garlic-in-oil mixtures in the refrigerator for no more than 4 days or in the freezer.⁹ Its guidance is written for garlic cloves; no scape-specific guidance was found, so treat scape pesto and its substitutes the same way.

If scapes are grilled or roasted as a side

Nebraska suggests grilling, sautéing or roasting scapes.² For a side dish, the thing to replace is a long green stalk that chars well.

1. Scallions

Nebraska suggests using scapes in place of green onions or scallions,² and the swap works in reverse for this job. Scallions have no garlic flavor of their own, so brush them with garlic butter or garlic oil before they go on the grill (see the safety note above for homemade garlic oil). That is our suggestion, not a tested method.

Ratio (Method): Use the same weight of whole scallions as scapes.

If you only need the garlic flavor

1. Garlic cloves

Garlic cloves come from the same plant as scapes.¹ They give the flavor but none of the green, so they work in soups, sauces and dressings where the scapes would be chopped fine anyway.

Ratio (Method): No published ratio was found, and scapes are milder than cloves.² Start with one small clove for each cup of chopped scapes the recipe calls for, and add more to taste.

What isn’t known

• No published ratio exists for replacing garlic scapes with any other ingredient. All starting points above are ours.
• No source compares the garlic strength of scapes with green garlic or garlic chives, and we found no analysis of the sulfur compounds in scapes.
• It is sometimes said that green garlic is narrower and more tender than scapes. No source reviewed here compares their texture.

Related

• Garlic scapes and how to store garlic scapes
• Garlic, garlic chives, wild garlic, chives
• Fresh garlic substitutes, garlic chives substitutes, chives substitutes
• Garlic chives vs. chives, chives vs. green onions