Ramps and pancetta frittata, and ume sake or vodka: two seasonal fruit and vegetable recipes

While I love the idea of food foraging - searching mountains and forests for wild ingredients - I'd probably hate it if I were forced to do it, especially if I had to depend on it for survival. Instead, I 'forage' through the wet markets, knowing that some of my favourite vendors occasionally get very limited supplies of local, seasonal fruit and vegetables.

In the past month, I've been thrilled to find ramps (also known as wild onion or wild garlic), ume (almost always identified as green plums, although there's a compelling argument that they're actually green apricots - in fact they resemble apricots, too), mulberries (which look like blackberries) and the tiniest (gumball-sized) new potatoes. Over the next month or so I expect to also find yang mei (Chinese bayberries), spring ginger and ripe apricots. When I find these ingredients, I buy them immediately, knowing from past experience that if I wait, I will probably miss out.

Ramps and pancetta frittata (pictured)

I had an e-mail conversation with a friend living in New York City, who wrote about finding ramps at the Union Square Greenmarket. I told her I'd bought some as well, from a wet market vendor in Quarry Bay. We compared prices: she paid US$3 for 170 grams of ramps, while I paid only HK$7 for 500 grams. If you're lucky enough to find ramps, make sure you wash them well because they're a wild vegetable.

Oil, for the skillet

125 grams thickly sliced (about 3mm thick) pancetta

About 75 grams chopped onion

About 250 grams ramps

8 large eggs, at room temperature

300ml cream

About 15ml freshly grated parmesan, plus extra for sprinkling

Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Rinse the ramps thoroughly then trim off and discard the root. Use a sharp knife to slit the thickest part of the bulb lengthwise into quarters, then cut the entire length of each ramp into 2cm-long pieces. Trim off and discard the skin of the pancetta then cut the meat and fat into 5mm-wide pieces.

Whisk the eggs with the cream and 15 grams of parmesan then season to taste with black pepper and a little salt, if needed (the cheese is salty). Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.

Heat a 28cm to 30cm skillet (preferably cast iron) over a medium flame and oil the interior lightly but thoroughly. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until it starts to brown. Lower the flame, add the onion and cook until soft. Turn the heat back to medium, add the ramps and cook until they're wilted. Add the egg/cream mixture and stir to evenly distribute the ingredients. Cook without stirring for a few minutes then sprinkle parmesan cheese over the top.

Slide the pan into the oven and lower the heat to 180 degrees. Bake the frittata for about 10 minutes or until set - the custard will be just slightly puffy. If you like, lightly brown the surface under the grill. Leave for about 15 minutes before cutting into slices and serving.

Ume sake or vodka

Ume sake takes several months to age and I'm just finishing off the batch that I made last year. This year, I also made ume vodka. Whichever alcohol you use, select only the brightest, freshest ume, and reject any with dark spots or bruises.

You can find very cheap ume-infused sake in Japanese supermarkets, but it's made with poor-quality sake. I use sake that tastes good on its own, although it doesn't have to be expensive. For the vodka, I used Belvedere because it was the only brand I had in the house, but there's no need to go high-end.

This 'recipe' can also be adapted for other seasonal fruits such as mulberries (which look similar to blackberries) and yang mei, which are bright red with a bumpy exterior and large seed. There's no need to pierce mulberries or yang mei before infusing them. The initial infusion time will be relatively short (no more than a month) and you should add less sugar, since these fruits are sweeter and less acidic. After the sugar dissolves (in about a week), decant the liquor into a bottle and refrigerate it.

Ume

Sake or vodka

White sugar

Wash a heatproof glass jar that will fit the ume with about 2cm at the top to spare (a tall, narrow jar is better than one that is short and wide, because there will be less surface area). Fill the jar with boiling water then empty it and leave to air-dry.

Weigh the ume and write down the amount (you'll need to know it later). Wash the ume thoroughly then pull out and discard the stem. Use a sterilised pin to poke each ume in several places. Put the ume into the jar and cover with the sake or vodka, then cover with the lid.

Leave at room temperature for a few days, shaking the jar occasionally - the ume will turn from bright green to pale khaki.

Put the jar away in a cupboard for a few months to let the ume infuse; shake the jar whenever you remember to do so. After a few months, add the sugar, using half the amount (by weight) of the ume. Leave for a few days, shaking the jar now and then to help dissolve the sugar, then put it away for at least two more months. Put the jar in the fridge and serve the sake or vodka cold, adding one ume to each glass before serving it (the fruit will be very potent).

Styling: Tomoko Inamura

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