Elephant garlic
| Elephant garlic | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae | 
| Clade: | Tracheophytes | 
| Clade: | Angiosperms | 
| Clade: | Monocots | 
| Order: | Asparagales | 
| Family: | Amaryllidaceae | 
| Subfamily: | Allioideae | 
| Genus: | Allium | 
| Species: | |
| Variety: | A. a. var. ampeloprasum | 
| Trinomial name | |
| Allium ampeloprasum var. ampeloprasum L. | |
Elephant garlic (Allium ampeloprasum var. ampeloprasum) is a plant belonging to the onion genus and a cultivar of Allium ampeloprasum, the broadleaf wild leek. It has a tall, solid, flowering stalk, and flat leaves. The flavor is milder than garlic and can be eaten raw in salads, roasted, or sautéed, but is generally not a substitute for conventional garlic in cooking. It is sometimes confused with solo garlic.
The assignment of "var. ampeloprasum" is dubious because it should refer to a group containing the type that defines A. ampeloprasum. Authors who believe that cultivated elephant garlic is a different variety from the wild one use an alternative assignment, Allium ampeloprasum var. holmense (Mill) Asch. et Graebn.