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Hey there

One or two things about garlic (which I love!) in recipes that annoys me, I was wondering what is your take on them?

- Crushed garlic can either mean whole garlic smashed with the side of a knife blade and then used whole, and usually retrieved - or it means crushed as puréed in a garlic press (in which case kinda equivalent to very fine chopping). For some recipes you would be able to gather that through the rest of the instructions, but sometimes not.

I agree, that you can use one or the other depending on how garlicky a flavour you intend to get, but it would still be nice to know what the author himself intended ? 

- A lot of recipes, in most countries I have read recipes from, indicate chopped onions and garlic should go together in the pan to sweat a few minutes, before adding other ingredients. Now, this seems appropriate for onions, but in my experience garlic heats much more quickly, and it looks more efficient to add the garlic about 30 seconds to a minute, before the onions are ready and adding the rest, to avoid it burning or overcooking.

What do you think? If you have any other garlic questions, you can throw it in there too :)

I like garlic, so if it goes in the pot then it stays in! I have also had bad experiences with burnt garlic. When the recipe instructs to cook the onions & garlic for five minutes before adding the remaining ingredients, I cook the onions for 4 minutes & add the garlic for the final minute. If the recipe wants me to make garlic oil, I cook the garlic in oil for one minute and then let it rest off the heat until I am ready to add it to the remaining ingredients. (I also bought a wonderful roasted garlic olive oil from a local kitchen store, which I use for recipes that call for both olive oil & garlic -- as a substitute for plain olive oil; I still add the suggested number of garlic cloves.)

I just assume crushed garlic means the smashed version, and then do what I want anyway, based on flavor I want, how long it is going to cook and how lazy I am at the moment.  That said, the smaller I chop the garlic, the later I wait to add it to the pan.  I would never add it with onions in a frying pan, since it would burn. 

I came across this article in the Washington Post last year, and it has upped my use of dried garlic.  Interesting reading.  https://www.washingtonpo...6/25/garlic-powder-tips/

Zephy

Originally Posted by: lkgrover

I like garlic, so if it goes in the pot then it stays in! I have also had bad experiences with burnt garlic. When the recipe instructs to cook the onions & garlic for five minutes before adding the remaining ingredients, I cook the onions for 4 minutes & add the garlic for the final minute. If the recipe wants me to make garlic oil, I cook the garlic in oil for one minute and then let it rest off the heat until I am ready to add it to the remaining ingredients. (I also bought a wonderful roasted garlic olive oil from a local kitchen store, which I use for recipes that call for both olive oil & garlic -- as a substitute for plain olive oil; I still add the suggested number of garlic cloves.)

Actually for garlic oil what I do is -> I keep small plastic or glass container I get from everywhere, and then use it to store garlic in oil whenever I peel too much to reuse the cloves later.... and then when I need garlic oil, I just use the oil in there and add a top up if I feel it needs a little top up to keep up my peeled garlic.

Originally Posted by: Zephyrness

I came across this article in the Washington Post last year, and it has upped my use of dried garlic.  Interesting reading.  https://www.washingtonpo...6/25/garlic-powder-tips/

Ah yes I used to buy those when I lived in the UK - I encountered it once in a recipe and thought indeed it was practical for some uses. I may do this again, we have it in France it is called "ail semoule" I think.

If the recipe says crushed garlic, I assume that this means garlic that has been through a garlic crusher, or reduced to the same state by crushing repeatedly  with a knife, possibly with some salt to help, So reduced to a rough paste, and I would use thise interchangeably with minced garlic, which is mainly an American term; garlic crushers are very popular in the UK where I live

If the garlic is to be smashed or bruised and left whole, probably to be retrieved later, then I expect the instructions to be explicit.

I agree with holding back the garlic until the onions are nearly cooked

I see a lot of recipes calling for minced garlic, a lot called for crushed (puréed) garlic, a lot calling for a clove of garlic that has been smashed (e.g. with the flat side of a knife), and a lot calling for garlic that has been peeled but otherwise left whole. What difference do these methods make for the garlic flavor of the finished product?

This thread has intrigued me and prompted some research .. I found this well considered article on garlic and thought I'd share ! Click here

It's worth the read! I've always just crushed with a crusher... laziness ;-) and never really considered the impact of sliced/crushed/minced/paste until your query!!

Thanks debkellie! That clearly summarizes the uses of different 'cuts' of garlic.

Good article debkellie. 

So if a recipe calls for, say, 3 cloves garlic, what size are the cloves supposed to be?

Bitrette, I'm so with you on that query .. and it applies to just about every "fresh produce" item.. I'm always googling "average weight of xxx": when a recipe calls for 6 apples/ lemons/ tomatoes etc etc..

I wish authors would consider using weights & measures rather than units!

As to garlic: the general consensus in the google search on this query suggests that 1 tsp of "chopped" garlic = 1 clove, or 1/2 tsp of "minced" garlic. A clove generally weighs between 4 and 7 grams; unless you're using "giant garlic" where a single clove can be 10 - 45g....

So no closer to a solution on weight : let your own garlic palate be your friend!

"It would still be nice to know what the author himself intended"

That's EXACTLY why I want to know whether the author intends 3 small, medium or large cloves of garlic.

Another thing about trusting your garlic palate: I VERY OFTEN hear the admonition that you can use more garlic than the recipe calls for but you cannot use less.

Well, my garlic palate tells me to use less, or none, or to use shallots instead.

This is a subject for another topic, but for the time being, if the recipe calls for a medium clove of garlic, minced, how much is that in minced medium shallots? What about a medium clove of garlic, crushed? Can shallots be substituted for crushed garlic at all?

Originally Posted by: bittrette

"It would still be nice to know what the author himself intended"

That's EXACTLY why I want to know whether the author intends 3 small, medium or large cloves of garlic.

Yes exactly - I mean I know I can adjust the recipe to my liking but what is the taste that the author was trying to achieve. I am assuming medium most of the time and would do 1 1/2 for 1 if small or 1/2 if big etc. 

It's true also that we have the same problem for any fresh vegetable. Would be nice to have the intended weight, or at least volume (e.g. 1tsp) :)

Originally Posted by: bittrette

Another thing about trusting your garlic palate: I VERY OFTEN hear the admonition that you can use more garlic than the recipe calls for but you cannot use less.

Well, my garlic palate tells me to use less, or none, or to use shallots instead.

This is a subject for another topic, but for the time being, if the recipe calls for a medium clove of garlic, minced, how much is that in minced medium shallots? What about a medium clove of garlic, crushed? Can shallots be substituted for crushed garlic at all?

I can't speak to equivalent amounts when substituting shallots for garlic, but the author of the blog Cocoa & Lavender has posted about such due to a garlic allergy.

I'm not going to make light of garlic allergies, but a garlic allergy seems to be the only acceptable reason for avoiding garlic. That, and having to cook for the Bernice or Pops who lives with you. 

Originally Posted by: bittrette

I'm not going to make light of garlic allergies, but a garlic allergy seems to be the only acceptable reason for avoiding garlic. That, and having to cook for the Bernice or Pops who lives with you.

Or reflux/GERD. I always have to cut down the garlic, as much as I love it. If a recipe says 3 cloves, I use 2. My cloves are usually on the large size anyways.

I'm not garlic's biggest fan but I do use it when I think of it, especially in the winter months,  because I have read that garlic is a mild natural antibiotic in our systems. I have no idea if that is actually true but it is what I read, so in an effort to  be a bit more healthy,  I do use fresh garlic sometimes. 

Bottom line for now: I am considering a recipe that calls for 1 smashed clove of garlic. I will take all suggestions for a non-garlic substitute for that, because my reaction to any garlic beyond a mere hint is YUCK. That goes for roasted garlic too.