Background: I use a ton of garlic. I use foraged wild garlic/onions. I also rely heavily on roasted garlic from the olive bar at the specialty grocery store for things like the No Cook Pizza Sauce. I use pickled garlic from a local international grocer that specializes in hard-to-find Middle Eastern foods. But I don’t use raw garlic. Unless I buy it from a farmer’s market, any Rocambole garlic, standard purple stripe garlic, or artichoke garlic that comes into my possession goes straight through this process and into the fridge.
- Buy peeled garlic cloves or peel them yourself if you must. Whatever you do, make sure they are as fresh as possible. I used peeled garlic that is in a plastic container with a lid. Any bulging on the lid suggests that the garlic is past its prime and should be avoided. When you open the container smell the garlic and taste a bight of one. If it tastes off in any way, don’t use it.
- Get a microwave-safe bowl large enough to fit all the garlic and add the garlic plus two inches of water at the bottom.
- Microwave the garlic in the water until the water boils. This is about 5 minutes for my microwave.
- Immediately cover with a lid.
- Let all the steam naturally dissipate and let it cool down but get it into the fridge or freezer within the hour.
- Put some in the fridge as is, pickle some with vinegar, and freeze the rest.
Why it works:
- It’s actually hard to find excellent fresh garlic. I use the microwave, water, and the steam it generates to kind of pasteurize the garlic. This will stop the enzymatic process that makes the garlic go rancid.
- It helps if it has handles and a lid. I use two small square vintage Corningware dishes with handles and use one for the lid. The handles and the lid are very important, but the move will work without them.
- You kind of have to watch it until you get the timing dialed in. Every microwave is different. The carryover cooking from the lidded, microwaved dish is where most of the work is done.
- If you go lidless, you can use a plate to cover. Just make sure it fits snugly and/or weight it down.
- Once it is cooled, with gentle pressure, you should be able to mash the garlic with a fork in the bottom of the dish without water splashing everywhere. I like my steamed garlic the consistency of roasted garlic, but you can play with the timing to create a firmer result.
- Use the refrigerated garlic first, then the frozen, then the pickled.
Mods:
- If you want pickled garlic, skip the microwave and just cover the cloves with vinegar.
- Blend up a stick of butter with some of the cloves to make garlic butter and preserve the garlic longer.
- Toss with your favorite herbs before putting in the fridge.