Topic · Vegetable Cookery Fundamentals
Garlic Techniques
Garlic is used as a condiment in most parts of the world, except northern and Eastern Europe where the onion is king. A garlic head consists of 12-16 cloves, each wrapped in a papery skin.
Selection
Choose fresh garlic that looks plump and feels firm.
Storage
Keep it in a cool, dry, dark place with some air circulation. Leaving heads whole will prevent individual cloves to dry out rapidly.
Hints and Tips
- Wetting your fingers with water from time to time will prevent them from getting sticky from the garlic juices.
- If salt is called for in your recipe, try adding a little to the garlic as you are mincing it. The salt will help break down the garlic, making it crisper and facilitating easy mincing.
Peeling Garlic
Select a whole bulb of fresh garlic whose cloves are held tightly together and are not discolored. Separate the cloves quickly by placing the garlic bulb root-side down on a cutting board and pressing down on it firmly with the heel of your hand until it separates.
To peel the cloves, with a paring knife, cut off both ends.
Peel off the skin.
Before chopping you must remove the germ of each clove, to avoid various stomach discomforts such as gastric pain, burps, strong breath, etc. To do so, split the clove in half lengthwise by the root side.
Pull away on each half the germ which is the “seed” located at the root.
Chopping – “Hacher” Garlic
First, chop the garlic roughly in slices.
Keep the tip of the knife on the cutting board and move the handle up and down. Stop after every few strokes and use the blade of the knife to draw the garlic pieces back into a neat pile before continuing. Scrape off the garlic that has stuck to the side of the knife blade, too. Keep chopping until the desired width is achieved; the thinner the better.
Alternatively, it is alright to use a garlic press as long you have removed the germ part of the garlic, like I always say to my students, if you like the people you are cooking for, take it off!
Dicing – “Ciseler” Garlic
In this demo, I am starting with vertical cuts, but you can make the horizontal cuts first, then the vertical cuts. It is a matter of choice.
Make small vertical cuts.
Raise your knife and make one or more horizontal cuts.
Cut straight down through the garlic.
