A friend of mine recently asked me how to use garlic in cooking. She said she never uses it and doesn't even know how. I was stunned. Who doesn't use garlic? Why, that's downright un-American.
I think everything that I truly like contains garlic. It is used to flavor the greatest dishes in the world. Cooking without garlic is like jumping without a parachute.
No one knows for sure when garlic was discovered, but garlic has been written about as early as 5,000 years ago. It was used in 3,000 B.C., by Chinese scholars who enjoyed it as a condiment and also used it for medicinal purposes. The earliest Sanskrit writings contained articles about garlic used as seasoning for sacrificial lambs to please the gods. The word garlic comes from Old English garleac, meaning, “spear leek.”
Egyptians worshiped garlic and placed clay models of garlic bulbs in the tomb of Tutankhamen. Garlic was so highly prized, it was even used as currency. Folklore holds that garlic repelled vampires and protected against the Evil Eye.
Today, most of us love garlic as an essential ingredient in our daily diet.
When buying garlic, make sure the heads are dry with plenty of paper covering. If you can see green shoots then the garlic is probably too old or wasn't dried properly. Garlic that is too old will crumple under the slightest pressure from the fingers. Store unpeeled heads of garlic in an open container in a cool, dry place away from other foods. Do not refrigerate or freeze unpeeled garlic. Properly stored garlic can keep up to three months.
Garlic grows under the ground in large, slightly off-white bulbs or “heads,” which are covered by a papery skin. Inside each bulb are from 10 to 20 individual cloves, which themselves have a pinkish skin.
It's important to know the difference between bulbs and cloves when cooking.
Garlic can be used in many ways that include raw, cooked, whole, crushed or sliced. Raw garlic is stronger than cooked minced garlic, but minced is stronger than sliced. Roasted whole garlic has a totally different taste than crushed raw garlic. One raw garlic clove, finely minced or pressed, releases more flavor than a dozen cooked whole cloves.
When garlic cloves are cooked or baked whole, the flavor mellows into a sweet, almost nutty taste. This nutty flavor makes a surprisingly nice addition to desserts, such as brownies or even ice cream.
Cooked, whole, unpierced cloves barely have any aroma at all, while raw garlic is the strongest in flavor.
When sauteing garlic, be very careful not to burn it. The flavor turns intensely bitter, and you'll have to start over.
An easy rule of thumb to remember regarding the potency of the flavor of garlic is: The smaller you cut it, the stronger the flavor. Chopping finely or pressing a clove exposes more surfaces to the air, causing a chemical reaction to produce that strong aroma and potent flavor.
Any rich, savory entree is even better eaten with good bread. Here's a recipe that makes a loaf of store-bought bread extraordinary by the addition of herbs and feta cheese and garlic.
Goat cheese, or chevre, would be as good, but the bread will be a little milder. This makes a fast, easy, portable accompaniment to serve anywhere, anytime, with most any dish. I have also included a dish that turns the ordinary string bean into an amazing side dish that is also good cold. Enjoy.
This column has been a collaborative effort between Auburn natives chef Max Hitchcock and his mother, Susan Silverman. They can be reached at Birdscapes@adelphia.net
Crusty Herbed Garlic Bread with Feta Cheese
Makes 4 to 6 servings
1/4 cup olive oil
3 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon dried fennel seeds
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon ground thyme
1 fresh baguette or Italian bread
1/4 pound feta cheese, crumbled
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a food processor or with a hand blender, process the olive oil with the garlic and the fennel seeds. Toss the parsley and thyme together in a separate cup. Cut the bread into diagonal pieces about 1-1/2 inches thick; don't cut quite all the way through. Brush the cut sides lightly with the herb-garlic oil mixture, then sprinkle a little of the herb mixture and feta cheese between the slices. Seal the bread in foil and bake 20 minutes. Unwrap and serve hot.
Almond Garlic String Beans
Salt
1 pound string beans, trimmed
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup olive oil
4 to 5 cloves garlic, smashed
1-inch piece ginger, grated
1/2 teaspoon dried red chili flakes
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the beans and cook for just 1 to 2 minutes, until the beans turn bright green. Strain them and run under cold water to stop them from cooking.
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the almonds and toast them until golden brown, about 4 minutes, shaking the pan often to avoid burning the almonds. Remove the toasted almonds from the pan.
Return the skillet to the burner and increase the heat to medium-high. Heat the olive oil in the pan and add a few pinches of salt, the garlic, ginger, and chili flakes. Cook just until the garlic starts to brown. Add the vinegar and let cook down for 1 to 2 minutes.
Remove pan from heat and toss in the beans to coat them thoroughly and evenly with the dressing.
Serve on a platter and scatter the top with the toasted almonds.
No one knows for sure when garlic was discovered, but garlic has been written about as early as 5,000 years ago. It was used in 3,000 B.C., by Chinese scholars who enjoyed it as a condiment and also used it for medicinal purposes. The earliest Sanskrit writings contained articles about garlic used as seasoning for sacrificial lambs to please the gods. The word garlic comes from Old English garleac, meaning, “spear leek.”
Egyptians worshiped garlic and placed clay models of garlic bulbs in the tomb of Tutankhamen. Garlic was so highly prized, it was even used as currency. Folklore holds that garlic repelled vampires and protected against the Evil Eye.
Today, most of us love garlic as an essential ingredient in our daily diet.
When buying garlic, make sure the heads are dry with plenty of paper covering. If you can see green shoots then the garlic is probably too old or wasn't dried properly. Garlic that is too old will crumple under the slightest pressure from the fingers. Store unpeeled heads of garlic in an open container in a cool, dry place away from other foods. Do not refrigerate or freeze unpeeled garlic. Properly stored garlic can keep up to three months.
Garlic grows under the ground in large, slightly off-white bulbs or “heads,” which are covered by a papery skin. Inside each bulb are from 10 to 20 individual cloves, which themselves have a pinkish skin.
It's important to know the difference between bulbs and cloves when cooking.
Garlic can be used in many ways that include raw, cooked, whole, crushed or sliced. Raw garlic is stronger than cooked minced garlic, but minced is stronger than sliced. Roasted whole garlic has a totally different taste than crushed raw garlic. One raw garlic clove, finely minced or pressed, releases more flavor than a dozen cooked whole cloves.
When garlic cloves are cooked or baked whole, the flavor mellows into a sweet, almost nutty taste. This nutty flavor makes a surprisingly nice addition to desserts, such as brownies or even ice cream.
Cooked, whole, unpierced cloves barely have any aroma at all, while raw garlic is the strongest in flavor.
When sauteing garlic, be very careful not to burn it. The flavor turns intensely bitter, and you'll have to start over.
An easy rule of thumb to remember regarding the potency of the flavor of garlic is: The smaller you cut it, the stronger the flavor. Chopping finely or pressing a clove exposes more surfaces to the air, causing a chemical reaction to produce that strong aroma and potent flavor.
Any rich, savory entree is even better eaten with good bread. Here's a recipe that makes a loaf of store-bought bread extraordinary by the addition of herbs and feta cheese and garlic.
Goat cheese, or chevre, would be as good, but the bread will be a little milder. This makes a fast, easy, portable accompaniment to serve anywhere, anytime, with most any dish. I have also included a dish that turns the ordinary string bean into an amazing side dish that is also good cold. Enjoy.
This column has been a collaborative effort between Auburn natives chef Max Hitchcock and his mother, Susan Silverman. They can be reached at Birdscapes@adelphia.net
Crusty Herbed Garlic Bread with Feta Cheese
Makes 4 to 6 servings
1/4 cup olive oil
3 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon dried fennel seeds
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon ground thyme
1 fresh baguette or Italian bread
1/4 pound feta cheese, crumbled
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a food processor or with a hand blender, process the olive oil with the garlic and the fennel seeds. Toss the parsley and thyme together in a separate cup. Cut the bread into diagonal pieces about 1-1/2 inches thick; don't cut quite all the way through. Brush the cut sides lightly with the herb-garlic oil mixture, then sprinkle a little of the herb mixture and feta cheese between the slices. Seal the bread in foil and bake 20 minutes. Unwrap and serve hot.
Almond Garlic String Beans
Salt
1 pound string beans, trimmed
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup olive oil
4 to 5 cloves garlic, smashed
1-inch piece ginger, grated
1/2 teaspoon dried red chili flakes
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the beans and cook for just 1 to 2 minutes, until the beans turn bright green. Strain them and run under cold water to stop them from cooking.
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the almonds and toast them until golden brown, about 4 minutes, shaking the pan often to avoid burning the almonds. Remove the toasted almonds from the pan.
Return the skillet to the burner and increase the heat to medium-high. Heat the olive oil in the pan and add a few pinches of salt, the garlic, ginger, and chili flakes. Cook just until the garlic starts to brown. Add the vinegar and let cook down for 1 to 2 minutes.
Remove pan from heat and toss in the beans to coat them thoroughly and evenly with the dressing.
Serve on a platter and scatter the top with the toasted almonds.
The Citizens' Say
There are 1 comment(s)
I Agree! wrote on May 31, 2007 8:10 AM: