Garlic: Tips and Troubleshooting, Selecting, Storing, Recipes, Safety

[gfweb]

It's been a long time since I've posted on eGullet.

 

I've been growing my own garlic for about five years and it is one of the easiest garden crops. I grow hardneck varieties which do well in my growing zone.

 

Varieties:

 

Rocambole: Killarney Red, Svetlana, Spanish Andolini and Rioja cultivars. The Puslinch cultivar mentioned upthread is a rocambole and is also called Ontario Giant.

 

Porcelain: Floha, Portugal 2, Romanian Red, Music and Georgian Fire cultivars.

 

Marbled Purple Stripe: Bogatyr, Choparky, Duganskij and Metechi cultivars.

 

The cultivars do exhibit sometimes subtle and sometimes striking differences flavour and 'heat'.

 

Ashen's photo: Judging by the label printing the garlic came from Golden Acres Farm in Gadskill. An excellent supplier of organic seed garlic. The Stratford Garlic festival is being held this year Sept. 6-7. Here's a link to the site:

 

http://www.stratfordgarlicfestival.com/

 

The variety Kerry mentioned upthread is most likely a Creole variety French cultivar named Ail Rose de Lautrec. I know there are a few growers attempting to adapt it to grow in Southern Ontario and I hope to obtain some of their seed garlic.

 

Cheers.

What's the practical difference between the different types for cooking issues?

[Kerry Beal]

What about it is good? Different flavor?

It's been a while since I had it - but I'd say it was sweeter and milder than the usual garlic - never found it to be bitter. Nice big cloves - and of course it was always properly dried so it lasted pretty much forever before it began to spout.  It was usually just beginning to think about sprouting when I was ready for my next trip to Nice.

[Kerry Beal]

Kerry: Sorry I don't sell my garlic. I only grow it as a hobby and to supply my family. It's a long term project to find what does very well in my area and to maintain the integrity of the seed stock.

If you go to the Grimsby Thursday afternoon farmers' market there are more than likely vendors supplying locally grown garlic.

Too bad!  If you do get some seed for the rose garlic - it should do well if you live on the bench I expect.  The soil is somewhat chalky is it not?

[Ashen]

Ashen - when is the Stratford Garlic festival?

 

 

September 6  and 7 .    If you are thinking of going , I would recommend going early on the 6th,  I think the grounds open at 8 am .    Some varieties are limited and even by the afternoon of the first day the choice starts to narrow a lot.  There is an admission charge  7$   , 1 $ off coupon if you subscribe to the festival newsletter. 

 

http://www.stratfordgarlicfestival.com

[FauxPas]

I wonder if garlic still comes from Gilroy, CA.  not that far from where I grew up

 

driving though Gilroy, at anytime of the year, was a 'potent' experience

 

in later years the had their Festival.

 

Yes and no. I read that the garlic producers are still growing in that area, but most are not located right in Gilroy anymore. But Christopher Ranch, a huge garlic producer, is still headquartered there. And Gilroy still hosts that garlic festival! 

 

Here is one article:

 

http://westernfarmpress.com/quality-flavor-keeping-california-garlic-competitive-0

 

Here's a little more info on Christopher Ranch garlic:

 

http://producenews.net/more-company-profiles/company-profiles/13589-this-year-s-garlic-crop-looks-promising-at-christopher-ranch

[Wayne]

What's the practical difference between the different types for cooking issues?

There is not much difference IMO after the garlic has been cooked. The differences are much more apparent when the garlic is utilized as a raw ingredient. Other factors affecting the flavour profile (which are beyond the control of the consumer) include growing conditions, proper curing and storage conditions. 

I grow the different varieties and cultivars because each has a maximum storage potential and one year some varieties do very well and other do not and the next year it may be the reverse (however even failures make great pickles).

[JoNorvelleWalker]

I've attended the Pocono garlic festival in Stroudsberg.  The only time I've had garlic ice cream.

 

http://www.poconogarlic.com/

[fatmat]

Something missing from the chat is ransomes...wild garlic - the leaves taste amazing and make the most fantastic pesto. My breath is utterly offensive during the season because I gorge!! 

Edited August 29, 2014 by fatmat (log)

[Martin Fisher]

In regards to single clove garlic.....any garlic variety that produces bulbils up top will produce single cloves from the bulbils for the first year or two after they're planted.

 

There is not much difference IMO after the garlic has been cooked. The differences are much more apparent when the garlic is utilized as a raw ingredient. Other factors affecting the flavour profile (which are beyond the control of the consumer) include growing conditions, proper curing and storage conditions. 

I grow the different varieties and cultivars because each has a maximum storage potential and one year some varieties do very well and other do not and the next year it may be the reverse (however even failures make great pickles).

 

I agree, I started growing garlic in 1980 when I was 15 years old.....grew dozens of varieties for many years but now I've cut back to one because I sold the farm and have very limited space.

[Martin Baadsgaard]

Hey there. I was wondering if anyone knows how to pasteurize garlic?

For things like "Fresh" garlic oil or just garlic in oil.

As far as I understand, the toxin is killed at 80C/175F and the spores at 120C/250F but the bacteria dies quite readily.

I would like to be able to make garlic oil to use as sprinkle without having the garlic flavor completely destroyed or having to worry about botulism.

 

So the question is if killing the bacteria is enough and if so, at what temperature for what time?

 

Thanks...

[Lisa Shock]

No, you need to kill the spores. The spores grow in an anaerobic environment like oil, that's what makes them dangerous.

 

To kill the spores, you need to pressure fry at 255° for at least ten minutes. (true pressure fryers are expensive) Remember, just because frying oil reaches a temperature, that doesn't mean that a food being fried in it has reached that temperature, especially if that food contains water. If the food retains water, the temperature can't be more than the boiling point for that altitude. Once the water leaves garlic, the flavor changes to a distinctly cooked flavor with variations based upon whether the cloves were left whole or not.

 

Commercial producers of garlic oil acidulate the garlic and keep an eye on the pH during the entire process.

 

Honestly, the safest and easiest solution is to buy commercial garlic oil, or make and use up all of your garlic oil on a daily basis. If you are doing this in a commercial setting, like a restaurant, check your local laws. Garlic oil is regulated in the US.

[Martin Baadsgaard]

Well that is all for an answer I need, thankyou very much

 

I just wanted to know if it was completely out of the question, which I most definitely consider it to be now.

[Okanagancook]

I did not realize this about garlic.  I made garlic confit out of my extra garden garlic then I vacuum seal and freeze in about 1/2 cup portions, oil and cloves together.  I usually take one out and keep it in the fridge.

 

By the sounds of what Lisa is saying, I should throw the stuff in the fridge out and use the frozen stuff as soon as it is out of the freezer???

[Okanagancook]

Just did a google search and I am definitely throwing the stuff in the fridge out!  Thanks Lisa for your post.  I had now idea.  The stuff in the freezer should ok if I use it right away...I think I only have one package left anyways.  

[Martin Baadsgaard]

That or heat it till it turns into friend garlic confit

Or heat it above 80-85C/175-185F just before consumption.

 

The problem is with the toxin. Getting an actual infection is almost impossible through oral consumption.

[Martin Baadsgaard]

Doh, forgot a logical one. Pressure canning. I think that is also what Lisa really meant.

That reaches the right temperature to kill the spores in about 10 min time.

[AlaMoi]

separating the bits of fictions and facts . . .
anything that has soil contact can be 'contaminated' with botulism spores.

when the spores reproduce - they create, as a by product - a toxin.
the toxin produced is a protein.  not a bacteria, not a virus, not a spore, not a Martian.

one can consume botulism spores by the cupful on a daily basis with no ill effects because there is no danger until the spores "reproduce"

so, how does that happen?

first, the spores have to survive.  botulism spores are killed by a sustained temp of 240'F/116'C.
this is why the "boiling water" canning method is no longer recommended for most vegetables; pressure canning is required to reach that temperature.

but my grandmother always did her tomatoes . . .  forget it.  "modern" tomatoes have been bred to be low acid.  unless you're canning a known high acid heirloom tomato, the red thingy in the pot is not your granny's tomato.

the required reproduction environment is:  very low oxygen content, a pH above 4.6 (or so, not every source agrees to the tenth), and a smidgen of water.

hence the advice to add acidic stuff like lemon juice, etc., when canning 'stuff' - commercially "infused" oils use various chemicals to ensure the pH stays well below the +/- 4.6 range, and they have seriously better control of the process.

all these "efforts" are aimed at preventing the botulism spores from reproducing.
should all the efforts fail and the botulism spores do reproduce and do produce the deadly toxin, comma.....
the toxin being an organic protein is killed at less than boiling water temperatures (i.e. 212'F / 100'C)
officially the recommendation is to vigorous boil all canned goods for ten minutes prior to consumption.

refrigeration slows the potential reproduction, boiling kills the toxin - please feel free to chose your own course of action - I'm not testing either theory; I'll go with the pressure canning route.
 

[Okanagancook]

Thanks for the information.  And, 'when in doubt, throw it out' is my motto.  My garlic confit is in the bin.  It had been in the fridge since mid-July covered in oil.  Sadly I have no pressure canner. 

[andiesenji]

I infuse garlic in oil in the oven at 350° F.  The process usually takes three hours, start to finish. 

 

I use the same process whether the garlic is fresh and peeled by me or is the peeled stuff that one can buy at Costco in the big container.

 

I stick a remote probe into the biggest garlic clove - usually do a pound of peeled cloves at a time - two liters of oil - doesn't have to be "extra virgin" olive oil - but I prefer one of the "greener" types that has some of the peppery flavor.

 

I use a 4-quart "Visions" roaster.

 

The temp signal is set for 250°F.  and when it reaches this temp I set the timer for 20 minutes.  At the end of that time I turn the oven off and allow the stuff to cool in the oven.

 

My entire house smells like garlic but it does dissipate in a day or so - I like the aroma so it doesn't bother me.

 

I store it in sterilized jars with the wire snap closures at room temp and have done so for decades.  I originally got the "recipe" or process from one of the profs at Pierce college, Woodland Hills, CA.  They were doing some soil testing at the time (horticutural studies) which was why I made the initial inquiry. This was back in the '70s when I lived nearby. 

[Shalmanese]

People are fixated on garlic and botulism because of the media but garlic actually ranks pretty low on the way you get botulism and the risk of botulism is extraordinarily low in the first place. You have about as much chance of dying driving to the grocery store to buy garlic than via botulism from the garlic.

[Martin Baadsgaard]

Here in Denmark it is known as "sausage decease" from a history of badly treated sausages, but most people heard of it from homemade pickled herring where the acidity was too low. No one really does much preservation in oil here, so only heard of it from American sites.

[paulraphael]

when the spores reproduce - they create, as a by product - a toxin.

the toxin produced is a protein.  not a bacteria, not a virus, not a spore, not a Martian.

 

 

You're a little confused here. Spores don't reproduce. They activate, and in doing so, become bacteria, which do all the reproducing and toxin production.

 

The bacteria in question here are clostridium botulinum, which are mostly of concern to us because they reproduce on food in anaerobic, low-acid environments. In doing so, they contaminate the food with botulinum toxin.

 

The thing to understand about spores is that they are produced by certain bacteria as soon as conditions become inhospitable to the active form of the bacteria. And they are designed to survive. They just hang out, like inert little concrete bunkers, until conditions become favorable. Then they wake up, becoming active bacteria, reproducing at rates determined by temperature, pH, and available nutrients.

 

Shalmanese is right that the risk of botulism from garlic-infused oil is low. The trouble is that if botulinum spores are present on the garlic (certainly possible) the anaerobic environment of the oil at room temperature is a perfect environment for botulinum to do its thing. Odds may be low, but stakes are very high.

 

The refrigerator is obviously much better, but fridge temps just slow down the reproduction. You'd ideally want to use refrigerated oil within a couple of weeks.

[AlaMoi]

so the spores are not the method of reproduction?

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Correct.

[Doofa]

I have been following this with great interest, as most things are on these wonderful boards. My question is, does any of the above have any bearing on the cold pickling of peeled garlic cloves. I suspect it does not due to the acidic environment, but I'm no chemist.

 

Is this even a sensible question?