Legendary Garlic

Think garlic; think strength. Garlic was fed to Egyptian slaves to give them energy to build the pyramids. Garlic is the legendary defense against vampires. Garlic has been proven to help your health, acting as an antioxidant. Yet because of garlic's after effects, notably bad breath, as well as its sharp, bitter taste when not handled properly, garlic's strength can be scary. Yet garlic can be easily tamed.

Garlic, in its natural state, has neither taste nor aroma; it must be developed. Garlic has two compounds that lie dormant as long as they do not mix. When mixed by cutting or heating garlic's outside wall, these form a third compound, allicin, which creates garlic's flavor and aroma.

Allicin is very volatile; it breaks down over a few hours and also breaks down when heated. Therefore, depending on how the garlic is handled, it can be pungent and sharp, or smooth, creamy, and mellow. To create a pungent flavor, cut the garlic finely, and add it only at the end of cooking, minimizing its exposure to heat.  By contrast, whole cloves will render only a mild garlicky flavor, especially if cooked for a long period. The middle ground is to slice garlic cloves, and cook them in the dish for a moderate period.

For example, consider the famous Provencal dish of chicken with forty cloves of garlic, which can sound very scary for people who are garlic shy.  However, as the chicken and unskinned garlic cloves are braised together in olive oil and wine for a long period, the garlic becomes soft enough to be squeezed onto bread. The taste is creamy and mild enough to substitute for butter.

By contrast, minced garlic is usually added at the last moment to a dish like Pasta with Garlic and Oil to intensify the garlic flavor. I have included a recipe below which uses both mellow, roasted garlic and sharp, raw garlic to reach an optimal flavor balance for this dish.

There are a number of garlic types, but unless you search out mail order sources, you will usually be buying the California variety. Do not purchase so-called elephant garlic thinking you will get a true garlic flavor. Elephant garlic is actually a relative of leeks. When buying garlic, look for a head or bulb - the terms are interchangeable - with the papery sheaf intact. The cloves should be plump and firm, and no green sprouts should be visible. There are usually 12 - 16 cloves in a bulb. Store garlic, in a cool place, with good air circulation - never in the refrigerator. Garlic should last for up to two months.

To cook with garlic, first separate the cloves. Turn the bulb on the counter so the root end is up, and press down with your palm. To peel the cloves, there are a variety of available techniques. If the garlic is to be chopped or minced, smash the clove with the flat of your knife, which both separates the outside paper and starts the chopping process. If the cloves are to be kept whole, they can be soaked in water for an hour or two, or, alternatively, boiled for 10-20 seconds and then plunged into ice water. There is also a great gadget called the E-z-rol garlic peeler, which is a rubber tube that holds onto the skin when the garlic is rolled inside it.

Once you've handled garlic, to remove the smell from your hands, you can either rub them against a piece of stainless steel flatware under running water, or rub lemon juice or salt on your hands.

A great kitchen staple is garlic oil. Once made, you can add a touch of garlic flavor very simply to any dish, or use it as in a vinaigrette or marinade. You can buy garlic oil, or make it yourself. If you make it yourself, however, it must be refrigerated and it must be used within two weeks. Garlic oil is hospitable to the bacteria that causes botulism - commercial garlic oil contains ascorbic acid as a preventative. To make homemade garlic oil, using a clean jar, add two tablespoons of minced garlic to two cups of extra virgin olive oil. Cover and shake well.

Pasta with Garlic and Oil

1 intact bulb of garlic to roast

1-2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 pound spaghetti

Salt to taste

3 tablespoons olive oil

3 cloves minced garlic

3 tablespoons olive oil

½ teaspoon red pepper flakes

¼ cup chopped parsley

Parmesan cheese

First, roast the garlic bulb. With a sharp knife, cut off about ½ inch of the top (non-root end) of the bulb, or enough to expose the ends of the garlic cloves. Put the bulb on a piece of aluminum foil, root-end down, and pour 1-2 tablespoons of oil into the bulb. Wrap the garlic tightly with the foil, and roast at 400 degrees for 30 - 40 minutes, or until the cloves are soft and the pulp can be squeezed out.

Cook the spaghetti in boiling water, with salt added to taste. While the spaghetti is cooking, in a small saucepan, warm the olive oil. Off heat, add the roasted garlic pulp, minced raw garlic, red pepper flakes, and parsley to the warm olive oil.

After the pasta is cooked al dente, drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta water. Add ¼ cup of the pasta water to the saucepan. Put the pasta in a warm pasta bowl and toss with the final three tablespoons of olive oil. Add the contents of the saucepan and the rest of the pasta water if needed. Serve with the Parmesan cheese on the side.