So as I was finishing up making some of my so-good-it-should-be-famous hummus, shamelessly scraping and licking the remains from the blender bowl, I was reminded once again how much I love garlic. Here are 5 useful things to know about this wonderful plant, including on a few tips and tricks on how best to work with it.
Not only does garlic add a delicious bite to many foods, it also packs quite a nutritional punch. The active ingredient, allicin, has been linked to a whole host of benefits including the following:
And more ….
2. To get the most out of your garlic, crush it.
Allicin is the stuff in garlic that gives it its bite, which I’ve learned the hard way! In my hummus recipe, everything is thrown together in a blender (no cooking involved) so on a couple of occasions, to save time, I would throw the garlic cloves in whole and let the blender do all the work. Bad idea. If the garlic hasn’t been pressed, less allicin is produced, and it just doesn’t have the same kick. So, if you’re not getting the flavour out of your garlic that you’d like, throw it in a garlic press…you won’t be disappointed.
Speaking of pressing garlic, if you’ve got a heavy-duty garlic press, then you should be able to crush the cloves without even needing to peel them first. II have a Pampered Chef garlic press (it was the PC salesperson who showed me this trick) which has worked great for years. It’s pretty standard…I see no reason why any other sturdy garlic press wouldn’t work equally as well. Just be sure to cut off the hard base on the cloves…they can get caught in the holes of the press and be a pain to dislodge.
3. When peeling garlic, have a knife on hand.
Occasionally you’ll find a recipe that requires peeled whole or minced cloves. I used to hate peeling garlic until I learned this little trick: press down on the clove with the flat part of a knife blade. This action loosens the skin and it slips right off. Super-easy!
4. Get that garlic smell off your fingers with stainless steel.
And finally, here’s another trick I’ve picked up. If you don’t like your fingers smelling all garlicky when you’re done, rub them on something that’s made of stainless steel (like the safe end of a knife blade or your kitchen faucet, for example) and then wash with soap and water. Presto, the smell is gone!
5. Garlic and hummus were made for each other.
I don’t pretend to be the greatest of cooks (considering how little I like spending time in the kitchen, that would be a particularly bold claim!), but I believe everyone has that one thing that they do really well. This is my one thing. It’s so easy, maybe it can be yours, too.
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I hope I’ve inspired you to use more of this wonderful food if you’ve typically been averse. Try it out with my hummus recipe and let me know how it goes. And if you liked it, or are simply on the hunt for some new recipes, I encourage you to sign up for my healthletter where, as a free gift for subscribing, you can download a recipe compilation I’ve put together of all my easy, kid-friendly, vegetarian, family favourites. Click here to subscribe.
Bon apetit!
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