Looking back on my first attempts at cooking, I am surprised that I was able to put something even remotely edible on the table, considering how little I actually knew. Peeling and mincing garlic was definitely one of those things that tripped me up. I’d resort to my old, clunky metal garlic press. It would mince that garlic relatively well, but then I’d have to spend the next 10 minutes cleaning the darn thing. Of course, I could have resorted to the pre-minced bottled garlic. Hmmm…
A couple of weeks ago, an acquaintance asked me if I used the bottled garlic. I’m certain that the horrified look that crossed my face completely offended her. Don’t get me wrong; I know that scooping out a dollop of pre-minced garlic makes meal prep more efficient. However, the minute of time that I save is not worth the compromise in taste. I promise that peeling and mincing fresh garlic will take you no more than a minute or two, especially when you get the hang of it. I figured this was the perfect topic for the next installment in my “How to” series.
Before I move onto the “how to”, I wanted to share a cooking segment I did this week on the local KUTV 2 News. I made one of my favorite lunch dishes, Salad Cups with Quinoa, Shrimp, Avocado & Lemon Dressing. Just click on the picture below to see the segment.
Just a heads-up – right before the segment, there was a story on the benefits of using olive oil on your hands to moisturize your skin. This will make sense once you watch the segment. It was kind of a funny moment.
How to do it:
The first thing you want to do is remove the papery skin from the outside of the garlic clove. When I first starting cooking, I tried to do this in a variety of ways – peeling with a small knife, pulling at the skin with my fingers and using those rubber rolling tubes. All left me frustrated and, inevitably, with little pieces of papery skin sticking like glue to my fingers.
The easiest way to remove that papery skin is by smashing it off. That’s right, this is where you get to release all of those pent-up aggressions from the day.
Place the clove underneath the heel end of the blade of a chef’s knife and pound on the smooth surface of the blade with your fist. It should just take one or two pounds to do the trick. This will not work with a small paring knife, so be sure to pull out your chef’s knife for this job.
Now use your fingers to completely remove the skin.
Now that the papery skin is gone, it’s time to start slicing and dicing. This process is virtually identical to the technique I showed in How to: Chop an Onion.
First, carefully make a horizontal slice through the clove. Watch those fingers!
Next, cut several parallel slices from the root end of the clove (where the woody stem is located) to the tip of the clove.
Finally, cut across the clove in the opposite direction to make small diced pieces.
The last step is to mince the garlic. Using the middle to the heel end of the blade, place the blade in the middle of your pile of diced garlic. Place your non-dominant hand on the of the blade (the dull edge) and use a rocking motion to mince the garlic with the blade. The tip end of the blade should rest on the cutting board the whole time. Sweep the accumulated garlic off the blade as needed.
That’s it! A perfectly minced clove of garlic in a matter of seconds.
Recipes using minced garlic:
Chicken Stir Fry Recipe with Broccoli
Baked Teriyaki Turkey Meatballs
Healthy Lasagne with Turkey, Pesto & Peppers
Michel in Quebec
Quote: “The last step is to mince the garlic. Using the middle to the heel end of the blade, place the blade in the middle of your pile of diced garlic. Place your non-dominant hand on the of the blade (the dull edge) ….”
That turns out funny. Of course press on the dull edge. 🙂
There’s nothing wrong with specifying that whatsoever and it might possibly help some people to avoid making the mistake of pressing on the sharp edge of a knife. (Ouch!) But you have to admit that it’s funny that this warning would ever need to be stated. It’s much funnier than placing your hand and pressing on the wrong side of a sharp knife, for that’s not funny at all. I have a very small knife that’s very sharp and I use it for small tomatoes, radishes, cucumber (not large ones), …, and I’ve only pressed, sometimes, but when I did that, then the very sharp edge pressed against another finger (wasn’t using a cutting board or plate) and this little knife left a very small cut, but it was painful. It was like a burning, very stinging sensation.
So, definitely be careful when working with sharp instruments. My cuts weren’t serious, but they were painful. And I’ve started to use that little, actually tiny, knife to cut the same foods on a wood cutting board. I’m a little tired of cutting my fingers. Again, not serious cuts, definitely not needing to see an MD or even pharmacist, but those cuts are painfully annoying.
Even paper cuts can be painful. I’ve also cut myself a couple of times with some grass, though don’t know what kind. It was called grass though. But the little knife left longer-lasting pain that was annoying. Very tiny, shallow cuts, not even spilling blood (not always anyway), but still painful and this sometimes lasted 2-3 days.
Always be careful when working with any sharp instruments or materials. And if you’re going to be hit in the head with a 2×8, then try to be hit with the flat side. 🙂
Deborah
You are so natural on tv!! There is very litle that is better than freshly minced garlic to me. Mmmm! (and thanks for the link!)
Chung-Ah | Damn Delicious
Great tutorial. I didn’t know how to peel garlic for the longest time. And I absolutely hated how the smell would get trapped underneath your fingernails. So for a while I had to buy the peeled bags from Trader Joe’s. Shameful, I know but how was I supposed to know that all you had to do was pound it?
Maureen @ Orgasmic Chef
I’ve never used garlic from a jar either. It just sounds gross to me. Surely the garlic loses something from sitting in a jar all that time.
You’re very cute on TV 🙂
Miss @ Miss in the Kitchen
Love your tutorials! I so agree with you on the jarred garlic versus fresh, no comparison!
Barbara | Creative Culinary
I just recently convinced my daughter to forgo the press and start to mince with a knife; the presses are easy enough I guess but not so easy to clean and there is so much waste. It took her some time to get comfortable with the rocking business using a chef’s knife but once she got the hang of it…she got it!
Great series and you? Great in the video!
Kara
I love that you posted this! I learned how to do this in a class I took but am equally grossed out by jarred garlic. Spread the word! 🙂
Dorothy at Shockinglydelicious
You are fabulous on TV!
Looking forward to seeing you at Camp Blogaway!
Charlie
Dara:
Great to here your voice!
Have a Joyful Day!
Charlie
Paula- bell'alimento
You are a supah-star! Love it! And Garlic ; )
KalynsKitchen
I think you are ready for your own cooking show!
Sommer@ASpicyPerspective
Dara you did SUCH a great job. You are a stahhhh, girl! 🙂
Cassie
Great tutorial, Dara. The video is awesome!
Maria
I always love watching you on TV! You are a super star:)
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar
Ohhhh how I love garlic. Also, you’re just the cutest on tv 🙂
Part Time House Wife
I love that someone else in the world started off with out knowing how to peel garlic too! I used to try to scrape it off with my finger nails, getting that SHARP paper jammed under neath my figer nails…not pretty or fun. I love that I have at least grown to know how to smash and peel a clove…but haven’t gotten much past that 😉
I agree, the fresh stuff is a bazillion times better than bottled. I think I may have made the same face you did just reading it!
Great tutorial!