Smash the clove with the flat of your knife. Mince by using the rocking of your curved knife blade.
I can easily do 5–7 cloves this way in less than a minute after peeling. Maybe 3-5 minutes total to do seven cloves completely minced, including peeling, depending on how stubborn the skins are on a particular head.
ETA: [Here’s a video of Jacques Pépin demonstrating the technique](https://jp.foundation/video/garlic-puree). He gets to the smashing part at about 0:50.
Practice that and you’ll do great.
This was revelatory to me. Crush the clove as flat as possible with the flat knife blade - then the clove pops easily out of the skin. Then I cut lengthways (unless the crush was really good!) then slice thinly along the short direction with the rocking motion.
Short of buying fresh frozen garlic this is the best way.
That’s how I was taught and at a shit restaurant where we had to peel each clove.
Almost every other restaurant has been pre-peeled and using either this method or a food processor for mass amounts. Very little difference in quality.
Crushing the clove also helps with the flavors
Slicing garlic thinly and mincing garlic are not interchangeable. When you chop garlic, the breaking of the cell walls releases the compound that gives garlic its pungency.
Because of this, if you want a milder and sweeter garlic flavor, thinly slicing is great. If you want a more intense garlic flavor, you’ll want to mince.
Different techniques for different dishes.
Yes. There's not only a difference in flavour, also a difference in texture and presentation. There's also a difference if you add garlic first on cold oil, hot oil or in a later stage of the preparation process. Garlic is a whole world to explore.
Smash the garlic cloves carefully one at a time with the side of your knife blade.
Remove the skin and the woody part at the top of the clove. Wet your knife blade and fingers on the free hand. Place that hand on the spine of the blade and chop the garlic into slices using a rocking motion, scraping the cut garlic into a pile and repeating the process until it’s the size you want. The garlic won’t stick to the wet blade and your wet fingers when you are removing the small pieces from the sides of the blade.
Thank you about the tip to wet the knife blade and fingers first. Need to try this next time. Nothing worse than trying to scrape sticky garlic off my knife and hands.
Gracula....on Amazon...it's cute and for garlic and ginger it's the bomb. Might be on sale during Prime week coming up. I saw it advertised on Wirecutter in the NYT.
In order of preference for taste and ease:
- small grater, just grate into whatever you need. Freeze the garlic beforehand to grate easier (keeps better too, double whammy)
- large chef knife or cleaver, smash down with side of knife and it will be mostly minced already, maybe a couple quick chops needed
personally not a fan of garlic presses, no matter how easy they may be
Exactly. Then people want to complain about burnt garlic or how difficult it is to cook, without realizing the press is the issue. Minced cooks way differently than smashed by a pressed or jarred
Peel all of the garlic, and put the pieces in a food processor. Buy a ice cube tray made of little squares and shove all of the garlic in each square, then freeze.
I use a microplane which, tbh, leaves it more pureed. Minced isn't worth it for me if I miss a big piece because THAT'S the piece that will get stuck under my tooth in all its half-raw rank-ass glory.
I bought this little [guy](https://www.walmart.com/ip/Joie-Stainless-Steel-Blade-Garlic-Dicer-EVRI-Green/1478759670?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&wl13=5030&gclsrc=aw.ds&adid=222222222771478759670_117755028669_12420145346&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=501107745824&wl4=pla-394283752452&wl5=9194554&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=local&wl12=1478759670&veh=sem_LIA&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwyo60BhBiEiwAHmVLJfDyPmZpfNj4zTVwuXiTXAOsPibjsEQU0H_DFjAd-Bnq7xekP3j0GBoCbDMQAvD_BwE) at my local Walmart for when I'm not in the mood to do it myself. Like others have said, a garlic press is good, or any device that you just drop a clove in and press - then voila! Having a little collection of kitchen tools like this can save you a lot of time on the days you don't really want to do it all yourself. I tend to use these most when I'm going rogue and using a whole head of garlic, and truly don't want to do each clove LOL!
Hi, I’m Vetted AI Bot! I researched the **'Joie Garlic Dicer EVRI'** and I thought you might find the following
analysis helpful.
**Users liked:**
* Effortlessly dices garlic (backed by 3 comments)
* Easy to clean and store (backed by 3 comments)
* Compact and convenient design (backed by 3 comments)
**Users disliked:**
* Produces larger garlic pieces (backed by 2 comments)
* Residue left on the stems (backed by 1 comment)
* Challenging to clean the press portion (backed by 1 comment)
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Smash with the flat of a blade, then mash with a fork. Add salt if you want and make a paste. Super strong garlic taste as a result of pulverizing and mixing the various innards.
To add to the good techniques others have mentioned, I always throw in a pinch of salt to my garlic after roughly chopping and before mincing further. It adds an abrasive texture that helps mash it down and makes it pastier :)
Use a chef's knife/the biggest knife you've got. And use the rocking and smooshing motions. I find that my husband thinks it's good to use a small/paring knife for some jobs but I find the exact opposite is what works well. The smaller the stuff you're working with, the better a big knife works in your favor.
The real tip is here. Buy a large large batch of garlic. Peel everything. Chop it in a food processor. Place into large ziploc bag so that you can freeze it flat. Break off pieces when you need them
A small grater. I have never looked back, it doesn't need to be peeled either as the skin doesn't go through the grater. I can grate a clove in about five seconds.
Buy a good garlic press when you want it properly minced ..
There are terrible ones and great ones (I happen to love the presses Williams Sonoma makes)
I use so much garlic that it takes too much time to peel and chop garlic cloves... I buy packages of peeled garlic and mince them in the food processor.
If you aren't a fan of smashing it with the flat of your knife (I'm not) I do this
- chop the ends off and the peel should then lift right off in most cases
- clove parallel with your board, slice 90% of the way through it. ideally enough so it just stays together at the bottom (similar to prepping an onion to dice it)
- turn perpendicular and slice again (so slicing across your previous slices)
- pile them up and go over it with the knife a couple times
quite quick and avoids fussing with the peel. Picking bits of peel out of the actual garlic is a pet peeve for me.
takes a minute or two to do 4-5 cloves once you get the routine.
It's mixed with preservatives that change the flavor. I do the next best thing which is buying peeled garlic and chopping it in a food processor a little at a time when I get home, and freeze unused portions.
That's fine if you like it, but the citric acid preservatives totally change the flavor, makes it almost sour. I used it once in a pasta dish and it ruined it.
Smash the clove with the flat of your knife. Mince by using the rocking of your curved knife blade. I can easily do 5–7 cloves this way in less than a minute after peeling. Maybe 3-5 minutes total to do seven cloves completely minced, including peeling, depending on how stubborn the skins are on a particular head. ETA: [Here’s a video of Jacques Pépin demonstrating the technique](https://jp.foundation/video/garlic-puree). He gets to the smashing part at about 0:50. Practice that and you’ll do great.
This is the answer. Do the smoosh.
This was revelatory to me. Crush the clove as flat as possible with the flat knife blade - then the clove pops easily out of the skin. Then I cut lengthways (unless the crush was really good!) then slice thinly along the short direction with the rocking motion. Short of buying fresh frozen garlic this is the best way.
wow i have been doing it wrong the whole time by taking the clove and trying the rocking part before smashing it down.
That’s how I was taught and at a shit restaurant where we had to peel each clove. Almost every other restaurant has been pre-peeled and using either this method or a food processor for mass amounts. Very little difference in quality. Crushing the clove also helps with the flavors
I use a microplane. It's easy to use, simple to wash and there's hardly any waste.
Grate it. Quick, easy and hell of a time saver
I can't believe it took me about 15 years of cooking before I started doing this. A game changer!
Use a garlic press. Although I prefer slicing garlic thinly.
Slicing garlic thinly and mincing garlic are not interchangeable. When you chop garlic, the breaking of the cell walls releases the compound that gives garlic its pungency. Because of this, if you want a milder and sweeter garlic flavor, thinly slicing is great. If you want a more intense garlic flavor, you’ll want to mince. Different techniques for different dishes.
Yes. There's not only a difference in flavour, also a difference in texture and presentation. There's also a difference if you add garlic first on cold oil, hot oil or in a later stage of the preparation process. Garlic is a whole world to explore.
A la Goodfellas?
It was a very good system.
Hahaha! You have a great memory!
SMASH. Mincemincemince. Add to pan.
Smash the garlic cloves carefully one at a time with the side of your knife blade. Remove the skin and the woody part at the top of the clove. Wet your knife blade and fingers on the free hand. Place that hand on the spine of the blade and chop the garlic into slices using a rocking motion, scraping the cut garlic into a pile and repeating the process until it’s the size you want. The garlic won’t stick to the wet blade and your wet fingers when you are removing the small pieces from the sides of the blade.
Thank you about the tip to wet the knife blade and fingers first. Need to try this next time. Nothing worse than trying to scrape sticky garlic off my knife and hands.
Gracula....on Amazon...it's cute and for garlic and ginger it's the bomb. Might be on sale during Prime week coming up. I saw it advertised on Wirecutter in the NYT.
In order of preference for taste and ease: - small grater, just grate into whatever you need. Freeze the garlic beforehand to grate easier (keeps better too, double whammy) - large chef knife or cleaver, smash down with side of knife and it will be mostly minced already, maybe a couple quick chops needed personally not a fan of garlic presses, no matter how easy they may be
Agreed. Garlic presses don’t give you minced garlic. They give you smashed garlic and some garlic juice.
Exactly. Then people want to complain about burnt garlic or how difficult it is to cook, without realizing the press is the issue. Minced cooks way differently than smashed by a pressed or jarred
Peel all of the garlic, and put the pieces in a food processor. Buy a ice cube tray made of little squares and shove all of the garlic in each square, then freeze.
Does that preserve its flavor? That sounds like a neat trick for food prep lol
yes! only way I do it now!
garlic press?
I use a microplane which, tbh, leaves it more pureed. Minced isn't worth it for me if I miss a big piece because THAT'S the piece that will get stuck under my tooth in all its half-raw rank-ass glory.
I bought this little [guy](https://www.walmart.com/ip/Joie-Stainless-Steel-Blade-Garlic-Dicer-EVRI-Green/1478759670?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&wl13=5030&gclsrc=aw.ds&adid=222222222771478759670_117755028669_12420145346&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=501107745824&wl4=pla-394283752452&wl5=9194554&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=local&wl12=1478759670&veh=sem_LIA&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwyo60BhBiEiwAHmVLJfDyPmZpfNj4zTVwuXiTXAOsPibjsEQU0H_DFjAd-Bnq7xekP3j0GBoCbDMQAvD_BwE) at my local Walmart for when I'm not in the mood to do it myself. Like others have said, a garlic press is good, or any device that you just drop a clove in and press - then voila! Having a little collection of kitchen tools like this can save you a lot of time on the days you don't really want to do it all yourself. I tend to use these most when I'm going rogue and using a whole head of garlic, and truly don't want to do each clove LOL!
Hi, I’m Vetted AI Bot! I researched the **'Joie Garlic Dicer EVRI'** and I thought you might find the following analysis helpful. **Users liked:** * Effortlessly dices garlic (backed by 3 comments) * Easy to clean and store (backed by 3 comments) * Compact and convenient design (backed by 3 comments) **Users disliked:** * Produces larger garlic pieces (backed by 2 comments) * Residue left on the stems (backed by 1 comment) * Challenging to clean the press portion (backed by 1 comment) Do you want to continue this conversation? [Learn more about 'Joie Garlic Dicer EVRI'](https://vetted.ai/chat?utm\_source=reddit&utm\_medium=comment&utm\_campaign=bot&q='Joie Garlic Dicer EVRI' reviews) [Find 'Joie Garlic Dicer EVRI' alternatives](https://vetted.ai/chat?utm\_source=reddit&utm\_medium=comment&utm\_campaign=bot&q=Find best 'Joie Garlic Dicer EVRI' alternatives) This message was generated by a (very smart) bot. If you found it helpful, let us know with an upvote and a “good bot!” reply and please feel free to provide feedback on how it can be improved. *Powered by* [*vetted.ai*](https://vetted.ai/chat?utm\_source=reddit&utm\_medium=comment&utm\_campaign=bot)
Smash with the flat of a blade, then mash with a fork. Add salt if you want and make a paste. Super strong garlic taste as a result of pulverizing and mixing the various innards.
Thanks!
To add to the good techniques others have mentioned, I always throw in a pinch of salt to my garlic after roughly chopping and before mincing further. It adds an abrasive texture that helps mash it down and makes it pastier :)
I pulse it in my food processor.
My tip is don't bother. We get frozen garlic cubes and just pop one in where a minced clove is called for.
Smash. Cut the long way. Turn around. Mince. Fail. Go on a chopping mayhem. That's usually how mincing garlic goes for me.
https://youtu.be/UBj9H6z6Uxw
Use a chef's knife/the biggest knife you've got. And use the rocking and smooshing motions. I find that my husband thinks it's good to use a small/paring knife for some jobs but I find the exact opposite is what works well. The smaller the stuff you're working with, the better a big knife works in your favor.
The real tip is here. Buy a large large batch of garlic. Peel everything. Chop it in a food processor. Place into large ziploc bag so that you can freeze it flat. Break off pieces when you need them
Mortar and pestle.
I grate mine
A small grater. I have never looked back, it doesn't need to be peeled either as the skin doesn't go through the grater. I can grate a clove in about five seconds.
Buy a good garlic press when you want it properly minced .. There are terrible ones and great ones (I happen to love the presses Williams Sonoma makes)
A zester (I'm a sous chef it's so much faster and actually minces)
I use a garlic press or a microplane.
I just buy those pre Minced ones in the jar.
I use so much garlic that it takes too much time to peel and chop garlic cloves... I buy packages of peeled garlic and mince them in the food processor.
Just.use a microplane like a normal person
What does "harder than average" mean? Slicing or even mincing garlic isn't exactly building a house.
It just takes more time for me and I feel that I was doing something wrong, I was just looking for tips.
If you aren't a fan of smashing it with the flat of your knife (I'm not) I do this - chop the ends off and the peel should then lift right off in most cases - clove parallel with your board, slice 90% of the way through it. ideally enough so it just stays together at the bottom (similar to prepping an onion to dice it) - turn perpendicular and slice again (so slicing across your previous slices) - pile them up and go over it with the knife a couple times quite quick and avoids fussing with the peel. Picking bits of peel out of the actual garlic is a pet peeve for me. takes a minute or two to do 4-5 cloves once you get the routine.
Buy minced garlic in a jar. Sue me.
It's mixed with preservatives that change the flavor. I do the next best thing which is buying peeled garlic and chopping it in a food processor a little at a time when I get home, and freeze unused portions.
That's fine if you like it, but the citric acid preservatives totally change the flavor, makes it almost sour. I used it once in a pasta dish and it ruined it.
You can get jarred garlic without citric acid. I forget what the other preservative is, but it doesn't change the flavor.
It's what I use most of the time. I have a garlic press for special meals.
Just buy it in powdered form.
Just buy a garlic press; you don't even need to peel the garlic. It's marvelous.
Garlic: [https://youtu.be/I-Hg0e3P5Ho?si=rtWYURjXiGzcm-Vy&t=563](https://youtu.be/I-Hg0e3P5Ho?si=rtWYURjXiGzcm-Vy&t=563)
Do the lazy way as I do. I roast 4-5 clumps at a time. Then I have roasted garlic cloves that I simply mash and add to whatever is being cooked.
You just added roasted garlic to your dish, which is delicious but doesn’t taste anything like minced garlic.
Ohhh, and I’d assume that roasting it would also add a little flavor