Roasted garlic: how to make them and how to use them

I bring you a kitchen basic, roasted garlic , an essential preparation both to enjoy them as is and to increase the flavor and result of any dish in which you use it. Both the roasted garlic and the oil we will keep them in! Making roasted garlic is the easiest and most elementary. Here you will find how to make roasted garlic , how to use it in your recipes, and also ideas to take advantage of the wonderful oil flavored with roasted garlic that results from preserving roasted garlic in oil.

When you discover the flavor and value of roasted garlic, you no longer forget to put a head of garlic or two in the oven every time you turn it on for anything.

The roasted garlic is made in a kind of little bags, thus cooking in the foil and in its own juice, which is why they are so soft and tasty. Roasted, the garlic is very tender , in fact it almost looks like butter, it does not repeat itself but it is intense in flavor. A flavor that moves between roasted with caramelized touches and smoked , and therefore will help to intensify the flavor of any recipe in which you apply them. I hope you are encouraged to try them with the ideas we bring.

Recipe to make roasted and preserved garlic in oil

1. Preheat the oven* to 160 - 185ºC*
2. Arrange the heads of garlic that you are going to roast on a wooden board. Cut the ends of the garlic heads with a sharp knife, exposing the garlic.
3. Open some sheets of baking paper (failurely aluminum foil), and arrange the heads of garlic inside. Pour a stream of oil inside each head, sprinkling all the garlic. Then sprinkle salt on top.
4. Close the papers with kitchen thread, making packets or bags. Arrange them on a tray and put them in the oven.
5. The baking time will vary depending on the heat of the oven and the size of the garlic, but you will have them ready in about half an hour, even a little less.
6. After the time has elapsed, remove from the oven and open the packages so that they lose heat.
7. When you can handle them, go extracting the garlic cloves from their head. If they are done, you will see that by pressing on the bottom of the garlic and draining upwards they will come out very easily.
8. Arrange all the garlic in an airtight jar ( Luigi Bormioli's are wonderful) and fill it with olive oil, covering the garlic. Close the jar and store it in the fridge until you want to use them.

Grades:

• *Garlic takes up so little space that it's worth preparing when you're baking a cake or when you're roasting vegetables or fish in the oven - there's always room for some roasted garlic, and you'll save on energy.
• There are those who do not cut the ends of the garlic, they make them as is. By cutting the ends you ensure that with the initial heat they will not explode and, especially, it makes the task of removing them very easy.
• Garlic in oil will keep perfectly for two months (and more).
• Some people turn the garlic into a paste and, together with the oil, fill an ice tray to keep it in the freezer. They will be kept as long as you want to use them, you can extract the cubes that you require and put them in the pan. When hot, the cubes will melt in no time and you will have the flavored oil and garlic ready to cook.
• Remember that the longer the garlic is in the oil, the more aroma the oil will take on (and you can use it in many ways, I'll tell you more below).

Revol slate casserole and Gefu kitchen thread

Note to the lazy on how to make roasted garlic:

Roasted garlic can also be made as is, loose on a tray, drizzled with oil and salt. The biggest danger is controlling the baking time: very often they are dry and too dry because they are done too fast and the air from the oven dries them out. Thus, they lose that pleasant and classic creaminess of roasted garlic, but if you are in a hurry or lazy you can put them on the tray as is. Of course.

Opinel Garlic Knife and Naturels Nordic Ware Trays

How to use roasted garlic

In texture, roasted garlic is tender and even spreadable, and in flavor it has smoky but also caramelized and sweet notes. Take the opportunity to take advantage of it in countless dishes, I assure you that it will turn a plate into a great dish:

Eat it as it is: you can put it in a snack, next to meat or fish, roasted garlic enchants whoever tries it.

• For a snack : pierce it with a little cheese, with a piece of ham, or with a small piece of tortilla... it will be a mini skewer, a delicious mini-skewer!
• To spread bread : either toasted or soft bread, spread the garlic on the bread and eat it as it is or arrange a little sausage, sausage, chicken or some sardines on top. It will be a ten dinner.
• For creams : add some roasted garlic to your usual creams, crush and you will see how the flavor changes. A cream of mushrooms, pumpkin, leeks, cauliflower... Add roasted garlic and you will discover a new world!
• Use it in the gazpacho instead of using raw garlic, this way it won't repeat you.
• In purees : you can add one or two cloves of garlic to mashed potatoes or vegetables, you will be enriching it.
• Try it when you prepare hummus and also in the olive paste . Substitute two or three roasted garlic cloves for the raw garlic. You will love the touch it gives them.
• Use it together with the oil to prepare a different aioli , which will surely surprise you (and serve that aioli to accompany the roasted potatoes, hhmmm!).
• For pancakes, toasts and pizzas : as you add olives or peppers, add roasted garlic to these preparations, the roasted and smoked touch is fabulous on them.
• In stews and stews : add a couple of garlic cloves to your stews, you will see how they add an unusual flavor that you love.
• Roasted meat and fish : add a few cloves when you are roasting any food, it will dissolve in the juice that bathes the food and the result is extraordinary. If any remain whole even after that second roast, the smartest will eat them.
• To make croquettes : add roasted garlic to your croquette doughs, you will see how you appreciate it. Likewise, for the béchamel of the cannelloni if ​​you want it with a different touch.
• For the dumpling filling or the fresh pasta filling : when you prepare the filling for your ravioli or little bags and to make dumplings, remember the roasted garlic you have in the fridge. Add it to those fillings because it will give them a different delicious touch.

How to use roasted garlic oil

The oil that preserves the roasted garlic takes on the flavor of garlic, it is intensely flavored. It will solidify in the fridge, but it will quickly return to its liquid state if you remove it from the fridge or spoon it into the hot pan. Remembering this, use it whenever you can. It is rich in flavor (what am I saying, it is a wonderful oil!)

• For bread, toast and sandwiches : sandwiches with cheese and sausages are fine, but with the flavor of roasted garlic oil they are superior.
• To grill: when you are going to grill fish or meat, use the roasted garlic oil for the grill before putting the food on it. You will see what an easier way to flavor them! You can also brush the meat directly with the oil, you will make sure that the whole piece tastes like heaven.
• For pizzas and focaccias: it won't be a spicy pizza oil, but it will be a garlic pizza oil that will change every bite you take for the better.
• For pasta: use a drizzle of roasted garlic oil to season your pasta dishes, you will adore the result. You can also use it in these masses as oil in the process for making the dough (what a twist you will give it in flavor!).
• For vegetables, sautéing mushrooms and grilling corn on the cob : Drizzle a few tablespoons of roasted garlic oil into the pan or grill when grilling or sautéing, or brush directly before grilling. You will see!

I hope you'll be encouraged to put a few heads of garlic in the oven the next time you turn it on. Your life will change for the better when you always have a pot of roasted garlic in the fridge!

NOTE : One of the reasons why we have introduced Naturels Nordic Ware trays in the store is to bake small-sized foods or that you are going to do in small quantities. These small trays are super practical for roasting garlic, cooking some onion in the oven, preparing some spaced chickpeas in no time, roasting some peppers or making escalivada... The juices are collected, you can separate flavors, place the tray on the oven while you bake other things... I hope you find them very practical!