Crushed Garlic

Are you among those who cannot live without their garlic bread, or cannot resist garlic shrimp scampi, anytime? Well, then you are sure to enjoy all the garlic health benefits easily. Garlic is used in a variety of dishes in different forms, for aroma as well as flavor. Crushed, minced garlic, chopped, are the different ways to use garlic in various dishes.

How to Crush Garlic

Garlic in crushed formed is used in several dishes like making sauce, dip; as a topping for breads and pasta, etc. When you too try these recipes at home, you might wish to know how to crush garlic easily. In that case, take a look at the following method.

• You can peel the garlic skin with the help of your nail or with a garlic peeler. If not, use the following method for peeling a garlic clove.
• Place the garlic clove on a chopping board. Now place the knife flat on the clove (the edges should be at sides).
• With your palm, press on the clove so that the peel will come out on its own. Take it out completely.
• Now chop the peeled garlic as finely as possible with the knife. Pile up the chopped garlic together.
• Next, make the knife flat again and press on the chopped garlic. The chopped garlic may scatter. You need to gather it and press the knife on it gain to crush it completely.
• Repeat the process for some time to form finely crushed garlic.
• While doing the process, you can even sprinkle some salt on it so as to soak up the juices from the garlic. However, this is an optional process.

Crushed vs Minced Garlic

If you are wondering what is the difference between minced, crushed and chopped garlic then note that each of the processes are used to add different degrees of flavor and aroma to the dish. Crushed garlic is used to add very strong flavor and aroma. It is usually added to a dish in the absence of any other flavor as this flavor overpowers any other one, as in case of garlic bread. On the other hand, minced garlic (cut garlic) adds lesser pungent flavor than the crushed one. Minced garlic is usually used in stir-fry dishes. Lastly, chopped garlic is used to add very little flavor as the chopped garlic does not get easily mixed up with the dish and hence, does not add a strong flavor.

Recipes using Crushed Garlic

Now that you know the method on how to crush garlic, you might wish to know how to make garlic bread. The following is an easy recipe on the same.

Garlic Bread

• 1 loaf of French / Italian bread
• ½ cup of soft butter
• 1 teaspoon of chopped parsley
• 3 cloves of garlic
• ½ cup of grated Parmesan / cheddar cheese

Firstly, you should cut the bread diagonally in 1-1.5 inch slices. Now, in a bowl, mix butter, garlic (crushed) and parsley. (If fresh garlic is not found, you can also go for crushed garlic substitute). Put the butter mixture on the slices of bread and place the slices together in a foil. Sprinkle with cheese and heat at 400 degrees F for about 10 minutes. Your homemade garlic bread is ready!

You can use it for making pasta, bread and other dishes. The recipe on making garlic bread will also be helpful to make your own garlic bread to go with other dishes at home. Good luck!