After reading this article in the Washington Post, I started paying attention to whether I was buying Chinese garlic or not. I had a bit of luck when my local farmer’s market was in season. Towards the end of the season they always had locally grown hardneck garlic. I had no luck, however, finding anything but Chinese produced garlic in my local supermarkets. Both Whole Foods and Safeway only had Chinese garlic. I always thought I would spot something better first at Whole Foods but, surprisingly, Safeway was the first. They just started carrying three packs of Californian grown garlic.
In this accompanying article, it mentions that California garlic is more pungent because it is denser and contains less water. The cloves I got were definitely firmer and were a lot easier to peel than the usual supermarket fare. I am not sure if they tasted better though because the garlic went into a soup.
The garlic was from the Christopher farm in Gilroy California which was mentioned in the articles. It was only $1.64 for three bulbs, so it wasn’t much more expensive than the generic bulk garlic. I will try a more garlic-focused dish next time. I will definitely buy the California garlic again. The texture is better and it is nice to help a quirky sector of the American economy. Once the local hardneck garlic becomes available at the farmer’s market, I will go that. It has great flavor and a harder skin that makes it easier to peel. Until then though this California garlic is a great option.
As a side note, Cook’s Illustrated has some great information on how the flavor profiles of garlic change depending on how it is prepared.
- PRESSED through a garlic press: Somewhat textureless. Fiery, robust, and harsh.
- MINCED in a food processor: Pungent and rounded with a uniform texture.
- MINCED by hand: Full and rounded without being too harsh.
- SLIVERED: Perfumed and mild, with the occasional burst of garlic flavor.
- TOASTED whole cloves: Sweet, mellow, and slightly nutty.
- ROASTED whole head: Very mild, caramel-like, and sweet.
Just found this site today, inquiring about poaching a bone-in chicken breast. What a great find; you are going in my favorites! Thanks for the information on garlic. I’m usually pretty good about checking labels on my veg and everything else for that matter. Now you have me wondering about the garlic I have to purchase at the grocery store in the winter. I always buy local when I can but in Pennsylvania we’re quite limited with the seasons. Boo, hiss. Thank you!!!