How To: Saute Garlic

We all know that garlic is one of the healthiest foods around.  But it’s not the easiest to saute!  Actually it’s one of those foods that if cooked too long — even seconds too long, can taste completely different.  I learned that the hard way.   While heating up garlic for garlic bread, I over cooked the garlic.

This is why I am writing this post.  This garlic was sauteed in olive oil about 3 minutes too long.  So I decided to make sure you didn’t make the same mistake I made.   Trust me the garlic bread suffered for it.

This garlic bread was bitter because the garlic was over-done.  So here are some tips on how to saute garlic the right way!

1- Make sure you know your stove.  A gas stove will cook it faster so you will want to be on low.  For an electric burner, have your temperature set to medium-low.

2- Use Olive oil to cook the garlic.  It will do the best in cooking off the rawness of the garlic.

3- Don’t walk away from the garlic.  It could take only 20-30 seconds to cook.    You will start to smell the aroma of garlic.   It will actually make your mouth water.  But if it starts to smell sweet or a burning smell — it’s overcooked.

4- If you are cooking garlic and onions together, always cook the onions first.  The onions can cook as long as you want them too.

5- If you are worried about burning the garlic, remove it from the flame after 30 seconds and let the olive oil cook the rest of it.

This is what your garlic should look like if it’s cooked the right way.  I’ll share more about my garlic bread later this week!  I hope this helps!