My Garlic harvest - not as good as hoped due to weather!!

[gavinjconway]

Took all my garlic from the GH and tided it all up... cut and frozen some and made 2 jars of chopped garlic and packed full with oil. My son has already nicked a bottle!!!

It's been a strange year for most veg and especially garlic... some cloves went to stalks whilst some never cloved at all (in foreground of pic) ... no probs tho as it means we have some large garlics !! The larger type bulbed but was not to full size before I had to pull it all up due to the rain!!

All things considered I'm still happy with my first garlic crop on my plot..

[gavinjconway]

[lottie lou]

Did you just chop the garlic and put in olive oil?  Does garlic freeze okay?  Mine all "blew" so all the cloves separated (even the elephant garlic and the stems were still green when I lifted them).  My ordinary garlic was lifted in the pouring rain and I am unable to clean them up and are not attractive enough to give away so I was thinking of freezing some of it.  What do you think?

[manicscousers]

We have frozen most of ours, the roots rotted slightly so they wouldn't store any other way  :)

[gavinjconway]

Hi lottie lou... I just chop, fill the bottle and add oil.. leave a space so it doesn't ooze out.. I've never frozen garlic before so i'ts a test for me. I don't see why it wont be ok.. i freeze onions the same way... chop and freeze!!  I also lifted in the wet and dried them in the GH for a few weeks.. today cleaned the roots off and a few outer skins so they look ok.. dont wash them as they might go off..

[steve76]

Hi all

I was told a couple of years ago now not to put raw garlic in olive oil because of a disease cannot remember the name of it now but i would love to do some this way,,, are you guys aware of any disease???

I would love the garlic infused olive oil for dressings...

Steve..

[Toshofthe Wuffingas]

Without knowing the technicalities of covering garlic with oil nor being a biochemist, I gather the danger one has to bear in mind is botulism. Bacteria that don't need oxygen can produce poisons that are frighteningly lethal. If I cover anything with oil to preserve it or flavour the oil I use hot oil.

[Toshofthe Wuffingas]

But I meant to post in this thread with a question. Next season, I'd like to grow a few varieties of garlic to test different ones out. I'd like some that taste their best young and mild and others that keep well and/or have specific flavours or qualities. I already have elephant garlic ordered.
Any tried and tested or favourite suggestions anyone?
Lightish soil, plenty of compost no problem, light rainfall (normally!!)

[strawberry1]

garlic stored in olive oil can harbour botulinum and is very dabgerous. Best to chop (or blend) garlic in olive oil, box and freeze immediately. It is easily scraped out when frozen and is an excellent time saver when frozen like this

[grawrc]

The risk of botulism is explained here:http://garlicster.blogspot.co.uk/2008/10/how-to-make-garlic-infused-olive-oil.htm

Like TW says you should heat the oil and when it is hot add the garlic, or even "cook" the garlic in the hot oil.

You really don't want to get botulism = paralysis then death.

[Toshofthe Wuffingas]

(That article is quite a way down the page at 20 Oct 2008 to save you some time)

I can't emphasise enough botulism kills!

[kippers garden]

You can chop the garlic and freeze with a bit of water in icecube trays.

[Robert_Brenchley]

I put it through the blender with a little water, then freeze it as above.

[gavinjconway]

Thanks peeps... i'll microwave it a while to cook it and get it all good!!

[Duke Ellington]

For your convenience, here is the article mentioned in the link above.

How to Make Garlic Infused Olive Oil

The following instructions for garlic infused olive oil were written by Jamie Sward. I think it is really important to have it here on Garlicster, since I've been asked a few times how to prepare the garlic olive oil.
With the weather getting colder, and guests on the way, I wanted to make some delicious garlic dipping sauce for some homemade bread sticks. I'm a big fan of dipping bread in olive oil, with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese. So tasty! I thought this would also be the perfect time to use some brand new stainless steel kitchenware that I purchased last weekend. While I was researching recipes, I learned something very important about the process of making garlic-infused olive oil. One might think it's as simple as dropping a few cloves of garlic into a bottle of oil. WRONG! Do it this way and you risk botulism poisoning which can be deadly!

Clostridium Botulinum is a bacterium found in most soil and since garlic, being a root vegetable, is ripped from the ground, traces of this deadly bacteria are still left clinging to it. Since Botulism is an anaerobic bacteria (meaning that it thrives in an environment lacking oxygen), it dies in the presence of oxygen. Olive oil essentially seals out oxygen and when you mix food in with the oil, you have an ideal breeding ground for these potentially deadly bacteria. It is absolutely essential that you sterilize any food you plan on mixing with oil, including garlic. It's recommended that you heat the oil to around 200F, sauté your garlic in the oil. The creator of Emerilware kitchenware and cookware, Emeril Lagasse actually recommends sautéing the garlic over medium heat for between 3 and 5 minutes. Do not...I repeat do not soak your garlic in the oil prior to cooking it. While there's something to be said for planning ahead, when it comes to safely making garlic-infused olive oil, it pays to wait till the last minute.

[artichoke]

I bought today some "sweet garlic" in olive oil. How is this done? It is delicious.