Garlic is one of those herbs that adds so much flavor and health benefits to food, but many people avoid using this incredible fresh herb because it’s kind of pain to peel. When I taught cooking classes I ran into a lot of people with very interesting ways of peeling garlic. The most popular was the ‘smash with the knife’ method. I was taught in cooking school that while this method works, it smashes the heck out of your clove making it difficult to mince or grate properly. So today I am going to share two ways that make peeling garlic a snap while keeping the clove intact!
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Two Ways to Peel Garlic: Plan A, No Special Tools Needed
The first method is for the person that thinks ahead…simply soak garlic cloves in warm water. Yep, that’s the big secret. Soaking garlic cloves in a small bowl of warm water makes the peels swell and you can literally slide the skin right off with your knife, or even your fingers. Just plop the cloves into warm water 30 minutes or more before you plan to use them. the earlier the better actually. Easy peasy, but it does require forethought. If you are in a bit more of a hurry, move on to the next easy option.
By the way, my cute little bowl is from Anthropologie!
Shop House & Home Top Picks at Anthropologie.com.
Plan B: The Quick Method
If you are not the type of person that thinks ahead or you don’t have time to soak, my next go to is this handy dandy rubber tube that instantly peels garlic! No mess, no fuss and it works every time. It only costs a few bucks and lasts forever. I am not big on kitchen gadgets because I use my knife (an 8″ Wusthof Ikon Chef’s knife) for just about everything, but I LOVE this thing! All you do is place the clove in the center of the tube, press down and roll. The peel comes right off. And it’s easy to clean, just rinse and put away for the next time.
So there you have it, no more struggling to peel garlic. I hope I just made your life in the kitchen a little easier. After all, the easier and more convenient something is to do, the more likely you are to do it. Enjoy your new found skill!
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Awesome tip, thanks!
I always pass this task onto my hubby…so I will share this post with him 🙂
LOVE this!!
Peeling garlic so that it’s not a sticky mess? Fabulous!
I’ve never heard of soaking them in warm water, but I have used one of those handy-dandy tubes — and whoa!
15 seconds in the microwave works great!
15 seconds in the microwave works great!
I haven’t heard that one. I’ll give it a try and if it works I will add it as an option. Thanks!
I love the idea of silicone tube for peeling garlic. Thanks for the link.
It’s a great tool!
Zap it in the microwave for a few seconds. Be careful because it gets hot very quickly, but the skin slides right off and it becomes easy to put through a garlic press or finely chop
Thanks Fran. I have heard that works but I am not a fan of the microwave so I prefer the other two methods.
Question. Does soaking garlic cloves before cooking make it easier to digest? If yes, how long should one soak them.
I do not believe so, in fact it’s easiest to digest when eaten raw. Here is a helpful article: https://www.cookist.com/garlic-6-secrets-to-make-it-more-digestible/