California Granulated Garlic

Description

Garlic, Allium sativum, is from the Genus Allium, and is closely related to the chives, onions, leeks and shallots. Found in practically every type of cuisine, garlic's popularity seems to be greatest in Central and South American, Chinese, Indian, Mediterranean, Mexican and Southeast Asian cuisine. As any good home chef knows, nothing compares to fresh garlic, but that doesn't mean that dehydrated garlic shouldn't play a vital role in your kitchen. In fact, over the last twenty five years, garlic consumption is up over 1,000% - to more than 3.5 lbs. being consumed by each person in the U.S. each year. And of all that consumed garlic, more than 75% of it is in the dehydrated form.

Garlic is classified by botanists under the species Allium Sativum and there are two primary subspecies - hardneck garlic, Allium Sativum variety Ophioscorodon, and softneck garlic Allium Sativum variety Sativum. The hardnecked garlics were the original garlics and the softnecked ones were developed or cultivated over the centuries by growers from the original hardnecks through a process of selective breeding.

Garlic is called Syun tauh (Cantonese), Da suan (Mandarin), Ail or Theriaque des pauvres (French), Knoblauch (German), Skordo (Greek), Aglio (Italian), Alho (portuguese), Sarimsak (Thai) and Ajo (Spanish).

History of Garlic

The word garlic has not changed a great deal over the course of history when it has been spelled over the years as garlec, garleek and garlek, among others. Garlic is a Germanic word composed of two parts - the first is "gar" which means "spear" and refers to the pointed leaves. The second is "lic" which means either leek or onion and is believed to derive from the word "lauka" which has several various spellings in other Germanic languages - "lök" (Swedish) "løg" (Danish) both meaning "onion" and "look" (Dutch) and "lauch" (German) meaning "leek".

Garlic is among the oldest known horticultural crops with ancient Egyptian and Indian cultures first references to garlic dating back to almost 3000 BC. Garlic is believed to be indigenous to Central Asia as this is the only location where it has flourished growing wild. Wild garlic,  Allium longicuspis, has been bred for thousands of years and has been carefully bred into today's current hard-neck and soft-neck varieties.  

The use of garlic as a food and as a medicinal agent in China dates back to at least 2000 BC, where it was part of the daily diet and often eaten with raw meat. Garlic has been use medicinally in India since the first written medical texts and garlic is mentioned extensively in Auryvedic, Tibbi and Unani. 

The earliest known references of garlic being part of the daily diet can be traced back to the Egyptians who, it is believed, fed it to the heavy laborers who built the great pyramids. Garlic was thought to both maintain and increase their strength. It is not known if garlic was consumed by the more well to do of that time period. Perfectly preserved garlic cloves were found in the excavation of King Tutankhamen’s tomb (1341-1323 BC). Was garlic a favorite of the boy King or was it left behind by a laborer on break?
 
Excavations of ancient Greek temples dating back to 1400-1800 BC, have also uncovered garlic cloves. The Greek also believed that garlic preserved strength and increased work capacity and garlic was added to  the Greek's military diet and given to soldiers on their way to battle. Hippocrates, considered by historians as the father of Medicine, used garlic to treat pulmonary issues, as a cleansing agent and for abdominal growths. Roman soldiers and sailors consumed garlic and it has been found on ancient ship manifests from that time period. Roman Medicine was heavily influenced by Pliny the Elder, a Greek physician who wrote the five-volume Historica Naturalis in which he listed more than 20 uses of garlic treating a variety of health issues.

Garlic made it's way to North America with European settlers in the colonial period although it was more used as a medicinal than for culinary purposes. It wasn't until the mid 1800s that garlic began to make inroads into cooking. This culinary shift was probably due to the popularity of several French cookbooks. It's use in America was still limited and was more likely found in working class neighborhoods and in ethnic dishes. Garlic didn't really become a prominent seasoning in this country until around 1940.

Garlic Cultivation

Garlic thrives in well-drained soils with lots of sun. The ideal climate zones are 4-9. China is the world's largest producer of garlic and in 2013 (the last reporting year) accounted for just over 79% of the world's production. The United States comes is only the 10th largest producer (at only .7%). 

Different Types of Garlic

As already mentioned garlic is grown in two primary varieties hardneck and softneck. The big difference between hardneck and softneck garlic is their appearance. Hardneck garlic features a long flowering stem called a scape that grows through the center of the bulb. The number of cloves varies depending on the hardneck cultivar, but generally is between 4-12. Softneck cultivars do not typically have a scape, have a larger bulb and typically produce between 8-20 cloves per bulb. Hardneck varieties tend to thrive in regions with more severe winters while softnecks prefer significantly milder winters.

Recent research has found 10 distinct sub-groups of garlic - 5 hardnecks, 2 softnecks and 3 weak bolting hardnecks that often produce softnecks. The 5 hardnecks are -  Porcelain, Purple Stripe, Glazed Purple Stripe, Marbled Purple Stripe and Rocambole. The 2 softnecks are Artichoke and Silverskin. The 3 varieties of weak bolting hadnecks are Asiatic, Creole and Turban. 

California vs Chinese Garlic

While it is widely believed that California is the garlic capital of the world, in actuality the majority of garlic consumed in the US now comes from China. This isn’t a big deal to everyone, but over the years we've heard from more than a few customers who prefer California grown garlic. We couldn't agree more - there have been several studies (scientific taste tests) that have continuously shown that California garlic tastes better than imported garlic.

The National Food Laboratory conducted brix tests in which they found that California garlic is about 42% solid compared to only about 37% for Chinese garlic. What does that mean exactly? This makes California garlic heavier and denser. The lab also measured  the odiferous compound in garlic called allicin. Allicin is released when the bulb is crushed. The results for the California garlic showed over 4,400 ppm [parts per million] of allicin compared to just 3,500 ppm for the Chinese.

While Chinese garlic is certainly less expensive, we've made the decision to only offer California grown Garlic. If you want to see a bit more on our big California Garlic decision you'll see that we worked hard to replace all of our garlic products with US grown Garlic. So not only do you get better flavor, but you're supporting California farmers as well.

How to Cook with Dehydrated Garlic

Granulated garlic is the one that is called for in most recipes and it can be substituted for fresh garlic in recipes where the flavor of garlic is called for, but not necessarily the texture.

To achieve full flavor it takes about 20 minutes, but you can notice the taste in a much shorter amount of time. If you are looking for more garlic flavor and texture, then you will want to try our Roasted Garlic Flakes and if you have a recipe where garlic flavor, but not texture or bulk, is called for then try Garlic Powder. Granulated garlic is more easily dispersed than garlic flakes and provides more bulk and thickening than powdered garlic. We also carry a California grown Roasted Granulated Garlic that is sure to tweak your taste buds!

Granulated Garlic is especially good with just about anything savory.

Granulated Garlic works well in combination with most spices and herbs.

We especially like to use this California Garlic when making chili.

For some excellent recipe ideas using garlic take a look at these - Provencal Chicken, Cincinnati Chili, Black Bean and Rice Salad, Arroz Con Pollo and Sweet Chickpea Chili in Slow Cooker.

Helpful Hints

For handy garlic conversions use: 1 fresh garlic clove = 1/8 teaspoon of garlic powder or 1/4 teaspoon of granulated garlic or 1/2 teaspoon of garlic flakes.

** This product is certified kosher.

Related Blog Posts

California or Chinese Garlic
California is One of the World's Healthiest Cuisines
What is the Shelf Life of Spices and Herbs
Flavor Characteristics of Spices

 
Nutritional Information

Serving Size 1 Teaspoon, Amount Per Serving: Calories 18.91, Total Fat 0.01g (0% DV), Sat. Fat 0g (0% DV), Trans Fat 0g (0% DV), Cholest. 0mg (0% DV), Sodium 0mg (0% DV), Total Carb.4g (1% DV), Dietary Fiber <1g (3% DV), Sugars 0g, Protein <1g (2% DV), Vitamin D 0mcg (0% DV), Calcium 7mcg (0% DV), Iron 0.018mg (0% DV), Potassium 2693mg (60% DV) Percent Daily Values DV) are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.