History of Garlic

Historians believe that garlic is indigenous to Central Asia, and that it was one of the first horticultural crops ever grown. An Arab legend says that garlic comes from the footprint that the Devil left behind after he fled from Eden.

In Ancient Egypt, this plant was worshipped and was such an integral part of the culture and everyday life that pharaohs were often buried with garlic bulbs both real and in clay form, so they would be eternally entombed with the deceased. When Pharaoh Tutankhamen’s tomb was discovered, perfectly preserved cloves were among the other treasures that had been taken with him to the grave. Garlic was also given to the people that built the pyramids as it was believed to help increase their strength and their tolerance for the hard work.

The English used to call Garlic the “stinking rose,” it was used to scare away evil spirits and deter supernatural beings. It was also considered to be a food useful to only the working-class people. Because garlic is easy to grow and widely available, it has always been a food accessible to cooks of all financial situations, in all parts of the world.

In Korean culture, garlic was one of the instruments of the founding of the whole nation of Korea. A tiger and a bear, named Ungnyeo, lived together in a cave and prayed to the God Hwanung to be made into humans. Hwanung was deeply moved by their prayers and gave them 20 cloves of garlic and a bundle of mugwart and told them if they could survive off of those food items and remain in the cave for 100 days, they would be made into humans. The tiger was not able to complete the task, leaving the cave after 20 days in search of food. Ungnyeo was turned into a woman after just 21 days in the cave. After some time, she and Hwanung married and had a son named Dangun who was the founder of Korea.

In some parts of Asia, garlic was eliminated from the diets of strict Buddhists because it has a reputation for being a sexual stimulant.

During WWI, garlic was used by the British soldiers for its many healing properties. Whole cloves were rubbed on open wounds to help with the healing process.

Garlic is mentioned 21 times in Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula. Along with holy water and the Christian cross, these items would deter vampires or evil. Up until the 1970s, corpses in Slavic countries were still being stuffed with garlic cloves to keep evil at bay. If you are ever planning to go out and walk through a graveyard in the middle of the night, be sure to bring some garlic with you. Any lurking vampires will be repelled by you instead of attracted to your blood.

Up until the 1940s, garlic in the United States was usually only found in ethnic or foreign dishes. It was sometimes crudely called “Italian perfume” in the restaurant world up until its more widespread use in the 40s. Today, Americans eat over 250 million pounds of garlic in a single year.

The most garlic cloves eaten in one minute totaled 36. This number of cloves was eaten by a man from Illinois in the United States by the name of Patrick Bertolleti.

There is a name for the fear of garlic- alliumphobia. A popular Yiddish proverb mentioning it goes, “a nickel will get you on the subway, but garlic will get you a seat” in reference to the way garlic smells.

Garlic Cultivation

Garlic is easy to grow and has a large yield. This plant is also frost-tolerant, and in fact some varieties prefer cold weather. These plants enjoy well drained soils that are full of organic material. Cloves must be planted 4-6 inches apart, but don’t need a huge amount of space to grow to their full potential. Garlic is usually planted in the fall and will produce shoots in the spring. Garlic is a natural repellent of pests like rodents and bugs, but it is slightly susceptible to white rot, a type of fungus that thrives in cold weather and effects both garlic and onions.

Roughly 90% of domestic garlic is grown in California, while two thirds of all garlic produced comes from China.

Our Organic Granulated Garlic is from California.

Types of Garlic

There are two main types of garlic- hardneck and softneck. The main difference between these two types of garlic are their appearance. Hardneck garlic had a long flowering stem called a scape. The scape grows through the center of the bulb, which is home to 4-12 cloves. Softneck garlic usually does not have a scape and it usually has a larger bulb, with cloves in the 8-20 range. Hardneck varieties thrive in areas with severe winters, while softnecks prefer mild winters.

Cooking with Granulated Garlic

Garlic can go on pretty much anything. Granulated garlic is delicious on garlic bread, in butters or spreads, and in many other savory foods.

Granulated garlic is wonderful for those recipes where you want garlic flavor but not the texture of garlic. It is excellent for marinades and rubs and for seasoning vegetables.

It is excellent with cheese and tastes incredible on grilled cheese sandwiches or in baked macaroni and cheese. Granulated garlic is great on bagels. If you happen to be unlucky enough to eat a boring slice of pizza, throw a pinch of this on there and it will brighten that slice right up.

For an easy, quick dinner, cook up some chicken in garlic butter. The first thing you must do is melt the butter in a skillet and then add 3 teaspoons of granulated garlic. Fry some boneless skinless chicken in this butter, and then when it’s finished frying add a little more granulated garlic to taste and a just a tiny bit of salt. This is a quick, easy incorporation of garlic into your diet.

Soups of all sorts could use some granulated garlic as well. Cream of mushroom, potato soups, or broccoli and cheddar soups are perfect candidates for some garlic flavor. Black bean soup is another great option.

Granulated garlic combines well with most herbs, spices, and vegetables.

Dried vs Fresh

Fresh garlic has a very pungent, garlicky flavor. As is the case with some spices, the dried form is slightly more concentrated because the flavor stays behind whereas the water disappears from it.

What Does Granulated Garlic Taste Like?

Organic granulated garlic tastes like garlic.

Substitutions and Conversions

¼ teaspoon of granulated garlic is approximately equal to one garlic clove.

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