The gem of a theory that garlic is to cooking as vanilla extract is to baking in that the amount you add to your food is guided by reckless extravagance and utter disregard, verging on mild contempt for the recipe as written.
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I always put in way more garlic, ginger and coriander than any recipe tells me to and everyone wolfs it down. I believe that there is no such thing as too much of an ingredient if you really like it, except for mint and cayenne pepper. Overdo either of those 2 and dinner is in the bin.
At a company holiday pot luck a coworker set up a crockpot of some kind of beef stew. He must have mixed up mint with another green dried herb. Jesus was it awful.
This is a spectacular theory in search of an adherent
Thing is, garlic tolerance diminishes with age, from roaring lust to sideway glances & the sign of The Cross at the thought of what it will do to aged digestive systems
Vanilla, though, might be different. Seems to me that might grow over time
Any recipe that calls for a single clove of garlic may as well be named “Blandest Meal You’ve Eaten This Week!” Even then, double the garlic just to be safe.
I made 3 batches of cookies from the same recipe and they turned out completely different. Baking is a science. 2 pinches more of flour throws it all through the window
Recipes are for amateurs. They're more like guidelines than actual rules. A recipe is a starting point from which you are free to experiment. I don't even have recipes for many of the things I cook. When I need a recipe, I only follow it to the letter the first time. After that, it's tweaking time.
It took me many years to realise this but you speak the absolute truth. I only use recipes now to elicit a taste for something and then I work on how to make the recipe work for me.
I add something to almost every recipe. Whether I double the vanilla, add nuts or freeze dried fruit, or tweak it in some other way, I have to make it mine. People ask me for my recipes and I'm like -- Whuuuut???
That's a great way to cook. I end up doing that a lot too but the additions depend mostly on what I have in the cupboard or fridge. It's amazing how this method can occasionally produce the best meals.
this is true of almost all spices, in my experience
every time I try a new recipe, I just go ahead and double the amount of 'flavor' they say to put in there: garlic, vanilla, cinnamon, sage, whatever - and I almost always end up thinking I could have gone even harder
I think some folks in this thread are using the alcohol suspension vanilla extract and THAT is actually the problem here - use paste or real beans people
Just make sure you wait 10 minutes after crushing, mincing, etc. so the beneficial compounds have a chance to comingle! Hopefully that means you'll fight the good fight against colds and flu, or at least not be sick as long.
I once had dinner at a friends that was memorable, it turned out that she didn't know the difference between cloves and bulbs. It worked out fine for me as nobody else would eat it.
To be fair, different countries have different garlic. American garlic is stronger than Indonesian, which is stronger than Philippines. From personal experience. So yeah, I just put as much I think it needs.
FYI :I use Gourmet Garden brand Garlic Chunky Stir in Paste from Australia! It’s the greatest thing ever!😍
This week the store was out of stock🤬 so I got a tube of Roasted Garlic to try instead!😄
I once sent back a bottle of wine at a restaurant. The staff thought they would get back at us by making the garlic bread reek of garlic. My were they wrong. Best bread I ever had.
Instead of a teaspoon of vanilla extract, I use a tablespoon in baking! Also, if it calls for anything less than four cloves of garlic, I always use 4 instead. If it asks for more than that I stick to it though.
Hello Fresh sends me a new bulb every time a recipe needs garlic. I've got 10 bulbs in the fridge. I've started using one additional clove than stated but I'm still falling behind
We always double if not triple the number of cloves in the recipe and sometimes have to buy extra bulbs (we do Every Plate — same company but less expensive)
I buy huge bags of garlic and when I have a bunch left I cut them in half, slather with olive oil and roast. Then I squeeze out the cloves I bulb size balls, wrap and freeze. Soooo good.
Love a good roast garlic. I could live off roasted garlic and butternut squash risotto probably.
No effective freezer space because (I'm convinced) my landlords are running a betting ring on how long they can prevaricate before they sort that shit out. 10 months and counting.
There is no salt thread, so I’ll say it here: What gets me is when a video chef says to add “a pinch of salt” and then tosses in what looks like a fistful.
Depending on what you're baking, you can often get creative with citrus peel and (sometimes) liqueurs as flavoring. And glazes, after the main baking is done.
You have to be careful, though, especially if you're using yeast as a leavening agent. Too much alcohol can kill it. Also, if you're making ice cream, it won't come out right if you've added too much alcohol to your base.
Indeed. I was an executive chef in a previous life…before I gave it all up for my daughter and a glamorous life, turning my policy work and writing into a full time career.
Every ingredient matters. Sometimes you can get away with excess of one..like liquor. Other times it will ruin everything 🙂
My background is in science, and so I largely see baking and cooking as very specialized subsets of chemistry. And just like in any other area of chemistry, there are some things you shouldn't try and other things you should, and some experiments are safer than others.
There's an Italian saying in re risotto that goes: "Rice is born in water and dies in wine," although I prefer white wine with my (tomatoless) risotto.
That looks so good but I really can't follow video-only recipes where I can't constantly check the exact amount of each ingredient at each stage 🥲 Might look for a text version online somewhere...
My guiding principle in cooking?
If some is good, more must be better! That’s why I’m not very good at baking. But soups and stews? Then I’m in my groove!
Try this…. A small oven safe container…. Brie, chopped garlic on top, then some honey.. let it all melt in the oven and then have a crostini ready. OMFG. Trust me. ;-)
In middle school home ex, they put us in pairs to make cheesecake. My partner thought ours would get us drunk if we put in the whole bottle of vanilla. All it got us was an F.
I was short, fat and didn’t hit puberty for a few more years. My middle school was rough and I was terrified of everyone. Also, he was quick. It was t like he discussed it with me — he just grabbed the bottle and did it.
Middle school was the worst for me, but it got better from there. Just remember what Bob Dylan's grandmother said: "Be kind, because everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle."
Totally different things. It's hard to use too much garlic. Same with real vanilla scraped out of a pod, but use too much cheapo essence from a little bottle, bleugh!
All joking aside, I love the vanilla extract we make. Beans + booze = yum! It's so much cheaper than the garbage our stores sell, and we give the excess away to our neighbors.
I recently got whole beans from Costco! I'm also known to scour the HomeGoods shelves for the brand "Heilala" which has an AMAZING ground vanilla paste... And if I can get it there it's about $6. Well worth it. I made whipped cream with it for the holidays and it was amazing.
Oh hey... a fun tip I picked up. Once beans have been used to make extract. Let them dry out and then throw them in a jar of sugar. Voila, vanilla sugar!
I think there is no upper limit on the use of garlic, well I haven't found my garlic limit yet. One of my favorite garlic concoctions is called Skorthalia. 6 or 8 heads of baked garlic some slightly stale bread and EVOO a wizz in the blender, perfect. Most anything is a good vehicle to shovel it in.
My mother, a self-taught cook from Belfast, NI, found a beef stroganoff recipe that called for 2 cloves of garlic. She sent me to Smiths of the Green to buy garlic (the only place you could get it in Dublin, at the time). I brought her back 2 heads of garlic. Since she had no idea what a clove is...
...she laboriously peeled both heads, and added them.
The stroganoff was magnificent, but eye-watering, except to my dad, who was a martyr to heartburn. My sister and I raved about it so much she would make it once a week. Only later did I find out how she'd screwed up.
But I agree. The amount of garlic I add to a recipe is usually limited by my laziness in peeling cloves, rather than how much I think I should add, which is pretty much infinite.
Hard agree. I decry any recipe that calls to add your garlic and onions at the same time, the garlic will burn before the onion is softened and your meal will be very sad indeed
You cook by a recipe? I cook by what's in my kitchen and sounds good together. I can cook with a recipe, but if your gonna do that, just buy a premade box mix.
I love garlic so much Mr. Potter of Bedford Falls would call me and my clan "a bunch of garlic eaters that don't deserve nothing, especially help from a saving and loan he'd invest in". The more cloves the better the memories.
Cut both ends off a whole bulb, place in a jar and give it a good shake for a minute.
This was a life changer for me along with peeling eggs in a similar fashion.
I've tried that. Didn't work for me. I now cut off the ends, put a French knife flat on the clove and either lean on it or strike it with moderate force with my palm. I find if I steam eggs for 15 minutes, then cool for 5, that they're easier to peel. Helps to use older eggs too.
I've been a professional baker/pastry chef for over twenty years and I'm telling you those people writing recipes with vanilla measured in teaspoons are completely bananas if they think I'm gonna go along with that happy horseshit.
The other day, I was showing my son how I make Chantilly cream. He watched me put the vanilla in and commented, “I think that’s too much.” I laughed maniacally
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Thing is, garlic tolerance diminishes with age, from roaring lust to sideway glances & the sign of The Cross at the thought of what it will do to aged digestive systems
Vanilla, though, might be different. Seems to me that might grow over time
2 cups minced garlic.
You're right, they sound equally horrid.
It was actually enjoyed by some members of my family. But not others.
🧄🧄🧄🧄
In most of my food too much garlic isn't possible 🤣🤣 unless I'm going on a date later or something obviously 😜😜
When in doubt, improvise!
😉
every time I try a new recipe, I just go ahead and double the amount of 'flavor' they say to put in there: garlic, vanilla, cinnamon, sage, whatever - and I almost always end up thinking I could have gone even harder
Once you start peeling them you HAVE to use them all
In recipes that say one clove I always figure they have a gigantic garlic 🧄
If you ever eat raw 🧄 you will notice, not all cloves have the same kick so its negligence if you only use 1-2 cloves.
All this to say I ❤️ garlic
It's very easy to ruin something with too much vanilla.
Although it’s hard to quantify the level of disdain I feel when I see a recipe calling for a single clove of garlic.
This week the store was out of stock🤬 so I got a tube of Roasted Garlic to try instead!😄
What do you use instead?
https://www.saveur.com/lobster-vanilla-sauce-recipe/
https://www.themediterraneandish.com/how-to-roast-garlic/#h-how-to-store-roasted-garlic
Roasted garlic is milder and yummy.
No effective freezer space because (I'm convinced) my landlords are running a betting ring on how long they can prevaricate before they sort that shit out. 10 months and counting.
Swap cloves for bulbs and it becomes correct 😝
Garlic on the other hand is at least doubled.
Or don't, NaCl is not for everyone.
Yes, salt is optional. No, you don't need it. But yes, it _enhances flavor_.
You might argue that if i added salt I'd use less garlic. But I'm happy with the balance.
That is so true.
Also Did you know that garlic is God's penicillin.
Yes yes it is
Every ingredient matters. Sometimes you can get away with excess of one..like liquor. Other times it will ruin everything 🙂
I like a tiny bit of garlic like that
If some is good, more must be better! That’s why I’m not very good at baking. But soups and stews? Then I’m in my groove!
You can add but you can't take away.
You have options garlic isn't the only spice.
All joking aside, I love the vanilla extract we make. Beans + booze = yum! It's so much cheaper than the garbage our stores sell, and we give the excess away to our neighbors.
gimme aaaall the garlic!
The stroganoff was magnificent, but eye-watering, except to my dad, who was a martyr to heartburn. My sister and I raved about it so much she would make it once a week. Only later did I find out how she'd screwed up.
My poor Dad, though...
But I agree. The amount of garlic I add to a recipe is usually limited by my laziness in peeling cloves, rather than how much I think I should add, which is pretty much infinite.
Garlic scorches easily. When folks add it too early to a dish, it can overwhelm or alter the flavor.
Residual heat is usually more than enough to cook it or at least reach aromatic.
But once it scorches, kinda best to bin it and restart.
Where is the fun in that?
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/chicken-with-forty-cloves-of-garlic-recipe-1944216
This was a life changer for me along with peeling eggs in a similar fashion.
"MORE...VANILLA, EH, GOV'NUH?!"