Does anyone have any opinion about buying minced garlic vs. fresh? It appears at first that the minced jar at Walmart might end up saving a little money.
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Bethany, you bring up a good topic. I've wondered about that myself. I've never bought the jarred garlic and just always used garlic powder or fresh garlic and then put through a garlic press. I have seen a chef or two on foodnetwork using the jarred minced garlic and have wondered how it is. I'd also like to know how long it keeps. If it keeps a long time, then I'd be more inclined to buy it. Sometimes I don't get around to using all of a bulb of garlic. They do dry out after a while. I keep in a pottery garlic keeper.
I love the jar of minced garlic. It lasts for ever (I have never had to throw it away) and I really get my moneys worth. With fresh garlic it sprouts before I can use it all and the powders just don't have the same taste.
Where do you store your minced garlic once you open it, in the refrigerator or cabinet?
Hi, I have been using the jarred minced garlic for a few years. It works just as well as the fresh to be perfectly
honest. There is not mess, fuss or cleanup! I think it is great, and you get way more from a jar than you do for the same moneys worth of fresh.
Oh, sorry, I missed this bit. I keep mine in the fridge after opening. I don't think it would "go off" as it is preserved in olive oil. :0)
I use both. Bottled minced garlic is fine for many things, but fresh cloves are better for things like Italian sauces, etc.
I have been using garlic in the jar for years and it keeps a long time. I like the fresh a little better, but it dries up sometimes before I can use it all.
In a way minced garlic is fresh, its bottles as such. I love the minced garlic. I use it in every recipe I have, and yes it does save time & $$$.
I find that 2 teaspoons of minced equals one clove of garlic minced.
Firstly, I don't trust Walmart when it comes to FOOD!
Here in San Diego the Walmarts are not allowed to sell food - they have a few boxed, frozen, canned goods, but nothing fresh. I believe garlic should be used fresh, and that laziness is the reason anyone would want to buy it in a jar or can!
Jarred garlic is awesome! It lasts for months in the fridge, in the long run costs less than using fresh (because fresh stales or dries out fairly quickly and is wasteful), jar packed minced garlic has no preservatives and saves lots in cooking prep time (and saving time does not make a person lazy)! Also, any purchased jar product is safe unless expiration date has come and gone when on the store shelf, any store shelf! You can also pre-mince fresh garlic in bulk (four or five 'bulbs') and glass jar it yourself in a teeny, teeny tad of water :-)
To benefit from the true goodness from garlic it must be eaten within 10 minutes of chopping so I always use fresh.
I don't add garlic to any meal until 10 mintes to the end of cooking.
To cut down breath odour - when cut in half- take out the middle green inner core from a sliced through garlic bulb- that's the cause of garlic breath.
Chew flat parsley leaves after the meal to prevent garlicky breath if you don't take it out!
Monique :)
Somerset, UK
I use both. I tend to use the jar minced for recipes that involve lots of different flavors. However, if I am making a recipe that one of the main ingredients is garlic I prefer the fresh because the flavor is much more pungent.
I LOVE GARLIC. I'm obviously very enthusiastic about it. Nothing can replace fresh for me. I think it's just personal preference.
I watch the food network all the time, and I remember a chef saying that the jarred garlic has alot of water added and is not as good to use for recipes. So in my oppinion I would say, if it tastes good enough for you then go for it. I use it, but I also use fresh. An easy way to use fresh and again I learned this from the food network, is to take the side of your large knife and smash down on the garlic clove. This will break that skin and make it real easy to peel off.
I believe in using fresh garlic. It last a long time in the refrig. Buy a garlic press (pamered chef as a wonderful one) if you don't like peeling them.
I used to use only minced garlic from a jar. I really didnt know how to use fresh or store it. I am now using only fresh garlic and there is no comparison in recipes. The taste is so much better with the fresh. I do believe the health benefits are more available in fresh than the jar stuff.
Garlic is considered a super food because of certain properties of the enzymes it contains. needless to say that any form (other than fresh) does not contain live enzymes. You might get the flavor from minced, but none of the potential health benefits, including cold fighting and cancer preventing.
First off, I prefer to buy American made items. Our econony is bad enough as is. Second, I use fresh garlic and minced garlic. With a family of 5 (3 of them small boys) the minced garlic is great for saving time and $$$ (and laziness has nothing to do with it). I usually use the fresh stuff in pasta dishes or when entertaining because the flavor truly is more robust in the fresh form.
A group of my friends and I did a test on this subject and we used fresh garlic vs. Trader Joe's Crushed Garlic and no one could tell the difference. We like the crushed better than the minced as it gives more flavor. We are all avid cooks and a couple of us are professional chefs. Trader Joe's is simply California garlic and citric acid (prevents darkening)only, does NOT contain water, lasts for ages, retains it's flavor and has all the benefits of fresh garlic. This is not laziness - it is economic, saves time for busy cooks, lasts and lasts without losing flavor whereas fresh garlic which should not be refrigerated, has a limited lifetime. There are other producers of crushed garlic, usually kept in your produce department. Just make sure that the only other ingredient is citric acid.
Since I grow garlic in my garden, I generally use fresh. I have used the jar garlic, but don't find the taste to be as yummy as fresh.
Try growing your own, it is easier than you could imagine.
Trish in CT
I'm not Lazy just because I dont use fresh garlic enough to justify buying it fresh. Some people are just food snobs! By the way, it was grown and jarred in the US and I bought it at WALMART!! Everyone picks on Walmart but I guarantee you it is just as hard to find made in America products anywhere else.
I buy a fresh garlic bulb, peel it all, and put the cloves in a small jar and cover it with olive oil.When you need fresh garlic simply take a clove or two out, and put it in a garlic press. It lasts a very long time, and you can use the flavored garlic olive oil in spaghetti and other dishes. It tastes much better than the store variety as well.
I used to be in the fresh garlic camp but I've gone back and forth between the two and not one single person has ever been able to tell the difference. I have made dishes with canned garlic and told people it was fresh, they then comment on how much better it tastes than if i had used canned. At that point I bust out with a "Gotcha!". It's all in their heads.
Jars of minced garlic should be refrigerated!
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