Black garlic is black or brownish after being aged. It is sticky textured garlic with a sweet taste; it is called a super-food. It contains more antioxidants and S-Ally-cysteine (SAC) which helps your body to absorb the benefits of allicin.
Black garlic boosts the immune system; it helps to control blood sugar, inflammation, fatty liver, cholesterol, and triglycerides. It can also help to fight some cancers like colon cancer and helps to fight Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease as well.
Making black garlic is a slow and long process. Usually, people make black garlic in a confined hot room under a bulb light; this process usually takes months to age the garlic. You can also cause black garlic at home with a perfect slow cooker; the process is very simple if you follow the steps but then again it is a lengthy process.
Tips and Steps to Make Black Garlic in a Slow Cooker
Check out the steps and guides to make garlic in the slow cooker in your home:
Origin
The origin of black garlic is very debatable. It is said that it was 1st found in Korea; it was made for its medicinal qualities. This black garlic is mostly used in many Asian countries for its distinct taste and other health benefits.
The Things You Need
For preparing black garlic you will need a slow cooker or crockpot, aluminum foil, some paper towels, an airtight jar, a smooth scrubber, and some whole garlic. Try to choose more giant-sized garlic, small garlic will have small cloves which are hard to peel and scoop out. You can choose any white garlic you want but bigger-sized ones are just easy to peel off.
Also, you need an abandoned room with air circulation or you can choose an open space for this process. The reason you need an abandoned room or open space is that the garlic releases a strong smell especially when the process starts and your room will smell garlicky even after you are done with making black garlic.
Cleaning
Now clean the garlic; do not remove the shell and do not wash them with water. You just need to clean any dirt from the upper layer and for that, you can very lightly scrub the garlic with an unused smooth scrubber and wipe off any dirt. Now wash off your airtight jars and dry them with a paper towel. You also need to clean your slow cooker pot before starting the process.
Start the Process
After cleaning everything take the garlic bulbs and wrap each garlic separately with at least 2 layers of aluminum foil.
This will keep the moisture inside of the bulb and will help the garlic to age evenly. Make sure you wrap them tight in a way that air does not pass.
Placing them in the Cooker
Now place the garlic inside the slow cooker. Place them keeping gaps between each garlic; do not over-stuff the pot. You can put 6-8 garlic bulbs at a time considering your slow cooker’s size.
Before putting the wrapped garlic inside the pot you can turn on it to the cooking mode for preheating; you can do this process for 2-3 minutes. After preheating switch the warmer button and place the garlic bulbs.
Also Read: Best-Rated Smokeless Grill Reviews
Waiting for the Heating Process
Now close the lid and leave it there for 3-6 weeks. You need to keep on checking on the machine as it might get turned off. Make sure it is plugged in all the time and the garlic is not touching each other.
After 3 weeks you can pick garlic and remove the wrapper and the thin skin to check if the cloves are black yet. If you see that the garlic is still brownish then wrap it again and keep on the process for another week.
After a week again check the same garlic bulb and if you think that the garlic needs more time then keep it another week.
Best Time to Have the Best Flavor
You have to be very patient to make good black garlic. This will take time and this is how it is made. There is a saying “good things come with time” and you will have to remember it while making black garlic. This time and patience are worth it because of its health benefits and you can also use black garlic in different dishes.
Now store the garlic bulbs in the airtight jar after you think you have achieved the best version of black garlic. You can store them for up to 3 months depending on the weather.
Last Few Words
Black garlic is not fermented garlic. This process is called the Maillard reaction. After you have made the black garlic you will see that the cloves have a rich, soft, smooth, and sticky texture. You can eat the cloves as it is or you can spread them on toast or bread for breakfast. You can also make different dishes with this garlic.
There are a lot of recipes online which include black garlic, try those and enjoy the soft nutritious ingredient.