Smoked garlic

[William Schmitz]

I'm a big fan of roasted garlic and use it to flavor lots of different thngs . . . that said, I was wondering if anyone has tried to smoke a head of garlic. If so, how did it turn out?

Normally I'll roast a head of garlic in a little tin-foil pouch in the oven at 350 for about an hour. But I wonder if it will work "low and slow"?

Also, "To foil or not to foil? That is the question."

Any ideas?

Bill

 

[Doug D]

You'd need to slice the top off to expose the actual edible part to some smoke-- otherwise you'll just be smoking the skin. In foil, all you'd get is roasted garlic, same as the oven.

 

[Rita Y]

Doug is right; slice off the upper 1/4 to 1/3 of the garlic head before smoking it.

Jim Minion says that garlic (unwrapped) can be smoked at 250°F until soft. I've smoked it from 1 to 2 hours, depending on temperature.

Once it's smoked, wrap it tightly in Saran and let it cool a bit. Extract as much flesh as possible into a mini-processor. Add a little salt and about 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (for 2 heads) and purée. Pour into a small jar and freeze; use as needed. (Butter is also great, but not if you want to use the purée for a salad dressing.)

Rita