How to get great garlic taste in Linguine?

[JEDI]

so I had GREAT garlic tasting Linguine in olive oil at a restaurant.

I went and bought 3lbs of minced garlic at Costco.

made my Linguine.
liberally sprinked said garlic and virgin olive oil onto plate.

did not get that great garlic taste.

Moved from Home & Garden.
admin allisolm

 

[Azuma Hazuki]

The jarred stuff doesn't do it. I looooove cooking, especially Italian, and have always gotten good results using fresh garlic.

You want fresh garlic, a garlic press, and just a little bit of clarified butter ("desi ghee" in Indian markets) if you can get it, or very pure olive oil--but watch the smoke point!

Boil the pasta in another pot; meanwhile, while it's cooking, melt some ghee or heat some oil in a small pan, and directly add the pressed garlic to it when the fat is sputtering. Stir constantly on medium heat so you don't burn it. Drain the pasta when it's al-dente, reserving perhaps 15ml of the water, and pour the garlic + oil + reserved water over the pasta, then stir over low heat for a few more minutes until it's nice and well-mixed.

Eat the spaghetti and forget your regretti!

 

[JEDI]

Drain the pasta when it's al-dente, reserving perhaps 15ml of the water, and pour the garlic + oil + reserved water over the pasta, then stir over low heat for a few more minutes until it's nice and well-mixed.

Eat the spaghetti and forget your regretti!

ahh.. I don't think im cooking the garlic in the olive oil for long enuf.
will try again w/longer simmer.

and why do u add water to the garlic oil?

 

[rudder]

Are you frying the garlic in oil? Garlic gets real bitter if you overcook it. Add the garlic last.

 

[tailes151]

Follow this recipe. If you want a more garlicky flavor, add more garlic at the beginning, or cook the garlic slightly less time. Do not overcook the garlic.

Adding pasta water (or any water, really) to the oil garlic combo stops the garlic from continuing to cook once you feel it's ready. It also thins the "sauce" out a bit.

 

[JEDI]

Are you frying the garlic in oil? Garlic gets real bitter if you overcook it. Add the garlic last.

so bring oil to a bubble then add the Costco minced garlic?

 

[ponyo]

Use fresh garlic.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Use fresh garlic.

This.

That jarred stuff never tastes right to me.

 

[Zeze]

so bring oil to a bubble then add the Costco minced garlic?

No, why add garlic last? You're not flash frying meat.

1. Add oil cold to the cold pan. Olive oil is best with garlic, than vegetable.
2. Add crushed or better yet, minced fresh garlic cold
3. Turn on the stove (med or low, not high)
4. Let them heat together, so all that garlic goodness gets infused into oil. It's like a honeymoon- let them spend much time as possible from start. The amazing aroma will fill up your kitchen too.
5. At the SLIGHTEST hint of garlic turning brown, turn it off. Once it's brown, it's overcooked and bitter.

The whole ordeal shouldn't take longer than 3-4 mins on med heat.

 

[NesuD]

No, why add garlic last? You're not flash frying meat.

1. Add oil cold to the cold pan. Olive oil is best with garlic, than vegetable.
2. Add crushed or better yet, minced fresh garlic cold
3. Turn on the stove (med or low, not high)
4. Let them heat together, so all that garlic goodness gets infused into oil. It's like a honeymoon- let them spend much time as possible from start. The amazing aroma will fill up your kitchen too.
5. At the SLIGHTEST hint of garlic turning brown, turn it off. Once it's brown, it's overcooked and bitter.

The whole ordeal shouldn't take longer than 3-4 mins on med heat.

This ^^^^ is how you infuse garlic into your olive oil.

 

[lxskllr]

On the bright side; you have a lifetime supply of minced garlic :^D

Who would use 3# in any reasonable timeframe?!

 

[Ns1]

first step, use real garlic instead of that prechopped shit.

also:

http://www.seriouseats.com/2015/01/how-to-mince-chop-garlic-microplane-vs-garlic-press.html

 

[MongGrel]

Use fresh garlic.

We have a small jar of minced, but usually use fresh ourselves.

Peel a couple cloves and just slice it as thin as I can is what I usually shoot for, have never used a press myself.

A little Goodfellas action

But I usually mash it first myself with knife flat.

 

[MrSquished]

i make a garlic mashed potatoes Alton Browns way. Cloves of crushed garlic simmering in milk for a bit provides the garlic flavor. I found myself at a friends house a month ago and brought the potatoes but they had no fresh garlic. But they did have that pre-minced garlic in a jar stuff so I subbed that instead. Actually turned out pretty good. Was pleasantly surprised - that minced shit in a jar can work out sometimes it turns out.

But anyway, in general nothing beats the fresh stuff. Minced garlic is the way to go. never put it in very hot oil, it burns in a jiffy. any garlic cooked beyond a very very very light brown is going to be bitter. really you should stop it from cooking just before it is about to start browning.

 

[JEDI]

added olive oil and the jar minced garlic to a cold pan, and heated both at same time.

still don't have the strong garlic taste of garlic oil linguine that I had at a buffet last week.

guess i'll go out and buy fresh garlic cloves.

 

[zinfamous]

you got packaged minced garlic, this is why you fail. Garlic taste is highly dependent on how you prepare it: smash it or just dice it? sautee in olive oil or butter, and at what temperature, how long?

or just fresh with olive oil? it varies tremendously. For just garlic and oil and linguine, you want to smash that garlic and toss it in low simmer olive oil, then add in your not-quite-cooked linguine, toss in the pan and turn off the heat.

no self-respecting human buys that minced, peeled, whatever garlic.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

The advice about fresh garlic is correct.

However, the cooking advice is a bit lacking. Put fresh pressed garlic in cold olive oil then heat it very slowly to an ultra-low simmer. You barely want any bubbles coming off of the garlic. You can allow it to simmer for 20 - 30 minutes and that's what is going to impart that proper flavor because the garlic slowly infuses into the olive oil.

 

[Zeze]

The advice about fresh garlic is correct.

However, the cooking advice is a bit lacking. Put fresh pressed garlic in cold olive oil then heat it very slowly to an ultra-low simmer. You barely want any bubbles coming off of the garlic. You can allow it to simmer for 20 - 30 minutes and that's what is going to impart that proper flavor because the garlic slowly infuses into the olive oil.

20 30 mins needlessly excessive

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

20 30 mins needlessly excessive

An hour is needlessly excessive. 20 to 30 minutes provides a decent amount of time for extraction of the garlic into the oil; not to mention it's a ridiculously easy thing to do. I prep garlic that way for spaghetti sauce too. Add the olive oil/garlic sauté to the sauce just before serving and mix well.

Unless you don't like garlic. If you don't like garlic, disregard.

 

[JEDI]

ok, will try a long simmer.
start cold oil/garlic at slow simmer. then start making the pasta.
after pasta is done, drained, put on plate then pour garlic oil.
~10min simmer?

because I have 3# of minced garlic to experiment with

 

[zinfamous]

well, you can ignore the olive oil advice, too. want to do it the proper way? simmer garlic in rendered pancetta fat. Now we are talking. Drizzle a small amount of olive oil over the dish in the pan, only at the end, and toss with the rest of the garlic and fat.

 

[slag]

On the bright side; you have a lifetime supply of minced garlic :^D

Who would use 3# in any reasonable timeframe?!

I go through 2-3 of those jars a year. It's the only way to use garlic. Every time I use it, its a heaping tablespoon or more in the dish because you can never have too much garlic.

 

[yuchai]

An hour is needlessly excessive. 20 to 30 minutes provides a decent amount of time for extraction of the garlic into the oil; not to mention it's a ridiculously easy thing to do. I prep garlic that way for spaghetti sauce too. Add the olive oil/garlic sauté to the sauce just before serving and mix well.

Unless you don't like garlic. If you don't like garlic, disregard.

20-30 minutes is too long, because your garlic slices will start becoming tasteless from too much extraction. Unless you for some reason don't eat the garlic slices and toss them away.

About 10 minutes is ideal from my experience.

But yeah OP - the main reason that you didn't succeed is because you didn't use fresh garlic. Don't even prep the fresh garlic too much ahead of time. Garlic loses its fragrance/flavor pretty quickly after it is chopped up.

 

[zinfamous]

I go through 2-3 of those jars a year. It's the only way to use garlic. Every time I use it, its a heaping tablespoon or more in the dish because you can never have too much garlic.

well, for starters, "the only way to use garlic" never beings with buying a tub of pre-minced garlic.

 

[Matthiasa]

While buying it pre-minced is a bit questionable, buying it pre-pealed minimally affects taste and saves a lot of time if using a lot of garlic. Noting that it will need to be stored differently and will probably not store as long.