# Storing roasted garlic



## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

Roasted garlic is one of my favorite ingredients for vinegraitte, pesto, marinades etc.  How should I store roasted garlic so that I can use it for these purposes without having to turn on my oven for an hour each time I wish to have some?


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## cheflayne (Aug 21, 2004)

At work we just puree the cloves after roasting the garlic; then we keep it in the fridge.


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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

Can it be frozen?


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## cheflayne (Aug 21, 2004)

I don't see why not. Can't imagine that it would affect the quality or flavor profile. Do it in small ice cube trays and when frozen dump them into a ziplock bag, that way you can pull small amounts at a time.


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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

I usually freeze it right in the husk. Can be easily popped out as needed. Keeps quite well tightly wrapped.


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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

I'll have to try it then. thanks!


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## kaneohegirlinaz (Apr 24, 2011)

I never thought about that before, good idea Miss KK, thank you.

The next time I turn on my oven I will roast off 3 or 4 heads of garlic

and then just stash them away in the freezer (as my husband says, I freeze everything).


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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

I'll try just storing one head of roasted garlic, separated into cloves and see how it goes before I do any more.


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## chefboyarg (Oct 28, 2008)

If you poach garlic cloves in oil they keep pretty much indefinitely if stored covered in the oil. Not sure if the same would apply to roasted garlic if stored in oil.


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## durangojo (Jul 30, 2007)

i freeze roasted garlic cloves a lot and they are fine...i've also frozen them fo 6 months and it's still fine.....sometimes i do what cheflayne suggests and puree it and keep it in the fridge. pureeing works equally as well with fresh garlic and freezes well, but i also add evoo. i do have the advantage of buying the cloves peeled so there's that. 

joey


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## everydaygourmet (Apr 4, 2012)

All great ideas and comments, remember there is a Botulism toxicity issue with storing garlic in oil.

According to both government and other sources

http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hl-vs/iyh-vsv/food-aliment/garlic-ail-eng.php

_It is best to throw away any leftover home-made garlic-in-oil._

_If you decide to store it, make sure it goes into the refrigerator right away, and use it within a week._

Never store garlic-in-oil at room temperature.

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2653/is-garlic-oil-lethal

_Incidentally, another danger associated with garlic is potential botulism contamination--in 1989 the FDA banned certain garlic-in-oil mixes for that reason. The problem is that when you chop up fresh produce and cover it in oil, you're giving anaerobic Clostridium botulinum bacteria a good growing environment. Some claim roasting the garlic first eliminates this danger, but I've seen conflicting arguments on that score--better not to risk it._

http://www.oliveoilpassion.com/garlic-infused-olive-oil-dont-try-this-at-home/

_Garlic bulbs grow underground. Clostridium Botulinum is a bacteria found in most soil so it's always on root vegetables. Usually, the bacteria is killed when the root or bulb is removed from the soil and exposed to the air. Cooking also kills the bacteria which is why canned vegetables always say, "heat to a boil" on the instructions._

_The toxic situation occurs when you put fresh garlic in oil and keep it at room temperature. You see bacteria are anerobic meaning they thrive in an airless environment. Oil is a perfect airless environment. The warmer bacteria are, the more they proliferate. So room temperature rather than refrigeration means a population boom for the microscopic critters._

_To be safe, a garlic and oil mixture, has to be refrigerated AND it has to have some acid agent like citric or phosphoric acid added._

_I don't know if you've tried garlic infused olive oil, but it's to die for. I'm so glad I learned this about garlic oil because I'm really into the cooking thing. I might have tried making my own garlic oil and really died!_

SO all that being said I likewise roast multiple heads low, and slow, let them rest for about 10 min, cool them on parchment in the freezer until cold then process them, add a Spanish evo citric acid and sea salt to help preserve and "cap" with evo, store real cold, I've had this mixture stored for a couple of weeks with no ill effects.

Cheers,

EDG


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