How to Cut Garlic - Recipelink.com

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How to Cut Garlic

Book Description

Don't be surprised if it changes the way you cook.Knives are the most common pieces of equipment in the kitchen, yet few cooks know the basic techniques that can allow them to carve, chop, slice, and mince effectively. Peter Hertzmann teaches you skills that encompass everything you need to do with a knife in the kitchen, whether you're a four-star chef or an at-home beginner. This comprehensive guide fills a gaping void in culinary literature.• Over 800 step-by-step illustrations for right

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Knife Skills Illustrated: A User's Manual

Authors: Peter Hertzmann

Date: August 2007

ISBN: 0393061787

Publisher: W. W. Norton

Hardcover

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How to Cut Garlic
Recipe from: Knife Skills Illustrated
by Peter Hertzmann
Cookbook Heaven at Recipelink.com

Garlic is an essential part of cooking in most corners of the world. Although garlic is mentioned in many of the oldest ancient texts, its country of origin is unknown. Like shallots and onions, garlic is a member of the lily family. Unlike the other two, the layers of the garlic bulb do not separate into individual sections when it is cut.

What we call garlic cloves are, botanically speaking, bulbs. They are connected at a common root. The set of cloves is called a head. Each clove is covered by an individual skin, and the whole head is covered with a common skin. Garlic may have thick skin or very fine skin, depending on the time of year and source. The thick-skinned variety is much easier to peel. If the cloves are old, a sprout, called the germ, will be present in the center of each one. It should be removed, especially if it is green, because it can impart a bitter taste. (In some stores, peeled garlic is sold in jars. It has only about half the potency of fresh garlic. If you do buy it, trim the dark stem end before using.)

For cooking, garlic is used whole, sliced, minced, chopped, or pureed.

Trimming and Peeling a Garlic Clove

Separate an individual clove of garlic from the head. Hold the clove firmly between the thumb and forefinger of your left hand. Hold a sharp paring knife in your right, with your forefinger and middle finger wrapped around the blade and the cutting edge of the blade toward your thumb. Support your knife hand against the clove with your right thumb. Cut all the way through the root end of the clove. In the center of the clove, growing from the root, is the germ. The germ is almost the full width of the clove at the root end and tapers to a small point at the other end. The cut to remove the root should be made at the precise point where the germ narrows near the root end of the clove. Judging where this occurs is a combination of luck and experience. It is better to make multiple small cuts than to remove too much material on your first cut.

With the thumb and forefinger of your left hand, hold the clove half firmly, with the skin side toward you. Hold a sharp paring knife in your right hand, with your forefinger and middle finger wrapped around the blade, and slide the tip of the blade just under the skin at the cut edge. With your right thumb, hold the skin firmly against the flat side of the blade, near the tip, then pull the skin off the clove and discard. Often the skin will release as a single piece; if not, remove the remainder in a similar manner.

Holding the knife as in the previous step, hold the clove firmly between the thumb
and forefinger of your left hand so the axis of the germ runs between your two fingers
Begin by cutting into the center of the germ as shown in (a) Continue cutting as in (b) until the clove is separated into two halves.

If the germ is green, sprouting, or well developed, remove it: hold a clove half as in the previous step, with the cut side facing you. Slide the tip of the knife blade between the skin of the germ, which appears as a half ring at the root end of the clove, and the flesh of the clove. Pry the germ out of its groove and discard.

Place a peeled clove half cut side down on the cutting board, with the root end toward your right. Hold the clove firmly with the thumb and forefinger of your left hand, and using a sharp paring knife held with a pinch grip in your right hand, make successive slices of the desired thickness. For each slice, place the tip of the knife on the cutting board beyond the clove, with the knife handle angled upward, and draw the blade across the clove to slice it. In the illustration, [a] is the top view and [b] is the side view.

Place a peeled clove half cut side down on the cutting board, with the root end toward your left. With the thumb and forefinger of your left hand, hold the clove with only minimal downward pressure. Hold a sharp paring knife in your right hand with a pinch grip so the blade is parallel with the cutting board, and using a slight sawing motion, make successive horizontal slices of the desired thickness. Start with the first cut closest to the cutting board, and make each successive cut above the previous one. DO NOT cut all the way through to the root with any of the cuts (1).

Rotate the root end of the clove half about 90 degrees away from you and adjust the grip of your left hand so your two fingers are near the board and slightly compressing the clove. Using a sharp paring knife held with a pinch grip in your right hand so the blade is perpendicular to the cutting board, make vertical successive slices of the desired thickness. Start each cut by inserting the tip of the knife into the clove, and draw the blade through the clove to complete the cut. Begin on the right side of the clove and make successive slices to the left. DO NOT cut all the way through to the root (2).

Finally, rotate the root end of the clove about 90 degrees back toward you. Make successive crosswise cuts to separate the tiny individual pieces. As you do this, grip the clove with your thumb and forefinger to hold it together, and move your grip toward the root after each cut. Start each cut by placing the tip of the knife in contact with the board beyond the clove, with the handle angled upward, and draw the blade through the clove to complete the cut (3).

Pureeing a Garlic Clove

Place a peeled clove half cut side down on the board, close to the edge and with the rootend toward your right Hold the clove firmly with the thumb and forefinger of your left
hand. Hold a chef’s knife with the sharp edge up and use the spine to make successive cuts to smash a small portion of the clove at a time After each one move the blade half its thickness to the left to position it for the next cut Be sure to bring the spine of the knife down all the way to the board on each cut to thoroughly smash the garlic clove. In the illustration, [a] is the side view and Eb] is the top view. After the clove is totally smashed, move the garlic to the center of the cutting board with your knife edge, and use the sharp edge of the knife to mince any pieces that are still intact.

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