Black garlic and its many uses

Garlic is one of those incredible ingredients it’s difficult to imagine living without, adding flavour, aroma and vibrancy to so many savoury dishes across almost every cuisine.

Whether roasted, stir-fried, slow-cooked or fried, used in a marinade, a dressing, a sauce or a stew, garlic both brings a flavour of its own and enhances the flavour of all other ingredients it mingles with. Black garlic transforms this classic, ubiquitous ingredient into something familiar, yet entirely new.

What is black garlic? Produced by carefully ageing garlic in a temperature-controlled environment for up to 60 days, a gentle fermentation process transforms it into dark, sticky bulbs of pure flavour.

With caramel notes that evoke both molasses and aged balsamic vinegar, black garlic has almost as many applications as its raw counterpart, adding satisfying umami to any dish that it’s grated or sliced over, stirred through or blended with. Our favourite black garlic recipes, and applications for The Essential Ingredient Black Garlic include:

• Mixed into compound butter
• Grated over a brunch plate of smashed peas, feta, morels and poached eggs
• Finely sliced over focaccia
• Diced and sprinkled onto a bowl of warm congee
• Blended with olive oil or butter and rubbed under chicken skin prior to roasting
• Shaved over grilled mushrooms
• Mixed into your favourite gravy or sauce
• Incorporated into a homemade black garlic aioli
• Rubbed onto a steak with salt and pepper before grilling

Overall, black garlic is a versatile and delicious ingredient that can take your cooking to the next level. So, give it a try and see how it can add a flavour-bomb of umami to your favourite dishes. Available from your nearest The Essential Ingredient store, or buy online for delivery to anywhere in Australia.

Black garlic FAQs:

How to use black garlic:

Black garlic is a flavour bomb that can be used in many ways. It can be grated or sliced over a finished dish, stirred through a sauce, soup, dressing, braise or marinade, or mashed into butter, mayonnaise, béchamel or any other emulsion. Mix it through your hamburger mince, use it to add body to a bolognese or dot it through scrambled eggs. The uses are endless.

How do you make black garlic sauce for pasta?

Black garlic can be used to add flavour and umami to Bolognese, Alfredo, carbonara, puttanesca or any other favourite pasta sauce, or can be used as the hero in a simple buttery sauce with (or without) sautéed mushrooms, fresh herbs and a little chilli.

How do you make black garlic sauce for vegetables?

Combine grated black garlic with room temperature butter (or buying a black garlic butter), then toss through steamed or roasted potatoes, carrots, green beans, Brussels sprouts, broccoli or any other of your favourite vegetables.

How do you make black garlic ramen?

With its deep flavour and rich umami punch, black garlic adds body to homemade ramen (try our recipe here!). Simply grate or thinly slice the black garlic over the noodles when serving. If making a vegetarian ramen broth, adding black garlic in the last 30 minutes of simmering brings a meaty punch to the soup.

How to ferment garlic to make black garlic?

To make black garlic, garlic must be held at a consistent temperature (60C) and humidity for 30 to 40 days. This can be achieved at home using a slow cooker, rice cooker or dehydrator.