No matter how you store fresh garlic, it will sprout or dry out over time. Storing it in brine allows you to extend its life, even if it will take on a particular flavor, different from fresh garlic. The flavor of the fresh one is generated by allicin transformed by the enzyme allinase, which is however destroyed by the brine process.
Steps
Step 1. Choose a fresh and firm garlic bulb
Cut and discard any damaged parts.
2, 7 kg of fresh garlic will produce about 2-5 liters of preserves in brine
Step 2. Prepare the jars
- Wash them (even the lids) in the dishwasher with boiling water to "sanitize" them.
- Put the jars and lids in boiling water for 10 minutes to sterilize them, if you don't have a dishwasher.
Step 3. Prepare the canner
It is a kind of pressure cooker that allows you to sterilize the jars along with the contents. Rinse it off with clean water. Usually you place a grate on the bottom and fill it with very hot water. Check the manufacturer's instructions if your appliance works differently.
Step 4. Put the canner on the stove over low heat
You can let it warm up while you prepare the garlic and brine.
Step 5. Rinse the garlic with cold water and remove any residual dirt
Step 6. If you blanch it will be easier to peel it
Put the bulb in boiling water for 30 seconds, remove it and put it in cold water immediately.
Step 7. Separate each clove and peel it
The skin should come off quickly when you blanch the garlic.
Step 8. Prepare the brine
Use a stainless steel, Teflon, porcelain, or glass pan. Do not use copper ones, residues of this metal could make the garlic green or blue.
Mix 200 g of granulated sugar with 5 g of coarse salt and 700 ml of vinegar. Always use these proportions
Step 9. Bring the mixture to a simmer over low heat
Step 10. Add the peeled garlic and boil for 1 minute
Step 11. With a slotted spoon fish the garlic and pour it into the sterilized jars
Fill each jar up to 2cm from the edge.
Step 12. Add a little brine, enough to completely cover the garlic and until it reaches 1 cm from the edge
Step 13. Clean the opening of the jar to eliminate any residual brine
Close the lid tightly without overdoing it.
Step 14. Raise the heat under the canner to bring the water to a light boil
Step 15. Place the garlic-filled jars in the canner using special tongs
Step 16. Add more water as needed to make the level 2.5 cm above the jars
Step 17. Boil the jars in the canner, slowly, for 20 minutes
Step 18. Turn off the heat and remove the lid
Step 19. Leave the jars in the water until the boil drops (3-5 minutes)
Step 20. Remove the containers from the boiling water with the help of tongs, be careful not to burn yourself and not to tilt the jars
Step 21. Set them in a safe place and let them cool at room temperature for 24 hours
Step 22. Make sure the jars are tightly sealed
When cold, push the center of the lid to check for movement. If it moves, the jar is not well sealed.
Step 23. Refrigerate any jar that has not sealed and use it first
Step 24. If you have too many “faulty” jars, restart the process in the canner
Use new lids.
Advice
- Pickled garlic can turn green or blue if you have used garlic that is not perfectly dry or immature. The red-skinned varieties can also become green or blue when pickled. However, these color changes do not mean that the garlic has rotted and that it cannot be eaten.
- Instead of the canner you can use a pressure cooker.
