Procurement of products for the winter for each hostess takes a lot of time and effort, but all this is done not in vain. In winter, when there is not enough freshness, brightness and richness of taste, it is very pleasant to pamper your relatives and guests with treats in which there are literally pieces of summer. There are many ways to procure garlic for the winter, but to choose the ideal option for yourself, it is worth trying a few different pieces.
Many traditionally store garlic heads in stockings, ligaments or boxes. Of course, this is very convenient and simple, but such usual methods can not save the denticles from the fact that over time they will dry out, germinate or rot. But there are ways of harvesting garlic for the winter, allowing not to worry about that it will quickly deteriorate:
- salting;
- freezing;
- drying.
Salted garlic
Today there are many recipes that allow pickling garlic so that it retains almost all its useful properties, a unique, bright aroma and at the same time was well kept for a long time. Most often, the hostess gives preference to the dry method of pickling garlic for the winter. It should be remembered that unripe teeth are suitable for blanks. The optimal time for collecting the product for this purpose is the beginning of July. The teeth are ready for use, but they are not yet fully coarse.
Cleaned and prepared garlic must be ground with a meat grinder or blender and add salt to it. It is optimal to use 300 grams of salt per 1 kilogram of garlic. Put the finished product into small cans, up to 200 grams. Be sure to close them with covers and then send for storage. Such a billet can stand even at room temperature, and does not deteriorate until at least the beginning of summer.
In salted garlic, practically all the useful substances and the fragrance itself will be preserved, which will please the winter.
Freezing of garlic
Today, many housewives happily freeze different foods for the winter, preserving in them in this way a maximum of useful vitamins and minerals. Garlic can also be easily frozen and used in winter. The advantages of this method can be attributed to the fact that the product is stored for a very long time, while retaining all its antibacterial properties and useful substances. In the frozen form it is already ready for use, which sometimes accelerates the cooking process.
Despite all the positive aspects, it should be noted that after the freezing of garlic is not so bright and rich flavor and taste. Also, after defrosting, the denticles no longer retain their original form, they literally can crawl under the knife.
Frozen garlic has much more advantages than disadvantages, so this method of harvesting is popular. Some prefer to send entire heads to the freezer, but after the garlic has melted it will be very problematic to clean, so it's best to use cleaned teeth.
For freezing, only good teeth are needed without defects and damages. They can simply be folded into a container or bag and sent to a freezer. After extraction, such a product is already fully ready for use in various dishes and sauces.
You can also freeze garlic mass. It's even better and simpler. First, you need to grind everything, then put it in a container and just freeze it. In winter it will be enough to cut a piece of such a piece with a knife and send it to a practically ready dish. Within a few minutes the fragrance and taste will be fully revealed. Keep frozen garlic for 1 year.
Dried garlic for the winter
For the winter garlic can not only be salted and frozen, but also dried. For this, of course, only good teeth without defects are suitable. Grind the product in several ways, but if, for example, grate it, there will be too much juice, which is absolutely not needed. You can also grind the denticles with the help of a food processor, cutting them with thin plates. In this case, too, the likelihood is that the lobules will be too wet and it will be dried very long. It is best to grind the garlic by hand. To do this, you only need a kitchen knife and a knife.
Sliced slices should be put in one layer on a baking sheet, previously lined with parchment paper, and sent to the oven, heated to 50-60 degrees. Of course, it's better to use an electric dryer, but if it's not there, then the oven will do. Periodically, you need to interfere with garlic and ventilate the oven. The whole process will take several hours. After everything is ready, the slices must be transferred to paper bags or cans that are sealed.
You can also store dry garlic in powder form. It is necessary after drying to pass everything through the coffee grinder and pour into small, hermetically sealed cans. The billet will be stored for approximately 1 year.
In dried garlic, only a portion of the beneficial vitamins are preserved, and the aroma becomes less saturated.
Different ways of harvesting garlic for the winter give the hostess an excellent opportunity to choose exactly the method that fits best. You can even make several kinds of such a fragrant and useful seasoning and feast on it throughout the winter.