At this time of the year, the only cured garlic you can buy in the shops comes from somewhere else....Mexico, China, Brazil. This is because all the Australian-grown garlic starts to soften and sprout sometime after July, as it tries to reproduce itself. In the process it loses volume, texture and flavour. And this season's garlic (planted in April), won't be ready until December.
Rather than buying imported garlic of unknown provenance, I fill this gap in the garlic year by using the immature garlic in my garden.
When the garlic sprouts are very young, I use the whole plant; then when they are of middle size, I chop off the leaves (which have become coarse), and use the stems. When the garlic has started to bulb up (as in the photo above), I use the whole bulb and the paler parts of the stem.
The flavour of spring garlic is milder than cured garlic, so I use a bit more in each dish. Generally, I find a stem like those above may last me up to a week; I start by cutting across the top of the stem on Monday and by the weekend I am eating the tender bulb. Delicious, fresh, and local....
Rather than buying imported garlic of unknown provenance, I fill this gap in the garlic year by using the immature garlic in my garden.
When the garlic sprouts are very young, I use the whole plant; then when they are of middle size, I chop off the leaves (which have become coarse), and use the stems. When the garlic has started to bulb up (as in the photo above), I use the whole bulb and the paler parts of the stem.
The flavour of spring garlic is milder than cured garlic, so I use a bit more in each dish. Generally, I find a stem like those above may last me up to a week; I start by cutting across the top of the stem on Monday and by the weekend I am eating the tender bulb. Delicious, fresh, and local....
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