Make this garlic paste and you’ll conveniently have prepped garlic on hand at all times. Be your own sous chef! Plus you’ll benefit from a dose of good bacteria with every delectable spoonful.
I’m very excited to post this recipe here. It comes from the 10th anniversary edition of the best-selling book, Fermented Vegetables, by Kirsten K. Shockey and Christopher Shockey, two of the fermentation movement’s most respected teachers.
This completely revised edition includes 65 creative new recipes, new techniques, profiles of producers from around the world, updated information in the exciting realm of gut research and more. Eating fermented foods can boost our gut health, which affects our overall health and even our mood. If you’ve wanted to try fermenting vegetables at home but don’t know where to start, start with this beautiful book—and the recipe down below!
The recipe calls for 6 to 8 heads of garlic, not mere cloves. Once the ferment is ready, you’ll thank yourself for having peeled all of that garlic. If you like, speed up the task with a humble mason jar (jars solve so many kitchen dilemmas). In batches, place several cloves in the jar, close and shake. The cloves should pop right out of their skins.
Book Giveaway!
The Shockey’s publisher will give away a copy of this wonderful book to one of you (or someone on Facebook, where I will also post this). If you live in the US and would like to be considered, please leave a comment below before Monday, March 11th, 2024 at midnight Pacific Time. I will randomly pick one winner from all the entries on here and Facebook.
Garlic Paste
yield: about 1 pint (473 ml)
technique used: Pastes (page 76)
You’ll want to have this paste on hand year-round. When you don’t feel like peeling and mincing fresh cloves, the paste adds instant garlic flavor to any dish. Fair warning: Plan on peeling time. It’s worth the effort, as the paste is invaluable for convenience. We love it mixed with a little fresh parsley and tossed with fresh homemade oven fries just before serving.
- 6–8 heads garlic, cloves separated and peeled
- 2 teaspoons (11 g) unrefined salt
1. Process the garlic to a paste consistency in a food processor. This paste has a sticky, thick, gooey consistency (which makes it easier to keep it submerged). Sprinkle in the salt. Not much will change after salting, which makes it difficult to distinguish the brine. Don’t worry—the fermentation will work. Note: If available, add 1–2 tablespoons of fermented brine. This will add a little juice and jump-start the process. Do not add water.
2. Press the paste into a quart jar. More liquid will release as you press, and you should now see a little brine. If using the burping method (page 44), make sure there is little headspace, top with a round of parchment paper, and weight if you have one, then seal the lid tightly. Watch the lid for pressure building up. With this recipe you may never need to burp, or at most just once. Alternatively, top the paste with a quart-size ziplock bag. Press the bag down onto the top of the ferment, then fill it with water and seal.
3. Set the jar in a spot where you can keep an eye on it, out of direct sunlight, and let ferment for 14 to 21 days, or longer. The garlic will turn darker the longer it ferments. It is caramelizing. When fermented, it will be milder than when it was raw and have some acidity.
4. To store, tamp down the paste to make sure it is submerged in its brine, press a fresh round of parchment paper directly on top, and seal the jar with its lid. This paste will keep, refrigerated, for 1 year or more.
Excerpted from Fermented Vegetables, 10th Anniversary Edition© by Kirsten K. Shockey & Christopher Shockey, used with permission from Storey Publishing.
My DREAM book, been growing my own garlic for years and fermenting! Would love to learn more!
I am learning to love fermented vegetables! Stacy of “Off-Grid with Doug & Stacy” got me going a couple years ago. I fermented red onions. Now I have two Vinegar’s to decant. Apple Cider Vinegar, and Pear. I have made my own Sauerkraut by the case years ago in Idaho. I have made some “Killer Chutney” using leftovers from the 1/4 acre garden and mispollunated veggies, pumpkin, etc. I made up the recipe from a jar of Major Grey’s Chutney at the Store. I Researched it a little and added raisins, spices, etc. I gave a quart to a lady from South Africa and she said it was the best she had ever had! That I should market it!
I wrote down this recipe and have Garlic available. I was going to make ‘Honey Garlic’; a Seasonal Healer for Flu, Colds, Coughs, etc. You take garlic cloves, whole or crushed, or in pieces, fill a jar with the shucked cloves, then pour honey all over it. Seal the jar with a clean lid. Let it sit at room temperature for a couple weeks. It turns dark, which is normal. Keeps for at least a year, if you don’t use it up. That is from “Doug & Stacy Off Grid”. You just take a spoonful of Honey, or a garlic clove for curing any ailment.
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I’m going to have to try this … assuming my garlic in the garden does okay after this strange winter!
Hi! I would love to have that book! I love to cook and I want to learn how to make fermented food. They add such an amazing flavour to everything! 🙂
I’ll have to give this a try. I Love the idea of ready to use garlic!
This is the only blog I read. Your ideas are inspiring. It’s affirming to keep company with like-minded conservationists and kitchen witches. Please keep the great ideas flowing!!
I can’t wait to make this. I’m going to buy the ingredients today. I would love to be entered in the giveaway, please!
Looks like a wonderful book!
I use miso from West Coast Koji. Learning how to make fermented garlic paste sounds like an adventure!
This sounds amazing! I think I’m going to be picking up some garlic at the store tonight!
Love this book! I’m going to have to try the garlic, my husband loves garlic so I’m sure he would really enjoy it.
I just found you, Zero Waste Chef… I had no idea what you were about, but I am so glad I explored your site! I love that you are a nexus of flavor, practicality and environmental stewardship. I am looking forward learning more about fermentation – I love the idea of having garlic on hand all the time! Now on to beginning my sourdough adventure… Thanks for all the tips!
I love to cook and have not really tried fermenting, except once, but I am very interested in learning. I made kimchi to impress a family once but was told that it was not quite like they make it but given credit for trying. I was a little disappointed but will not give up! I am of Greek heritage, and we use a lot of garlic. I am definitely going to try the garlic-fermented paste.
I would like to win as I have never tried this before and I have a lot of gut issues.
Being your own sous chef is correct with this method! This is a definitely something I’d like to have prepped. Thanks for sharing the wonderful benefits of fermentation. It’s a pleasure to receive your emails.
I would love to read this book. My mum used to make chutney all the time. I am new to fermenting my own vegetables, but I have been increasing the assortment of fermented foods in my daily routine. So this book would be a great resource.
This sounds delicious! I grow a year’s worth of garlic but right about now, the bulbs are starting to soften and start new growth. I have been using Katz’s fermentation books and make two gallons of sour pickles, curtido, saurkraut, and am ready to explore more fermentation recipes.
Very useful, thank you! I’m just beginning with ferments and am amazed at their versatility.
Very useful, thanks!
Thank you for this recipe, I particularly want to try it with the chips now!!!