Black garlic is a delicacy that I heard about from my book editor. Developed in Korea, whole bulbs of fresh garlic are fermented. First, the garlic needs to be in a humidity-controlled environment at 140-170 degrees for 30 days. Then placed in a clean room for 45 days where it will oxidize and turn black. (I couldn’t find any usable pictures for you…sorry). Apparently this black garlic has a different chewy texture and tastes like balsamic vinegar or soy sauce.
This was brought to my attention because my editor wanted me to include it in my book’s section on ‘fermented foods’. However that section is about fermented foods like yogurt, kefir, and sauerkraut, that contain a variety of beneficial microbes. We all need these probiotics to rebuild our gut flora. However, black garlic doesn’t contain any of those microbes. So it won’t be in the book on gut health.
It is still worth mentioning because of many other health benefits. It has anti-inflammatory properties, many vitamins and minerals, and is a powerful anti-oxidant. Anti-oxidants help fix damaged cells that can lead to cancer and heart disease.
So if you have 75 days, you can grow black garlic yourself. Or… you can just keep an eye out for it and impress people with your knowledge about this unusual food.
Image courtesy of SOMMAI at FreeDigitalPhotos.net