Garlic Confit

Clove of Garlic
Photo by Nicolas Postiglioni

Diet

[x] Flexitarian + Omnivore
[x] Vegan
[x] Vegetarian
[x] Pescatarian
[x] Gluten free
[O] Weight Maint: Limit oil portions, focus more on garlic (e.g., 1T oil with 2-3 cloves garlic)
[O] Keto Diet
[x] Mediterranean 
[x] Lectin Avoidance
[x] Oxalate Avoidance
[x] Purine Avoidance

Garlic Confit

How to make a pungent yet sweet garlic confit.
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Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: French
Keyword: baked garlic, Basque Garlic Vinegar Fish, Garlic Confit
Servings: 21 5 cloves each
Calories: 201kcal
Author: Patty

Ingredients

  • 2 C peeled garlic cloves
  • 5 black peppercorns
  • 1 bruised bay leaf
  • 1 strip bruised lemon peel
  • 1-2 t kosher salt
  • 2 C Olive oil

Instructions

  • First, heat oven to as low as it can go, say 200F (lower is ok, but not higher). Peel garlic, bruise the bay leaf, slice (with a veggie slicer or knife) a lemon peel and bruise.
  • NOTE: I have put the mixture in a white ceramic dish so that you can see the food. If you look closely you can see the peppercorns, lemon peel, and bay leaf. Also you can see how I spilled, which is why I always do this with a baking sheet underneath.
  • In a heavy, lidded, ovenproof saucepan, combine the garlic, peppercorns, bay leaf, lemon peel, and salt. Pour enough oil in the pan to cover all the garlic, herbs and spices with the oil.
  • Put the lid on the pot and move to the oven to cook for ~2 hours. The cloves should be very tender and light golden. Then, remove the pot from the oven and let the mixture cool to room temperature.
  • So long as the lid remains sealed you can keep the cooked pot on the stove top for as long as it needs to properly cool. As soon as you open it you should start the process of moving the food to sterile lidded jars and the fridge.
  • Use immediately.
  • To store,: Pack the garlic in a sealed glass container (or several depending upon size) and top with the oil.Place in the refrigerator and some say it will last from 2 months to 4 months.Mine are always gone within 2 weeks since I feel that is safer. Once the garlic is gone I keep the oil longer, but still in the fridge.

Notes

CAUTION: Botulism is of concern with raw garlic because it of its low acidity. So treat this with care.
  • Make sure your jars are sterile to begin with; boiling the jars and lids in water, and letting them air dry before you pack in food.
  • Make sure the lid creates a tight seal.
  • Use a clean spoon to move the food from the pot to the jars.
  • Be sure you have added enough of the cooked oil to cover the garlic completely as that reduces the oxygen and moisture for the botulism to grow.
  • Cool the food as quick as you can and get the jars into the fridge.
  • The confit can also be frozen if you want.
Confit comes to us from France and is an older way of preserving food and meats. You basically slow cook (on very low temps) whatever the item, in a lidded pan in the oven for hours. The item, duck or garlic or tomatoes, are covered with oil or fat or sugar water. Once done, it is cooled and placed in a lidded jar and will last for quite a while in the fridge. This process gives you the food item and flavored oil or fat at the same time.
Fruit confit in sugar water are called candied fruit.
For a variation you can use duck or chicken fat instead of olive oil. Keep the fat after the garlic is gone, in the freezer for other uses.
How to use the confit garlic? Add to mashed potatoes, celery root, squash and other items you mash up. Use it to mix with butter for a garlic compound butter mix. Smash onto very good rustic bread. Or add the cloves to soups or any recipe that calls for garlic. Add to mayonnaise to make aioli. 

Nutrition

Calories: 201kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 224mg | Potassium: 52mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 23mg | Iron: 1mg