How to Mince Garlic (and Keep It From Burning)
Crush, peel and rock-chop garlic fine, then cook it only until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Burnt garlic turns bitter and takes the dish with it.
Garlic is in almost every savory recipe, and it's easy to get wrong in two ways: chunks that never soften, and bits that burn in the hot fat before anything else goes in.
Finely minced garlic spreads its flavor evenly through a dish. Because it's so small and full of sugar, it browns very fast, which is why most recipes add it after the onion and cook it only briefly.
How to do it
Crush and peel
Lay the flat of a chef's knife on a clove and press down firmly. The skin cracks and slips right off.
Slice, then rock-chop
Slice the clove thinly, then rock the knife back and forth over the slices, gathering them into a pile as you go.
Go fine
Keep chopping until the pieces are about the size of coarse salt. A pinch of salt on the board helps grind it smaller.
Cook briefly
Add it to the pan after the onions soften and stir for about 30 seconds, until it smells strong, before adding liquid.
Common mistakes
- Adding garlic with raw onions to a hot pan, where it burns before the onions soften.
- Leaving big chunks that stay sharp and raw-tasting.
- Using dark brown garlic; once it's bitter, start that step over.
