How to Preserve Garlic Long Term

Garlic is a staple seasoning in many homes but buying it already minced in jars can get expensive very quickly.

Buying or growing whole cloves, however, is a much cheaper way to keep them in your home.

For long-term storage, garlic is right up there with storing potatoes or storing onions and has a very long shelf life, but only if it is properly stored or preserved.

If you’re a garlic lover, taking the time to learn how to preserve and store garlic can save you a lot of time and wasted garlic later on.

Garlic, when left too long, will sprout a thick green stem.

This doesn’t mean the garlic has gone bad, just that it is still growing in a sense.

If you chose, you could split the bulb at this point and plant it to regrow very tasty garlic greens.

However, it is most likely usable in the same way you would use freshly grown or harvested.

How to Braid Garlic

To store fresh garlic, it is best to hang and braid it.

This means that you braid the top of each bulb into a long, very pretty stem that both looks great and keeps your garlic the freshest.

The exception to this is in the colder months.

Because we humans have different needs during the winter months, our homes tend to be very dry when we heat them.

This causes garlic to harden and dry out.

It is absolutely still usable in this form but is a bit harder to work with.

To prevent this from happening, store it under an upside-down unglazed terra cotta pot or terra cotta garlic pot like this one.

This will help it retain its moisture.

Dry Garlic

In fact, drying is a great way to preserve garlic.

If you have a food dehydrator, you can make homemade garlic powder this way.

Simply peel and slice each clove thinly and dehydrate in a food dehydrator until fully dry.

Then, grind the dehydrated garlic in a coffee grinder or food processor to powder it.

Use your homemade garlic powder in the same way that you would use store-bought.

Preserve Garlic in Oil

Another way to preserve garlic is to preserve it in oil.

This is a great option for those who love flavorful cooking and use olive oil.

Simply peel each clove and drop it into a jar of extra virgin olive oil.

You can do garlic by itself or you can add other spices for a truly herb-infused olive oil.

Rosemary and thyme are always great additions.

You can also create homemade minced garlic in this manner.

The process is the same with the exception that you mince the garlic before adding it to the oil.

This creates a product that is very much like the minced garlic you find in stores.

Store in the Fridge

If you would rather not do either of those, simply store it in the fridge.

The moisture and cool temperatures of the fridge will keep it from growing.

However, once you remove it and bring it to room temperature, it will only take a few days for it to begin sprouting again.

It is for this reason that it is best to only remove it from the fridge when you are ready to use it.

More Food Storage posts

If you liked this food storage post, you’ll love these ones too:

• How to Store Different Types of Squash – The best way to store all kinds fo squash so they lasy longer.
• How To Store Your Produce To Make It Last – Learning the proper way to store produce gave me the ability to take advantage of produce that was on sale or marked down. Learning how and where to store your produce to make it last helped me know how much I could buy on sale before it would go bad.
• How to Freeze Tomatoes – Freezing tomatoes is SO much easier in my opinion than canning and takes much less time and effort.
• How to Store Potatoes – it’s easy to store fresh potatoes for more than a few weeks with these tips.