Tips for harvesting and drying garlic for its long and high-quality storage throughout the year.

Hello to all gardeners and gardeners!

It must be said that garlic is a very favorite crop among gardeners and summer residents, and many people grow it, albeit often in small quantities. This is due both to the fact that garlic is very beneficial for health, and to the fact that it is used as a seasoning in the vast majority of dishes, significantly improving their taste. In addition, it is impossible to do without garlic when making homemade preparations for the winter, that is, various canned foods, pickles and marinades, where garlic is used very widely.

However, while growing garlic is relatively easy, not everyone succeeds in removing and drying it properly before long-term storage.

That is why I will tell you how I have been harvesting and drying garlic in my garden for many years before storing it, as a result of which it is stored very well throughout the next year.

So, let me start with the fact that for long-term storage, we grow winter garlic, sown in the fall. As a rule, in the middle - second half of July, this garlic fully ripens. The criterion for the maturity of garlic is the drying and yellowing of the tips of the leaves, as well as well-developed, large bulbs with several high-quality, thin and slightly dried out shells and a powerful bunch of roots.

It is advisable to harvest garlic not very early in the morning or in the first half of the day, in dry, sunny weather. This is due to the fact that immediately after harvesting, the garlic needs to be thoroughly dried in the sun. To do this, it can be laid out on film, wooden or iron pallets, or simply on the ground.

Towards the evening, before the dew falls, the garlic should be collected and brought indoors, for example, into a barn. If the day was not very sunny, or the garlic did not dry for very long, you can dry it in the same way on the second day.

After this, the second, longer stage of drying the garlic begins, which is best done indoors. You can also place the garlic on pallets somewhere in the barn, but it is best to tie it into bunches (15-20 pieces) and hang it from the ceiling of the barn. It will dry much better and faster in bundles.

By the way, when I gather garlic into bunches, I make them in steps, that is, I place each subsequent head of garlic slightly higher than the previous ones. Garlic dries much better and faster in such bunches.

In this form, the garlic dries for another two to three weeks. In this case, the barn should be well ventilated, for example, by keeping its door open throughout the day and closing it only at night.

As a rule, after two to three weeks, the garlic should dry well, as evidenced by the straw-yellow color of all leaves and stems in the bunches.

Peeling and trimming garlic

Now the garlic can be peeled and trimmed.

To do this, I use two flat containers such as pallets or low boxes, as well as pruners and pliers with straight or curved jaws.

First, I take a bunch and, holding it over a container, cut off the heads of garlic with pruning shears, leaving small “stumps” 4-5 cm long.

Then I clean the cut heads with my hands, removing 1 or 2 upper shells from them.

And after that, I simply tear off a bunch of roots with pliers.

It must be said that the roots can be cut with powerful scissors, but as practice shows, tearing them off with pliers is much easier, faster, and cleaner. In addition, such heads of garlic subsequently dry out much better, and this also has a positive effect on storage.

However, not on all heads of garlic, the roots come off so cleanly and in the whole bunch at once. On some heads, the roots have to be torn off in two or three stages. But still, this can be done quite quickly with pliers.

I place the peeled heads of garlic in an orderly manner in an adjacent tray, and as such a tray, I use a large homemade scoop to remove shavings from the workbench.

As practice shows, it is very convenient to transfer garlic from this scoop into a tray with a mesh bottom, since the heads of garlic simply slide off the scoop onto the tray, remaining in the desired orientation, that is, with the stem trimmings facing up.

After that, all that remains is to trim them a little.

And now I have almost the entire pallet filled. By the way, I repeat that the bottom of the tray should be made of fine metal mesh for good ventilation and drying of the garlic heads.

And that's only less than half. In total, we will get about two and a half, or even three such pallets, so this amount of garlic should be more than enough for a whole year.

After such drying, the garlic, as a rule, is completely ready for subsequent long-term storage and can be safely placed in a container intended for this purpose, for example, a wooden box and placed in a cool place at home, say on the floor, somewhere in the corner.

By the way, I would like to remind you once again that the best containers for storing garlic (as well as almost all vegetables and fruits) are containers or boxes made of natural, unpainted wood. Unlike other artificial wood-based materials (plywood, hardboard, chipboard and others), as well as plastic, natural wood allows air to pass through and regulates humidity, which creates optimal conditions for long-term and high-quality storage of crops.

Well, that's all for me! Bye everyone and have a good harvest!

Known to many as an aromatic and spicy seasoning, giving the dish a special taste and smell. It is also famous for its medicinal properties and is very actively used in. Pythagoras called it “the king of seasonings,” and the Slavs hung it in the house as a talisman against evil spirits and evil spirits. There are many legends about this amazing thing and its magical and healing properties.

The benefits and harms of dried garlic

It is rich in vitamins, minerals and acids, and has unique healing properties. It contains: potassium, magnesium, sodium, phosphorus, copper, iron, group of B vitamins, as well as other minerals and beneficial acids. A special feature of the vegetable is its aroma, which arises from the natural ester allicin, which has antioxidant and antiseptic properties.

The beneficial properties of dried garlic include:

• promotes digestion. When this aromatic is added to dishes with a high content of fat and meat, it enhances the process of digestion of such “heavy” food. By acting on the liver, it stimulates the production of enzymes for processing foods;
• lowers cholesterol levels, which settle on the walls of blood vessels and can cause high blood pressure;
• prevents the formation of blood clots;
• has a beneficial effect on the human body suffering from atherosclerosis. Under the influence of its complex of microelements, intravascular blood clots dissolve;
• suppresses the formation of cancer cells. As a result of research conducted by Israeli scientists, it was found that allicin, which is part of the composition, prevents the growth of cancer cells by neutralizing free radicals;
• has antiviral and antimicrobial properties. Phytoncides, contained in sufficiently large quantities, have a detrimental effect on staphylococci, bacteria, salmonella, E. coli and even diphtheria bacilli. It was used during wars as an antiseptic for treating wounds;
• in the female body it can increase estrogen levels;
• With long-term and regular use of this aromatic vegetable by men, they will stop worrying about problems with potency, their reproductive health improves, and it can also prevent inflammation of the prostate gland.

could be like this:

• Excessive consumption of any food product can cause problems and negative effects on human health. Having studied the beneficial properties of the miracle vegetable, it is worth saying that you should not get carried away with eating it in excess; it should not exceed 2-3 cloves per day;
• there are contraindications in which its use must be strictly limited or completely abandoned: for diseases of the gastrointestinal tract such as gastritis, stomach ulcers, duodenal ulcers, pancreatitis; for liver problems, namely: hepatitis, nephrosis, nephritis;
• lactation. Since mother's milk has the taste of the foods that the mother ate before breastfeeding, and garlic has a very special taste and aroma, the baby may not like the milk and refuse to feed.

Which garlic is better to choose?

Almost all vegetables are suitable for it, but some may lose their taste as they lose moisture.
Still, it’s worth choosing varieties such as:

• Silver-white;
• Creole;
• Kirovogradsky;
• Starobelsky white;
• Ukrainian white;
• Southern purple;
• Bronnitsky;
• Kalininsky;
• Rostovsky.

How to prepare garlic for drying

If preparation for production takes place, then the whole process will consist of such stages, like: washing the product, pre-drying it, cutting it, and then the drying stage. The raw materials are placed in special equipment, where they are purified and then washed. After which it enters the pre-drying stage, for which the cleaned and washed cloves are placed in a centrifuge, which, spinning, removes all excess moisture after washing.

Important! You should not wash garlic before drying it at home, as it may become moldy.

Next, it is cut on a special machine and is ready for drying in a drying chamber using a reverse flow oven.
At home, garlic also needs to be prepared first. get rid of excess water. For this purpose, in households, before digging, they do not water it for several days and make sure that there is no rain the day before. And if you purchased garlic at the market and are not sure under what conditions it was dug, you need to lay it out on a flat surface to dry outside or on the balcony.

You can simply spread out the paper and let it lie spread out for a couple of days. It is worth noting that to preserve more beneficial properties, minerals and vitamins, drying in direct sunlight should be avoided.

How to dry garlic cloves for the winter

There are many ways to dry garlic for the winter. Some people prefer to do this without destroying the head; many people like to form the bulbs with dried tops into bundles resembling braids and hang them in the house. For many years, such garlic braids were considered to be a household amulet against evil spirits and evil spirits. But the most popular modern method is drying garlic cloves.

Naturally

Before starting the drying process, it is necessary to peel the garlic cloves.
To do this, you can use several culinary advice:

• press on the head of garlic with the flat side of the knife, which will cause the head to disintegrate and the scales will begin to come off easily;
• You can also place the garlic head in a metal bowl, having previously processed it with a knife in the manner described above, cover it with another bowl and shake vigorously. When you open the bowl, the husks will lie separate from the perfectly peeled cloves.

After the garlic has been peeled, it should be checked for any darkened spots or damage. Then each clove is cut in half and laid out on a flat surface with the cuts facing up. It should be dried in a dry room with good ventilation or in the fresh air in the shade, so as to avoid direct sunlight. The drying process must be controlled by turning the raw materials over every few days. The results of drying in this way can be expected in a week or two.

In the oven

Drying garlic in the oven is not much different from a similar natural process, but, of course, it will not last two weeks. In the oven this process will go much faster and will take from 3 to 6 hours. To prepare, it is better to cut it into thin slices or slices, which will significantly speed up the process of removing moisture from the product.
It is important to know that a dried vegetable will retain all its beneficial substances and minerals even after changing its usual state. Next, you need to cover a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the garlic slices on it in one layer. The temperature in the oven should be low, about +50 °C, which will gradually remove moisture while preserving all the richness of the product. After placing the baking sheet in the oven, you will need to time it and check the condition of the garlic after 3 hours.

The slices must be stirred periodically, allowed to cool slightly, and then put back into the oven, and ultimately tested for strength. If the garlic slice has become brittle and breaks, then the drying process is over; if it is flexible and soft, then drying should be continued. In order to create an influx of fresh air, the oven door can be opened slightly from time to time. If the oven has a convection mode, this will significantly improve the air exchange process.

Important! Garlic slices must be constantly monitored to ensure they do not burn or become too brown, otherwise the dried product will taste bitter.

In an electric dryer

The variety of household appliances pleases modern housewives and makes household work easier and more enjoyable. One of the processes that has received recognition from many housewives is drying vegetables in an electric dryer. Let's look at drying garlic in this machine.
In order to dehydrate garlic, you need to rid it of scales and husks and place it in one tier on a drying rack. After connecting the electricity, you need to set the temperature +50...+60 °C and start the process. It will also take from 3 to 6 hours, depending on the thickness of the slices and the power of the unit.

How to make garlic powder at home

Once you learn how to dry garlic for seasoning, you can begin turning it into a flavorful spice. When the vegetable is well dried, has a pleasant golden color and its slices break well when pressed, you can begin the process of chopping it. To do this, you need to use either the bowl of a kitchen blender or a coffee grinder.

After placing the dried slices in the machine, grind them to a powdery state. Then it is necessary, armed with a sieve, to sift the resulting bulk mass and, if necessary, re-grind the remaining large grains and particles until a homogeneous fine powder is obtained. If you want to add larger particles of seasoning to your food in order to more clearly taste the garlic in the dish, you can avoid the sifting process.

Step 1: prepare the garlic.

The most crucial moment is to chop the garlic so that it is convenient to store later and so that the juice does not leak out of it! You can use different devices. This could be a blender that will chop the garlic into smaller pieces, or you can use a coarse grater. But this will be a real stress for our main ingredient. Therefore, we will reserve strength and patience and chop the garlic with a knife. We take 2-2.5 kilograms of fresh garlic to later get only 0.5 kilograms of dried garlic pieces. But it's worth it! After all, such a product contains many more useful substances than ready-made spice mixtures or bags of garlic powder. So, first, separate the garlic cloves from the head. Using a knife, peel the garlic from the husk. To better separate it from the ingredient, lightly press each clove with the handle of a knife on a cutting board.
Place the peeled garlic in a deep bowl.
Now the important moment! Be sure to wear kitchen plastic gloves on your hands. In the process of working with the plant, it will secrete juice, which in large quantities will begin to corrode unprotected areas of the skin and irritate the membrane of the nose. Therefore, it is better to prepare garlic in a well-ventilated area and turn on the ventilation. Using a knife on a cutting board, cut the garlic into slices across the cloves. Place the crushed component back into the bowl and take the next clove. And so on until not a single clove remains.

Step 2: dry the garlic.

There are several ways to dry garlic. Who has a special dryer in the kitchen or you decided to make garlic in the middle of summer and are just going to the dacha, then feel free to dry the ingredient using such a device or at the dacha under the hot sun! I suggest using my grandmother’s old proven method! When the garlic has already been chopped, place each piece on a baking tray lined with food foil. Turn on the oven at 50-55°С and dry the plant within 30-40 minutes. We monitor the temperature so that the garlic does not burn. The finished dried ingredient will be crunchy! After the allotted time has passed, turn off the oven and take out the baking sheet to let the garlic pieces cool. And after that, transfer the garlic into a jar with your hand and close it tightly with a lid. The lid must tightly close the jar, since garlic can be stored for a year. And if the smell disappears from the jar or moisture gets in, the taste and beneficial properties of garlic will be lost, and our work will be in vain.

Step 3: Serve the garlic.

Garlic is added to various meat dishes, sauces, salads and soups. It’s not for nothing that the Caucasus is famous for its meat masterpieces, and India is called the land of spices. Therefore, when preparing any dish in which it is appropriate to add garlic for aroma and piquant taste, do not forget that we have a jar of this miracle plant. To make powder from dried garlic, take a few pinches of garlic flakes and put it in a regular coffee grinder. And if you don’t have such equipment at hand, then a blender or a regular hand mortar will also work. Enjoy your meal!

- – To make the garlic more flavorful, it is better to take hot varieties of garlic.

- – If you still decide to use drying in the country with the help of the real summer sun, then the cooking process will be changed. Cut the cloves into two halves and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment, foil, or regular cloth, so that the garlic core faces up into the sun. This way the juice will not leak out and be absorbed, for example, into the fabric. Drying time for garlic in the country will take from three to five days in good sunny weather. At the same time, it is necessary to check the garlic for its degree of readiness. If it crunches, it means it has already dried out enough.

- – To dry the plant, you must use ripe garlic. Therefore, after peeling, it is necessary to examine each clove and, if necessary, cut off damaged areas.

- – When preparing garlic in any way, the ingredient must be stirred from time to time with a wooden spatula so that it can dry out on all sides.

It turns out that garlic is an expensive pleasure. Its average market price is in no way inferior to expensive exotic vegetables and fruits. Many summer residents, knowing the unpretentiousness of the plant, try to grow and prepare the crop for wintering on their own. This means it’s time to learn how to dry garlic and determine the features of its storage.

It’s hard to imagine national Russian cuisine without garlic.

Features of harvesting

Well-dried soil is the key to successful garlic harvesting. As a rule, they stop watering the soil approximately 2-3 days before its scheduled collection. Garlic is simply pulled out (dug) out of the soil. At this point, the harvesting work can be considered completed.

Now you need to remove the topmost layer of husk to remove dirt and clods of earth. At the same time, the teeth cannot be completely exposed.

Important! It is prohibited to wash garlic after digging, otherwise there is a risk of ending up with a moldy product.

Methods for preparing garlic for storage

The plant dug up after full ripening is dried in several ways:

• in room
• outside in the sun
• in the oven
• in an electric dryer.

In this case, the garlic heads can be dried entirely, or you can process only the cloves. Let's consider all the methods.

Drying indoors

Place the garlic in a single layer in a dry, well-ventilated room. We do not trim the stems, leaves and roots. Ultimately, it is by their condition that we will be able to determine the degree of readiness of the cloves for subsequent storage. Drying time is about 1 month. Uniform, discolored and brittle leaves are a signal that the crop is ready for further processing.

The time has come to cut off the roots, leaving about 0.3 cm from the head, and also get rid of the tops, leaving about 3-5 cm from the stem.

We put the finished product in boxes and put it in the attic or basement for storage.
By the way, many people like to store dried garlic in bundles, similar to onions. How do you like this option?

Drying outside

There are no particular difficulties in drying garlic outside. The algorithm of actions is similar to that described above.

1. harvested crops are not washed
2. plants are laid out on a wooden or any other surface in one row
3. During the drying process, the garlic is turned over and put away indoors at night (in case of unexpected precipitation).
4. dried stems and roots are cut off, maintaining a ratio of 3-5 cm and 0.3 cm
5. The garlic is put away in the pantry or other place prepared in advance for its storage.

Oven drying

Housewives have gotten used to drying garlic in a regular oven. They suggest the following method:

• garlic cloves are peeled, washed, cut into plates (petals) about 1 mm thick
• cover the baking sheet with cling film or foil
• Place chopped garlic on the prepared surface in 1 row
• Place the baking sheet in the oven for half an hour, setting the temperature to 50°C.

After the specified time has passed, the cooled dried garlic is placed in a container with an airtight lid.

Important! You must constantly monitor the product being prepared, otherwise it will burn out and acquire an unsightly brown tint.

Garlic in an electric dryer

Preparing aromatic spices for the winter can be done using an electric dryer. The cloves are first peeled, cut into rings or half-slices and placed on electric dryer trays with the cut side up. The heat treatment time of the product takes on average 5 – 18 hours and depends on the type of household appliance.
To obtain granulated garlic or powder, the dried petals are ground using a coffee grinder.

Advice: do not make powder preparations for more than 1 month. This seasoning quickly cakes and becomes unsuitable for consumption. Store garlic in slabs and grind into powder only when necessary.

How to remove garlic skin without hassle?

This question is irrelevant for those who peel no more than one head, for example, for salad. However, when preparing garlic for the winter, you will have to peel more than one kilogram. If you consider that with 2.5 kg of raw materials, on average, up to 0.5 kg of dried garlic is obtained, then a lot of effort and time will have to be spent on preparatory work.
Plain water will help make the cleaning process easier. The cloves should be soaked for 20-30 minutes, after which, without harming your fingers, remove the softened skin with a knife.

And finally, about ready-made spices

Some housewives prefer to dry garlic along with other vegetables. The result is a ready-to-use seasoning, for example, for pizza.

First, cut into thin rings washed tomatoes of “not juicy” varieties such as “Cream”. If necessary, remove the watery core. We send the cuttings to the electric dryer. As the tomatoes dry out, add garlic slices and basil to the free space. Pour completely dried vegetables and herbs, along with garlic, into a jar with an airtight lid. Some of the pizza filling is ready.

To conclude the topic, we suggest you watch the video, which describes in detail one of the methods of drying garlic in an electric dryer:

All materials on the website are presented for informational purposes only. Before using any product, consultation with a doctor is MANDATORY!