How to Freeze Garlic in Just 5 Minutes (2024)

🧄 Why It Works

Garlic is a staple cooking ingredient in cuisines across the globe! It adds depth and flavor to a wide variety of dishes, from sauces and stir fries to soups and marinades!

With its uniquely intense flavor and health benefits, garlic is sure to be a favorite in many households. And you can substitute frozen garlic for fresh garlic in all your recipes!

But did you know the best way to preserve garlic and other vegetables like bell peppers and ginger is to freeze it? There are a ton of reasons why you should start freezing your garlic. Here are just a few:

👉 Freezing garlic preserves the flavor. Frozen garlic is just as zesty, fragrant, and delicious as fresh garlic! It can be used in place of fresh garlic in any recipe you’re making.

👉 Less prep work later! Prepped frozen garlic is ready to cook directly from frozen. This saves you time (and dirty dishes!) as you cook on a daily basis.

👉 It saves money. Buy garlic in bulk when it’s in season or on sale, and you’ll have it ready for use whenever you need it. This also cuts down on food waste because the garlic doesn’t go bad before you can use it.

Ingredients & Equipment

• Garlic
• Freezer-Safe Bags
• Knife, Garlic Press, or Food Processor

Step 1: Prep the garlic.

Break apart the bulbs of garlic into individual cloves.

Remove the cloves from the skins, then cut away any brown or shriveled spots.

Tip: A garlic roller makes removing the skins a lot easier!

Step 2: Mince the garlic by hand or with a food processor.

Add the cloves of garlic to a food processor and pulse until the pieces are broken down evenly, or use a sharp knife or garlic press to mince them into small pieces.

👉 When freezing larger quantities of garlic (more than 4 bulbs), I highly recommend using a food processor to save time.
👉 When freezing smaller quantities of garlic (less than 4 bulbs), it’s easiest to use a knife or garlic press to mince the garlic.

Step 3:Freeze in portions for later.

Transfer the garlic to freezer safe bag.Flatten the bag into a thin layer, squeezing as much air out as you can.

Use a chopstick, reusable straw, or pencil to press dividing lines into the bag horizontally and vertically, creating small sections of minced garlic.

This will make it so much easier to remove the right amount of garlic later on, when you’re cooking!

Set the bag flat in the freezer.

As needed, break off squares of frozen garlic for your cooking. You do not need to defrost the garlic before cooking, but you can if you’d like to!

Expert Tips & Info

• Choose the best garlic. Use fragrant garlic bulbs that feel firm and solid when you gently squeeze them. The outer skin should be papery and dry. Avoid mushy, wet, and sprouting garlic.
• Save the garlic skins and scraps and add them to your next batch of homemade vegetable stock! It will add tons of flavor!
• Each clove of garlic will yield approximately 1/2 teaspoon of minced garlic.
• When cooking, use 1 teaspoon of minced garlic for every 2 cloves called for in the recipe.
• Keep track of your Freezer Inventory so you know what you have stored and when to use it!
• There are a lot of garlic peeling tricks out there. I find the easiest and most efficient way to break apart garlic cloves is to place the bulbs root (flat) side down and press down firmly with the heel of your hand. Next, place a clove beneath the flat side of a knife, and carefully pound it with a fist to remove the clove from its skin.
• No thawing is necessary to cook frozen garlic! You can cook garlic straight from frozen (no defrosting is required).

FAQ

Learn to Freeze More Produce

• Bell Peppers
• Cucumbers
• Ginger
• Pineapples
• Strawberries

I’d love to hear about your experience making this recipe!
Please leave a comment below or tag me on Instagram @cookathomemom.