There are very few things in life that will provide you with as high of a reward with as little effort as confit garlic. It is pure magic that is greater than the sum of its parts and you really only need two ingredients! And sure, what you end up with is garlic and oil but the garlic you end up with is sweet, creamy and ready for a plethora of applications and the oil is luxuriously flavoured and ready to make any meal better.

But peeling that much garlic seems like too much work!

I’m not going to lie to you. Peeling garlic can be incredibly tedious but I promise this is worth it. Here’s what you’re going to make it less of a hassle:

Look for bulbs with big fat cloves. The bigger the cloves the less there usually is, and the easier they are to handle.
Use a little garlic peeling trick! Simply cut off the root end of the bulb and separate the cloves. Transfer them all to a heatproof container and cover with boiling water for about 20 seconds. Once you drain the water you should be able to peel those cloves easy peasy!

Something to consider when choosing the oil for your garlic confit:

I’ve seen quite a few people use only olive oil when confiting their garlic, and I understand the appeal. But, have you ever seen what happens to olive oil in the fridge? It becomes a solid block. If you put your olive oil garlic confit in the fridge you will have the garlic and olive oil equivalent of Han Solo in carbonite. Okay, maybe not that extreme, but it is an inconvenience and I HATE an inconvenience. So if you are only choosing one oil choose a neutral oil. But if you really want the flavour of olive oil you can use it for 25-50% of the total oil. It may get a bit thick in the fridge but won’t become a complete solid.

How should I store the garlic confit?

If you’re thinking ‘if I am going through this much trouble to peel garlic I should just make a ton and never have to do it again’ think again. You shouldn’t keep the garlic confit much longer than a week or two and must be kept in the fridge. Botulism can be a concern with improperly handled garlic so when in doubt throw it out.

Equipment

Medium Pot
Chefs Knife
Cutting Board
Kettle Optional

Ingredients

4 Bulbs Fresh Garlic
Vegetable Oil
Olive Oil
Robust Herbs, like Thyme or Rosemary (optional)

Instructions

Peel and cut off the fibrous end of all of the garlic cloves.
If you are having a tough time with the cloves transfer them to a heat proof bowl and cover with hot water for 20 seconds before draining and peeling.
Transfer the garlic cloves to a pot and cover with a blend of olive oil and vegetable oil, using the olive oil for no more than 50% of the total oil. You can also add robust herbs like thyme or rosemary.
Bring to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat and cook until the garlic cloves are incredibly tender. The timing for this will vary based on the size of the cloves but a good estimate is 45-60 minutes.
It's important that you don't boil the garlic as you will end up with a very bitter flavour.
Allow the garlic and oil to cool then transfer to the fridge in an airtight container.