It’s a good idea to always have garlic at home, especially if you use it often. It can enhance the flavor of many meals and some people love it so much they put it in virtually everything. But can you prevent it from sprouting when it’s been sitting around for a few days? Sprouting is not dangerous but it can be annoying, and luckily there’s a method for preventing it.
Freezing It
The easiest way to prevent your garlic from sprouting is to freeze it. You can freeze the whole bulbs or peel and separate them, then store them in plastic bags. Frozen garlic peels easily so there’s no need to do the latter unless you want to have separate cloves available at all times. Freezing the garlic won’t affect its flavor if you’ve been worried about that.
It’s also possible to turn garlic into puree in a food processor with some oil and freeze the small bits of the paste on a baking sheet. Once they are frozen you can store them in a freezer bag and use them whenever it’s convenient. Having some garlic in your freezer at all times and not worrying if it will sprout will make you a more relaxed and creative cook, so it’s worth the extra effort!
