Post Punk Kitchen Forum

When should I use one method or the other? Or does it matter? Or is one method always better? I like how the garlic press maximizes the distribution and surface area of the garlic, but those thin slivers also burn super-fast.

I'd rather use a garlic press, but I haven't found one that doesn't require so much pressure that it hurts my wrists and bruises my hand, so I mince.

I usually prefer to press for even distribution and maximization of garlic flavor. Start with very low heat and stir constantly to avoid burning.

If you like garlic, I don't think it matters. I've used my garlic press exactly once and then just went back to minced because I didn't like cleaning it. I've never noticed garlic bits to be a problem in anything ever. Ever. For a more garlicky taste, add more garlic.

I've actually gotten more into microplanning it than pressing it.

If I'm going to put the garlic in something that is going to be well-cooked I don't think it matters how the garlic is prepared. I consider garlic well-cooked if it's sautéed or put directly in something boiling and cooked for a little while.

But, if the garlic is going in something where the garlic might not get completely cooked, like a chickpea cutlet, or is used raw, like in salad dressing, then I prefer not to mince it by hand and I use a microplane or garlic press since you get uniform tiny bits. I don't want detectable pieces of raw garlic in my food.

Of course, if you're a careful garlic mincer, I'm sure you can get the bits of garlic tiny enough to be undetectable, but I'm too impatient to mince garlic that finely.

Mince for L-I-F-E. Who wants more dishes? I haven't used a press in a long time, but last time I did I remember a lot of the garlic getting stuck in there and going to waste.

I like how the garlic press keeps my hands from smelling like garlic, so I'll use that a lot.

Drop that garlic in a tiny cheap piece of crepe food processor and pulse, baby, PULSE!

Garlic presses make me stabby.

Microplane almost always. Mince if you must. Press never!

I know I'm a huge weirdo but I actually think mincing garlic is fun! That said, I still use a press if I need to mince more than 3 cloves. I've never really noticed a difference in flavor between mincing or pressing, but the biggest problem I have with the press is that it's such a PITA to clean. So basically the question I ask myself is: Which will take longer - mincing the garlic or washing out the garlic press later on?

I love mincing garlic, too. No job is too small or too big.

I love my garlic press. In fact, I have two. I peel my garlic and then press it to make clean up easier. Mincing garlic by hand just takes way too long and is all messy.

I love pressing garlic. I've even tried pressing ginger (it was a good idea at the time) but it backfired and I got ginger juice in my eyes.

I like both mincing and using a press, but I do love my garlic press. The one from Ikea. Works really well and is pretty easy to clean.

I also felt like I wasted a lot with a press even though I really liked how it came out. Then my roommate broke it so I'm press-less. Now I just buy the pre-minced stuff in the refrigerated section of the grocery store. It's the equivalent of a few heads of garlic for about $2 and stays good a really long time (esp if you freeze it).

I have a garlic press from Ikea too and it's probably my favourite kitchen utensil. I use it all the time, and it's not hard to clean if you do it straight away. Microplaning is also awesome.

pressed

that pre minced preservative crepe is souless garlic

I like to mince garlic since there are not extra dishes or garlic waste, and as a bonus my hands will smell like garlic. Why do people wish to avoid that again?

I usually mince garlic for dishes where not-quite-uniform bits of garlic won't be a problem (i.e. most dishes), but if I'm making something like salad dressing or garlic bread, I'll just microplane it.

I mince unless it calls for an absurd amount of garlic, in which case I press.

Honestly, I used to feel like that, until I moved to a place where you can't find a bulb in a thirty mile radius that wasn't shriveled and moldy. Now it's huge forking jar of pre-minced garlic all the way.

I just place mine under the flat of a knife and thump. Instant squooshed garlic.

Yeah the kind I buy comes in a little plastic tupperware from the deli section. There aren't any preservatives. For some reason the minced stuff doesn't mold very fast but the peeled whole cloves they also sell go bad in about a week.

I tried that too, broke my press!