Q: I have so many recipes in my cookbook that require me to have roasted garlic, but spending that much in the stores just silly. Is there a way to roast garlic at home that doesn’t involve hours of work?
A: Roasting garlic at home in the oven does take a long time, not to mention it heats up the house, which is great in the winter, but in the summer, it’s best to avoid. The season doesn’t have to be the master of your taste buds; you can easily roast garlic in the microwave, and get the same robust, sweet flavour you have come to love.
In many dishes, they will call for roasted garlic, and what that simply means is cooked garlic that is slightly caramelised. In the microwave, you won’t get the delicious caramelisation, but you will still get the sweetness.
To roast garlic in the microwave, simply remove the outer skin of the garlic head, but do not break apart the cloves. Cut off the top of the head, exposing the cloves. Place the whole head in a microwave safe dish that has a lid. Drizzle the cloves with olive oil and add 1 and ½ tablespoons of water per clove. Cover and microwave on 50% for three-minute intervals.
After three minutes, poke the cloves with a fork until you can easily insert the fork, very similar to checking if a potato is done. Continue to microwave for another three minutes. If still not soft, microwave in 1-minute intervals until it is soft.
If you have individual cloves you would like to “roast” in this fashion, you can use the same method, but know they may cook faster.
Roasted garlic is the perfect addition to hundreds of recipes, and now, you don’t have to be a gourmet chef to make it. A microwave, water, and some olive oil will suffice!