Can someone tell me about roasting Garlic please, and how long i can keep it for?

nuttywoman

I`ve seen it on french markets but it too dear to buy.
How long is it roasted for and whats the best way to keep it?
thank val;)

ChocClare

It depends slightly on the size/firmness of the garlic.

Take one bulb of garlic, turn on its side and slice off the top (pointy bits) but don't peel or divide into individual cloves. Put a piece of foil in the bottom of a small roasting dish, sit the bulb on top, drizzle with olive oil, fold the foil over the top and bung in a hot oven (Gas 5 or 6) for 25-40 mins, depending on the size of the bulb until very soft and tender. If it's the pathetic little bulbs they sell in Tesco's, then 25 mins will be ample. If "proper" sized bulbs from France, 40 or even 45 mins. The garlic should be creamy and soft and squeeze out of the individual cloves.

To store: they will keep as they are for a couple of days in the fridge. To keep them for longer, break into individual cloves and put in a jar of (olive) oil (this will also give you wonderful tasting oil!). Kept like this, they should keep in the fridge for about a month. You can, if you prefer, squeeze the pulp out into a smaller jar and cover this with oil (saves wasting too much oil and faffing about trying to peel things with oily fingers!).

apprentice_tycoon

Roast garlic butter - Mix some roasted garlic cloves with softened butter, spread thickly between 2 sheets of greaseproof paper then when its chilled you can stamp out small circles with a cookie cutter, then freeze. These pieces are wonderful in jacket spuds etc, it's more subtle than raw garlic butter. It's a good way to preserve the roasted garlic, it seems to freeze forever

Just remembered - you can make a wonderful cream sauce for grilled lamb or chicken out of about 4 or 5 roasted garlic cloves.
I can't remember the exact quantities because I'm terrible with precise details, but it's basically double cream heated and flavoured with a little chicken stock powder, the juices from the pan are added along with the roast garlic that has been chopped/ mashed finely, it's reduced to the thickness you like, or thickened with cornflour