Garlic Confit
This recipe gives you step-by-step instructions for making garlic confit at home by slowly cooking cloves in oil until tender and sweet.
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- Prep time
- 20 min
- Cook time
- 1 hr 5 min
- Yield
- 6 servings
- Difficulty
- MEDIUM
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 2 heads of garlic, cloves peeled and root ends trimmed (see note)
- Extra-virgin olive oil, as needed (see note)
Instructions
- 1
In a saucepan, cover garlic with enough oil to fully submerge it.
- 2
Set over medium heat and bring to a bare simmer. Lower heat to maintain the barest simmer, so that you see some tiny bubbles on the garlic, but it's not actively frying in the oil.
- 3
Cook, adjusting heat as necessary to maintain this minimal level of cooking activity, until the garlic is buttery soft and tan in color, 1 to 3 hours (exactly how long it takes will depend on the garlic you're using, including its size and age, and how hot the oil is; raising the heat will move things faster but also shortchange you on the flavor development).
- 4
Transfer garlic confit and the cooking oil to a clean heatproof container, cover with plastic, and refrigerate immediately.
- 5
Refrigerated in its oil, the garlic confit can be kept for up to 1 week.