Braised wet garlic & tomatoes
Wet garlic has a milder flavour than fully mature and dried garlic. You can use the whole thing – bulb, stalk and all. You may need to strip away some of the top leaf ends, especially later in the season when the bulbed end starts to form. You can use plenty – where you might use a couple of cloves of dried, you can use a whole wet garlic. As the cloves are still forming in the bulb the whole thing should be edible, when slowly braised. If some of the outer skin is still a little tough just scrape the soft cloves out as you eat.
Cook's notes
Serve on toast or mash the braised garlic into the tomatoes for a pasta sauce. A grating of parmesan or some crumbled sheep’s cheese would be a great addition.
Ingredients
- 4 bulbs of wet garlic
- 150ml white wine
- 400g fresh tomatoes, roughly chopped
- 1 bay leaf
- 100ml of water or stock
- small bunch of parsley or chervil, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp capers, roughly chopped
- toast or pasta, to serve
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
Method
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Step 1
Trim the green stalks to leave about an inch above the bulb. Split each bulb in half, lengthways, and remove any outer skin that feels too dry or papery. Trim away the very end of the root.
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Step 2
Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a shallow pan or casserole. Gently fry the garlic, cut sides down, for a few mins until lightly golden.
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Step 3
Add the wine, let it bubble until reduce by half. Then add the tomatoes, bay, and the stock. Season with salt and pepper and bring to a simmer. Cover tightly with a lid or foil and cook slowly over a very low heat, or in an oven set to 180˚C/Gas 4, for 30 mins or until the garlic is completely soft.
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Step 4
Taste and tweak the seasoning for the sauce. If it seems too wet, turn up the heat for a few minutes to reduce.
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Step 5
Serve piled on sourdough toast and finish with plenty of freshly chopped herbs and capers. Scrape the soft flesh out of the bulbs as you eat. Alternatively, you can remove the soft flesh, discard any tough skins and mash the garlic into the sauce to make a rich pasta sauce.