How to Peel Garlic

Peeling garlic is actually not difficult. Depending on whether you want the garlic clove whole or chopped, there are many ways to peel a beautiful garlic clove.

Table of Contents

Peel the garlic with a knife

Prepare a garlic clove and separate one clove. Garlic cloves are small wedge-shaped pieces of garlic that form an intact “garlic”. You just need to use your fingers to separate a clove of garlic from the bulb.

The papery white outer shell can be cut off to make it easier to separate.

Cut off the brown end of the garlic clove. If there is a hard, thin, brown “head” on the garlic clove, cut it off with a kitchen knife. This step makes peeling a little easier but not necessarily. Some garlic cloves also don’t have much of a hard end to cut. cancel.

Garlic cloves can be cut in half. This makes it easier to peel the garlic. ^{[1] X Research Source}

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/4/44/Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-3-Version-8.jpg/v4-728px-Peel-a- Garlic-Clove-Step-3-Version-8.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/4/44/Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-3- Version-8.jpg/v4-728px-Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-3-Version-8.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:259,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight” :410,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output”></div>”}

Place the garlic clove on the cutting board. Lay the flat side down so that the part of the garlic clove closest to the center of the garlic is facing away from you. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Place the flat side of the knife on the garlic clove and press down firmly. You need to press really fast, really firmly with the palm of your hand. You will hear a small blistering sound. Remove the knife to see if the garlic peel has come off.

Use your hands to peel the garlic and the unusable part of the garlic. You may need to practice a few times to figure out how much force to press, but when you lift the knife, you will see the garlic peel right away.

Use peeled garlic (whole or chopped). Garlic is ready for you to use as a cooking ingredient.

Peel garlic with water

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/2/2f/Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-7-Version-5.jpg/v4-728px-Peel-a- Garlic-Clove-Step-7-Version-5.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/2/2f/Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-7- Version-5.jpg/v4-728px-Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-7-Version-5.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:259,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight” :410,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output”></div>”}

Separate the number of garlic cloves you need from the bulb. Quickly peel off the easy peel off before separating the garlic cloves.

Soak the garlic cloves in cold water for about 5 minutes and make sure they are submerged in the water. Soak the garlic cloves in water 2.5-5 cm high. The water will soften the garlic skin. Use a metal whisk to gradually mince the garlic and speed up the soaking process. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

Put the garlic in a sealed container or keep the water out if possible. While the garlic skin softens when it is soaked, you can shake the container to make the garlic peel fall out faster.

Remove the garlic from the water. The garlic skin will be soft and you can peel it off easily by hand. Pull out the garlic skin and cut off the top of the garlic clove if there is some sticky skin on the top. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

Peel garlic in the microwave

Separate the number of garlic cloves you need from the bulb. Do not use the microwave method for a whole garlic because the peeled garlic cannot be used for a long time. You should only separate enough garlic cloves that you plan to use immediately.

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/4/42/Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-11-Version-8.jpg/v4-728px-Peel-a- Garlic-Clove-Step-11-Version-8.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/4/42/Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-11- Version-8.jpg/v4-728px-Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-11-Version-8.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:259,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight” :410,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output”></div>”}

Put the garlic cloves in the microwave for about 5-10 seconds. Place the garlic on a small plate and heat quickly over high heat. You will see the garlic peel wrinkle and soften.

Cut off the remaining soft shell. Use a knife to cut the base of the garlic clove and the garlic will slide off easily. ^{[5] X Research Sources}

Peel the garlic by shaking

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/8/85/Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-13-Version-4.jpg/v4-728px-Peel-a- Garlic-Clove-Step-13-Version-4.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/8/85/Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-13- Version-4.jpg/v4-728px-Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-13-Version-4.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:259,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight” :410,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output”></div>”}

Place the whole garlic in a stainless steel bowl. This is a great way to peel a whole garlic clove at once. Peel off the soft, papery skin by hand before you begin.

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/d/d1/Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-14-Version-4.jpg/v4-728px-Peel-a- Garlic-Clove-Step-14-Version-4.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/d/d1/Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-14- Version-4.jpg/v4-728px-Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-14-Version-4.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:259,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight” :410,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output”></div>”}

Use the same stainless steel bowl to cover the bowl. Hold the two bowls together to form a larger ‘closed’ bowl.

Hold the rims of the two bowls together and shake. Shake vigorously to allow the garlic to flow back and forth inside the bowl for 1-2 minutes.

Open the bowl and discard the separated shell. At this point, each clove of garlic will come apart and still be slightly sticky. Peel the garlic, cut off the hard root of the garlic and throw it in the trash. Then, put the two bowls together again.

Continue shaking until all the garlic peels come off. You may need to use your hands to peel off the fine, thin film or use another method to peel individual garlic cloves, such as soaking in water in a stainless steel bowl. However, if shaken enough, most of the garlic peel will fall off on its own. ^{[6] X Research Sources}

Peel the garlic with a wooden hammer

{“smallUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images_en/thumb/4/4f/Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-18-Version-4.jpg/v4-728px-Peel-a- Garlic-Clove-Step-18-Version-4.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”https://www.wikihow.com/images/thumb/4/4f/Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-18- Version-4.jpg/v4-728px-Peel-a-Garlic-Clove-Step-18-Version-4.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:259,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight” :410,”licensing”:”<div class=”mw-parser-output”></div>”}

Separate the garlic cloves. Separate the garlic clove you want from the bulb and place it on a cutting board.

Place the garlic cloves evenly under the dry cloth. This cloth will prevent the garlic from flying off the table while you hammer it. Any kitchen towel can be used.

Use a wooden hammer to smash the garlic clove 1-2 times. This step helps to break up the shell making it easier for you to peel the garlic. This is similar to using a knife, but is easier to do with multiple cloves of garlic at once.

The garlic should not be crushed, but only lightly but firmly, the garlic peel will fall off.

Advice

If you don’t like to put your hand on the knife, you can not use a knife but instead use a mortar and pestle in the kitchen to pound the garlic cloves.
Peeling garlic is difficult because the peel is dry. Although the Water Method takes a long time, it will be easier to peel and the garlic clove will be mostly intact.

Warning

Avoid using an unbalanced cutting board.
Always be careful when using a knife.

Steps