Making garlic confit is very useful and rewarding for those who love to cook with garlic and enjoy eating food flavored by the taste of garlic.
But first, what is a confit? A confit (pronounced kon-FEE) is derived from the French word confire (to preserve). This already gives us an idea of what a confit seeks to accomplish: to preserve a particular type of food for future use. Central to the process of making confit is slow-cooking the food (in the case of garlic confit, garlic) in a liquid.
Garlic confit is made by poaching garlic in olive oil until the garlic is soft and has a mellow, almost sweet, taste.
Garlic Confit Trivia
- The people in Gascony, France, love their confit so much that there is this saying: “A Gascon will fall to his knees for a good confit.”
- Garlic confit is considered one of the many secrets of Gascon cooking and why it is uniquely delicious.
- Nobody in France was making confit at the time Henri IV took the throne. What he did was order barrels of confit from his hometown: Gascony.
- You can use garlic confit to make the kind of toast known as the Texas Toast.
Garlic Confit Buying Guide
You can find garlic confit in the canned items section of the supermarket or grocery store. When buying garlic confit, check the safety seal on the lid to make sure the product is not tampered with and the quality has not been compromised. Do not buy a lot because after you’ve opened it, it will usually last for two weeks before it is not ideal to consume.
Garlic Confit Production & Farming in Texas
Texans love garlic and they sure do love garlic confit. Rebelle, a premium seafood restaurant in San Antonio, Texas, serves char-broiled Gulf Coast oysters with garlic confit butter. Toulouse in Knox St., Dallas, Texas, makes Jonah Crab Cake. This is using wild mushrooms, roasted cherry tomatoes, garlic confit, and toasted baguette. H-E-B, an American privately held supermarket chain based in San Antonio, Texas, shares a recipe for Spicy Garlic Confit on Grilled Bread on their website. There are also local small businesses specializing in food and pickling that make and sell garlic confit in local farmers markets.
Pesticides, Additives, and Chemicals:
Garlic confit, which is a very simple recipe of garlic and olive oil, requires no artificial additives.
Geography
Garlic confit originated from France. Because of its value in improving the flavor of food, many chefs, cooks, and food enthusiasts all around the world make or buy bottled garlic confit.
Packaging:
Garlic confit is sold in a glass jar or bottle with a lid. It should come with a label that indicates ingredients and a best before date to inform the customers how long they can keep this unopened, and how long they have once they have opened the jar or bottle.
Enjoying Garlic Confits
The best way to enjoy garlic confit is by using it to flavor food, like sandwiches, soups, pasta dishes, pizzas, and dips. You can also use it when making mashed potatoes, or use it to make garlic confit spread for bread.
Storage:
Refrigerate your garlic confit. Always keep the lid shut. Give it two weeks tops. Any longer than that and you are risking using garlic confit that has started to degrade which could pose a health risk for those who will eat this.
Make garlic confit with rosemary at home
An important part of making garlic confit is to make sure to cook it at a very low temperature, so patience is the key. But I guarantee you that your patience will be rewarded because a garlic confit flavored with rosemary is very delicious and it can make a simple dish extraordinary. Impress your family or friends who haven’t tried using garlic confit and make them a fan of this delicious and easy-to-make source of garlicky goodness.
Yield: This recipe can fill up a 1-quart jar
Ingredients:
- 10 ounces of unpeeled garlic cloves
- Olive oil
- 2 sprigs of rosemary
It is ideal to use a 1-quart saucepan and a stove diffuser to insulate the pan from direct flame and allow for cooking at a very low temperature.
Method
Step 1. Peel garlic cloves. Trim the bottom part or root ends.
Step 2. Put the garlic and rosemary sprigs in a 1-quart saucepan
Step 3. Pour olive oil. Put just enough to submerge the garlic.
Step 4. Put a thermometer in the pan to monitor the temperature
Step 5. Set the stove to medium fire
Step 6. Once the thermometer reads 200 to 210 degrees F, reduce the fire to allow for a slow simmer for one hour.
Step 7. Once the garlic is soft enough to your liking, remove it from the stove and let cool at room temperature.
