The Cutting Board Hack For Peeling Lots Of Garlic In A Flash

Roasted vegetables, shrimp scampi, tzatziki, and all sorts of other popular dishes and sauces just wouldn't taste the same without garlic. This flavorful spice can take your meals to a whole new level of flavor and complexity. The downside is that peeling garlic takes a lot of time, especially if you're cooking for a crowd.

Garlic cloves are typically small, which can make handling and peeling them a bit challenging. One solution is to put them in a glass jar, close the lid, and shake for 30 seconds or so. The thin, papery skin covering the cloves should fall off, saving you time and effort.

The jar hack can make peeling garlic fun, but it's not the best choice for smaller cloves. Another option is to use the microwave, two cutting boards, or two bowls. For example, heating the cloves in a microwave oven for 15 to 20 seconds would cause them to slide out of their skins. The problem is that microwaving may destroy some of the nutrients in garlic, reducing its potential health benefits. Given these aspects, you might be better off trying other methods that don't require heat.

All you need to peel and crush a large amount of garlic are two cutting boards. First, separate the cloves from the bulb, and then place them in a single layer on a cutting board. Next, put a second cutting board on top of them and press down firmly with your hands. The garlic cloves will get crushed, and their skin will fall off. After that, use your fingers or a small knife to remove any bits of skin that remain. Transfer the crushed cloves to a bowl and peel a second batch if necessary.

On a similar note, you can use a rolling pin to peel garlic as well. Simply place the cloves in a zip-lock bag and remove excess air to ensure they don't scatter when you start pounding them. Seal the bag, and then lay it on a flat surface. Grab your rolling pin and apply even pressure to the cloves to peel and crush them. When you're done, place the cloves in a bowl and pick out the skins.

Another hack comes from TikTok recipe developer Julius Fiedler, who recommends soaking the garlic cloves in boiling water for one minute. After that, transfer them to a colander. The hot water will loosen their skin, making it easier to peel them. "When I had to peel more than 10 kilograms of garlic every week when I worked at a restaurant, this trick saved my life," said a TikTok user. Others reported using this hack to peel shallots and get the seeds out of cardamom pods.

As mentioned earlier, there's one more way to peel lots of garlic in a flash. All you need are two metal bowls of the same size. Simply place the cloves in a bowl and then stack another bowl on top. Shake them for a couple of minutes, checking the cloves every now and then. Their skins will eventually fall off, and your hands won't smell like garlic.

The explanation is simple. Metal bowls are usually made of stainless steel, a material that removes garlic odor. You can even rub a stainless-steel spoon or cup while washing your hands with cold water to get the garlic smell off your fingers. This trick also allows you to remove odors from fish or onions from your hands, so you might want to give it a try.