Green garlic had been fermenting in a small jar on my kitchen counter for about four days when a friend kindly asked whether it'd be okay if he opened the window. Nothing reached Époisses-level stinky but the faint smell of aging cut garlic required instant triage by way of that open window and a scented candle. No regrets though. The fermented hot green garlic was so shockingly easy to pull off, because it requires only a Mason jar, salt, a knife, and about 10 minutes to prep. Fermenting is really (in this case, at least) as easy as putting stuff in a jar with salt and forgetting about it for a week. This is the Ultimate Gateway Ferment, and maybe I'll go big with sauerkraut next time.
Like a scallion at the top with a familiar-looking (but smaller) garlic bulb at the bottom, green garlic is a springtime staple with a zingier bite than whatever you throw in a pan with roasted chicken. Locating this spring garlic will probably be the hardest part of getting through the recipe. The rest is salt, water, a jar, a couple of days of being forgetful (you've got this!), and some red pepper flakes. The result enables insta-garlic knot vibes, thanks to soft, deeply sharp, fizzy, and funky garlic that brings subtle, lasting heat. (Warning though: The garlic breath here is a force to be reckoned with.) Put it on everything, but especially the things below:
Spaghetti has been waiting its whole life for some butter, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, Parmesan, and this fermented green garlic. It tastes like you built an elaborate sauce with some culinary school skills (...but you didn't).
Garlic potatoes—mashed, whole, smashed, French fried—are beautiful. And nothing does them as much justice as tossing them with fat and a generous heap of this garlic.
Happiness is a piece of crusty country bread with a healthy swipe of ricotta cheese (Salvatore Brooklyn, get on it) and an added layer of the fermented green garlic.
Magic mushrooms are real, and non-hallucinogenic: They're cooked in a stick of butter and tossed with fermented hot green garlic. You're welcome.
It's an unlikely pair—remember Tom Cruise and Cher? (That happened, yep.) But it works. The sticky, sweet honey adds buffers the fermented green garlic and makes it a fantastic beef marinade, toast spread, or cheese plate condiment.
Douse plain Greek yogurt with olive oil, salt, and pepper, then spoon the fermented hot green garlic over top. Taste familiar? It's basically sour cream and onion dip, except way more sophisticated.
The simple turkey sandwich tastes like you got it from a haute deli when you spread some of the hot fermented green garlic on it.
Goat cheese, we've never seen this side you, truly. Humboldt Fog has never been more alive than it is eaten by the spoonful with a generous helping of the hot fermented garlic. Any milky goat cheese will work.
Your favorite noodle dish has peanut sauce, right? With scallions too, yeah? Same deal goes here: Combine nut butter like peanut or almond butter with the hot fermented garlic and appreciate the beauty of savory, nutty sweetness.
Sub in hot fermented green garlic for your standard garlic cloves and give your pesto a new lease on life.
Breakfast will never be the same. Seriously, try any egg preparation—fried, scrambled, poached, hardboiled—and combine it with hot fermented green garlic. Zero extra seasoning effort required.