I heard a radio interview with Saveur editor, Todd Coleman, in which he demonstrated what sounded like a magic trick for peeling garlic cloves in seconds. This was radio, so I could see neither the technique nor the result, but I wanted to give it a try. I asked my friend, a former Patina chef, if he knew of this time-saving wonder. His eyes widened. I could see he was calculating the hours of work it would have saved during his career, and the time it would save him for the rest of his garlic-peeling life. He jumped up and directed everyone to follow him to the kitchen, where we attempted the trick with two small metal bowls to unimpressive, and slightly embarrassing, but entertaining results. Watch the Saveur video first, to be amazed, then watch our episode for a laugh. (Note: This was attempted after hours of holiday eating and drinking. Pardon our French, and our, um, singing.)
I heard that interview on NPR too. I was really curious about it. I’m so glad you tried it! I might try it with bigger bowls to see if that makes a difference.
Thanks for the tip – I hate peeling garlic … now all I need are two matching metal bowls … S.