How to Dry Garlic: 3 Methods for Making Dried Garlic

Drying garlic, also called curing garlic, can be a great way to preserve garlic for months or years. Gardeners often use a curing process after they harvest garlic to extend its storage life. They do this by chopping or mincing garlic cloves and then baking them in the oven at a low temperature until the cloves become brittle. They also have the option of blending this dried garlic in a food processor until it is a fine powder called garlic powder, a common savory seasoning.

There are a few ways to dry garlic, including:

1. 1. Air-drying: If you live in a dry, warm climate, you can cure garlic by hanging it from a rafter in bunches until it becomes dry. Simply hang the garlic plants or heads of garlic—skins on—with twine in batches out of direct sunlight and in a dry place for a few months. The garlic green leaves will turn brown. This method might not work if you live in an area with high humidity.
2. 2. Baking: Preheat your oven to 170 degrees Fahrenheit or the lowest available temperature setting. Separate the garlic bulb into individual cloves. To peel garlic, remove the outer papery skin. Once you have removed the outer skin or outer wrapper of the cloves, use a sharp knife to mince or slice each clove into slivers. Spread the garlic pieces in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Try to space out the pieces of garlic so that they are not touching each other. Bake the garlic for thirty minutes. The garlic is ready when it crumbles or breaks easily in your hands.
3. 3. Dehydration: You can dry garlic in a dehydrator similar to how you would dehydrate it in an oven; however, a dehydrator generally has only one temperature setting, usually around 125 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove the papery skins from the garlic cloves and spread the garlic in an even layer on the dehydrator tray. Drying should take about eight to ten hours, depending on the heat of your dehydrator, the size of the cloves, and the humidity in your region. Consult the appliance’s manual to determine the ideal length of drying time.

There are three main types of garlic, each with its own pros and cons for cooking or for growing in your own home garden.

1. 1. Elephant garlic: Also known as great-headed garlic, elephant garlic tastes closer to other alliums like leeks without much of a punchy garlic flavor. It is not typically one of the recommended varieties for gardeners.
2. 2. Hardneck garlic: You can identify hardneck garlic by its single ring of cloves and its milder flavor profile. By comparison, softneck garlic usually features multiple layers of cloves and has a stronger, more traditionally “garlicky” taste.
3. 3. Softneck garlic: Silverskins and other softneck garlic varieties are ideal for storage (the soft stems that give them their name are easy to braid together when you’re curing them). Common softneck varieties are Korean Red, Duganski, German Red and Spanish Roja.

Fresh garlic has a shelf life of up to six months, but you can store dried garlic in airtight containers at room temperature for many months if it’s in a location out of direct sunlight with good air circulation. Whole garlic bulbs can last for several months, while unpeeled, broken garlic cloves can last for a few weeks in the right conditions. By contrast, peeled garlic cloves only last for about one week. You can also freeze garlic in batches for long-term storage to make it last for up to a year.

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