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Garlic isn’t just a flavorful ingredient, it’s also an incredible superfood, with many benefits such as boosting heart health and lowering cholesterol.
If you don’t have raw garlic at home, don’t fret. You can use natural alternatives such as cooked garlic, garlic extracts, powdered garlic pills, or even garlic juice!
Crushing or chopping garlic produces the compound allicin. The compound helps reduce inflammation and it also has antioxidant benefits.
Fresh garlic contains alliin, an amino acid. Crushing or chopping a garlic clove releases the enzyme alliinase. Both of these interact to form allicin, a compound considered the major biologically active component of garlic.
Taking garlic can help prevent some health problems like heart disease. Studies have found that garlic also offers the following benefits:
Allicin supplements are also sometimes used to enhance exercise performance.
Taking raw garlic can help prevent a specific infection or stop illness in its tracks. If you don’t have raw garlic at home, below are four alternatives to try instead.
Cooked garlic
Cooking garlic affects its potency and allicin benefits are diminished to some extent. The good thing is, heat can help boost the antioxidant benefits of cooked garlic.
According to studies, setting chopped or minced garlic aside for around 10 minutes before cooking helps retain more of its active properties and allows the allicin to activate after cooking.
Garlic extracts
If consuming raw garlic isn’t an option, try taking concentrated garlic extractions.
There are different production methods used for garlic extractions, such as:
These extracts are usually put in capsules to make them easy to ingest. The capsules also protect the extracted liquid from the acidic environment in your stomach so they can reach the small intestine intact.
Powdered garlic pills
Powdered garlic pills use whole garlic that’s dried and ground to a fine powder. The garlic powder is then placed in a capsule made from a polymer that can withstand the acidic environment of your stomach. Alternatively, garlic is compressed into a tablet and then enteric-coated.
Garlic pills are a dried product and they don’t contain allicin.
The allicin reaction only happens when the pill is in the small intestine and is rehydrated with water. This means many garlic pill supplements include a measurement of “allicin potential” on their label to help users determine the relative potency of their product.
Garlic juice
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), garlic juice is the least stable form of garlic and must be used promptly. If you prefer this option, it’s better to make garlic juice at home and use it immediately.
Below are the suggested dosages for safe daily use of garlic supplements or extracts:
Consider these garlic options if you don’t have time to cook or if you don’t like the taste or smell of fresh, raw garlic.
Garlic is good for your heart health. You should also grow garlic in your home garden because it’s cheaper than buying it from the grocery store!
It’s cheap and cost-effective
One bulb of seed garlic has 10 to 15 cloves, depending on the variety. A bulb costs around $12 to $15 per 8 ounces and you can keep the best garden producers and re-plant them next year.
There are different garlic varieties for your culinary needs
Did you know that there are several garlic varieties with incredible flavors?
It’s easy to grow garlic in a small garden
To grow garlic, prepare a garden bed for each type or plant them as space allows.
Garlic bulbs will grow well in pots and they need 12 inches of well-draining soil. Mark the pots if you’re planting several varieties and if you’re going to replant next year.
Garlic is perfect for home gardening beginners
Garlic is easy to grow if you use the right kind of soil and water it regularly. In most parts of the U.S., you can plant garlic in September or October or at least three weeks before the ground freezes.
Use sandy loam and organic compost to keep the soil light. Fertilize with 10-10-10 and weed it regularly.
Before you start planting, gently break the garlic cloves apart. Refrigerate the smallest cloves and use them for cooking.
It’s best to use the largest outer, cloves since they are the most productive. Plant the garlic cloves one inch deep with the pointed side up and three to five inches apart.
Water garlic moderately throughout the winter but don’t leave standing water around them. During the spring, garlic needs at least an inch of water per week. You can stop watering in summer once the leaves start to turn.
You can harvest garlic in early to late summer when the bottom 1/3 of the leaves start turning yellow. Since this is a rough estimate, you should carefully dig up one bulb and check if the skin has set before digging up all the bulbs. If you skip this step, your bulbs won’t store for long.
For best keeping quality, store garlic bulbs at 32 to 40 F and at 60 to 70 percent relative humidity. When properly cured and stored, garlic should keep for six months or even longer.
If you want to grow garlic, purchase organic garlic bulbs at a local nursery or farm supply store. Ask which varieties are best for your location.
Grow garlic in your home garden or take alternatives like garlic extract and powders to boost your heart health and naturally lower your cholesterol.
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