Aromatics · Ga

Garlic

Allicin forms 60 s after cutting

Per 100 g

149 kcal Energy

6.4 g Protein

33.1 g Carbs

0.5 g Fat

2.1 g Fibre

Gluten-free

Let’s cook with it → Invent something with it

What it is for

They give the character. Same technique, same ingredient, a different trio of spices — and the dish moves to another cuisine entirely. Most of their aroma molecules are volatile.

Where it catches you out

Volatile ones go in last, sturdy ones first. Mint and basil after the heat; bay and cinnamon right at the start.

The knack

Let it sit for a minute after chopping: that is when allicin forms. Straight into the pan and it never appears.

Storage and health

How to keep it, and who it suits.

Keeping it

Whole heads keep 3-6 months somewhere dark and ventilated; the fridge makes them sprout. Peeled cloves keep a week sealed and refrigerated.

Gluten-free

Garlic is naturally gluten-free.

Glycaemic index

This ingredient carries no meaningful carbohydrate, so it has no glycaemic index. On its own it will not move blood sugar; what you eat alongside it decides that.

What it works with

Pairings, and the reason for each

"They go well together" is not an explanation. Every pairing below has a chemical or structural mechanism under it.

Olive oil →

Crushing ruptures the cells and lets alliinase meet alliin, producing allicin within 10–60 seconds; allicin is unstable and decays into lipophilic diallyl sulfide, disulfide and trisulfide, which oil extracts and water does not.

Lemon →

Low pH inhibits alliinase, so acidified garlic stops generating new allicin and stays comparatively mild. That is why garlic in a dressing tastes different from garlic crushed into a hot pan.

Also works with

Yoghurt

Tomato paste

Aubergine

Red meat

Chickpea

Butter

What it fights with

Butter

Immediate high heat after chopping: alliinase is thermolabile and even 60 seconds of heating destroys it. Let crushed garlic stand ten minutes, then heat it.

What goes on top

Garlic yoghurt is one of the two or three definitive Turkish toppings: over mantı, aubergine, courgette, fried vegetables

Key compounds

Alliin → allisin (allinaz): The entire pungency system, and a wound response rather than a stored flavour.

Nutritionally

Garlic’s cardiovascular claims rest largely on allicin-derived compounds, and how much you actually get depends on preparation more than quantity: crush, rest, then cook. The clinical effect sizes are small and inconsistent.

Terms on this page

Alliin: The odourless precursor waiting in garlic; crushing converts it into allicin.

Where it turns up

What is made with it

7 dishes in the database use it.

Soups 2

Lebeniye soup

A yoghurt soup thickened with chickpeas and hulled wheat, finished with garlic and mint in butter. The Antep version adds small köfte. In Mardin it goes by çoban çorbası.

Gaziantep, Hatay, Diyarbakır, Mardin

Tutmaç

Small cut noodles cooked with meat or lentils, with garlic yoghurt poured over at the plate rather than stirred into the pot. This is a far older and far simpler answer to the curdling problem than terbiye.

Mezze 2

Cacık

A Turkish mezze of yoghurt, cucumber, garlic, salt, water and olive oil. A hot-weather dish whose consistency runs from thick enough to spoon to loose enough to drink — both are correct, and it varies by region.

Haydari

A thick mezze of strained yoghurt, garlic and herbs. One thing separates it from cacık and it is decisive: haydari has no cucumber and the yoghurt is strained, so a spoon stands up in it.

Mains 2

Mantı

Tiny dough parcels are boiled, laid over garlic yoghurt and finished with sizzled butter and chilli. Dried mint and sumac come last.

Kayseri

Ali Nazik

The Gaziantep classic: charred aubergine crushed with garlicky yoghurt under sautéed lamb. The aubergine must meet fire; made with oven-roasted aubergine it is simply not the dish.

Gaziantep

Preserving & fermentation 1

Antakya sürk

The most heavily spiced member of the çökelek family. The curd is kneaded with pepper paste and a broad spice battery led by wild thyme, then formed into cones and matured.

Hatay

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