The Mincing Technique One Reddit User Says Is Easier Than Using A Garlic Press

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If you ask any chef, there's no doubt they'll tell you that fresh, minced garlic is superior in flavor and texture to jarred or dried garlic. However, the act of mincing it can be tedious and time-consuming, not to mention the sticky residue and pungent odor left on your fingertips. While a garlic press can eliminate some of this difficulty, a Reddit user discovered a different way to crush garlic using a meat tenderizer that may be better for some people, especially when in need of a large amount of garlic.

The Redditor shared, "I think I discovered the best way to mince garlic! A meat tenderizer! I put a Ziploc bag on top of the garlic and hit it four to five times, and presto! Good spaghetti tonight!" Included in the post was a picture of a hefty amount of minced garlic on a cutting board.

Whether you don't have a garlic press handy or your dish requires a heap of garlic (a typical handheld garlic press can crush about one large or two small-to-medium cloves), this trick appears to be an easy way to crush several garlic cloves at once. What's more, other Redditors agreed that using a meat tenderizer eliminates the difficult task of trying to clean a garlic press (which also happens to be the kitchen tool that Ina Garten thinks is overrated). One person wrote, "Pain to clean, half the garlic gets stuck in it, so you use twice as much garlic, and they break." 

When performing this hack, use the spiky side of the meat tenderizer to help mince the garlic into tiny pieces for your pasta sauce, garlic bread, mashed potatoes, or one of these recipes any garlic lover will appreciate. Highly rated meat tenderizers include the Gorilla Grip BPA-Free Dual-Sided Meat Tenderizer and the Kitexpert Meat Tenderizer Hammer, both from Amazon.

In the Reddit post, the OP described using a Ziploc to cover the garlic cloves, however, a few people in the thread were against the idea of using plastic baggies. One person suggested, "Use something other than plastic, parchment paper maybe? I'm not sure if that's any better but, plastic = bad for our planet." No matter what you cover the cloves with, make sure to peel them first before hitting them with the meat tenderizer. While there are multiple ways to peel garlic, such as crushing it with the back of a knife, soaking it in hot water, or shaking it in a jar, you may want to try the decidedly fastest method for peeling garlic: Microwave cloves for 20 seconds to help the skins slide off smoothly. 

It's worth noting that some naysayers on Reddit say the meat tenderizer method is more akin to crushing or mashing garlic rather than mincing it, which can alter the flavor. Technically, mincing is cutting it into fine pieces, while mashing creates more of a paste. Indeed, the more garlic is mashed, the more the compound allicin is released, resulting in greater pungency and aroma.