Cooking with garlic: Do clove sizes impact your recipes?

Garlic clove sizes vary, so exact amounts in recipes are always an estimate. Photo / 123RF

Garlic cloves can vary greatly by size. Here’s how to factor that into your cooking.

Q: Can you help me to determine what is meant by “cloves of garlic” as a measurement? For example so many recipes call for amounts along the lines of “2 cloves of garlic, minced” or “3 cloves of garlic, chopped,” but when I break apart a head of garlic, the individual cloves range greatly in size, so I’m never sure how much to add. I do see recipes that specify “1 tablespoon of minced garlic” for example, which makes much more sense to me.

A: The average garlic bulb or head found in a standard grocery store contains 10 to 12 individual cloves encased in papery skin. Cloves can range in size from as small as a slivered almond to as large as a grape (or bigger for certain varieties, such as elephant garlic). Most cooks simply rely on experience to know the size of an average clove, using more or less in a recipe to compensate for differing sizes.

The reason many recipe developers opt for a number of cloves rather than a specific weight or volume is to make it easier for the home cook. For instance, if a recipe does call for 1 tablespoon of minced garlic, I’m likely to mince more than I need, but then I’m left with the dilemma of what to do with the excess. In most instances, a little more or less garlic won’t severely impact the flavour of the finished product, which is why it’s okay to simply go with the number of cloves the recipe calls for. Plus, this eliminates the need to reach for a measuring spoon.

Another thing to keep in mind: there are home cooks among us who use the amount listed in a recipe as a mere starting point, embodying the meme of seasoning with their hearts and opting for a mountain of garlic cloves when the ingredient list calls for only two.

For those who favour precision, Cook’s Country follows the assumption that a garlic clove weighs 5g and yields 1 teaspoon when minced. However, it’s important to keep in mind that the same weight of garlic does not always mean the same level of flavour. Like all fresh ingredients, taste can vary from one sample to another. No two strawberries have exactly the same sweetness. One bunch of kale might be more bitter than another. Similarly, today’s 5g of garlic is not always the same as tomorrow’s 5g of garlic. On top of that, how you break down each clove matters, as the flavour intensifies the finer you cut it.

Taste is subjective, so feel free to use as much or as little garlic as you want.