Dark Chocolate Dipped Black Garlic

I’m very excited about Black Garlic! As a dessert? Yes, you’ll be surprised!

Before I get too distracted with black garlic, may I say that I love New Zealand garlic full stop. I will sing its praises until I *pop my clogs.  Grown within strict NZ GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) regulations, you can be assured that New Zealand garlic is the best it can be.

The same can’t necessarily be said for imported garlic, unfortunately.  Not only is imported garlic not easily tracked (the grower, soil and water quality, use and frequency of sprays etc), because it is cool-stored the bulbs can dehydrate causing them to lose their juiciness.

What is black garlic?

A regular garlic bulb is transformed through a type of fermentation process that occurs when it’s slow roasted over a long period (30-60 days). The process has been around for thousands of years and black garlic has been known as an Asian medicinal product for a while.

Black garlic occurs naturally as the sugars and amino acids are drawn out of the garlic during the slow roasting. The elements produce melanoidin, a dark-colored substance that is responsible for the blackness.

It’s being produced here in New Zealand (tick) by Marlborough garlic growers (tick), and it tastes terrific.

Garlic is already high in antioxidants but black garlic has been found to have twice the antioxidant properties of conventional garlic.

The result is soft and chewy texture with a juxtaposition of  ‘is it sweet or is it savoury’ with its caramelised/balsamic flavour profile, with lingering garlic undertones.

How do you use black garlic?

From a delicious addition to an antipasto platter, pasta or seafood, to a gourmet pizza topping, it’s very versatile. It’s priced at a premium so you may wish to use it sparingly. Oh, or you can dip in in dark chocolate like I did.

Dark Chocolate Dipped Black Garlic

Ingredients

• 6 x black garlic cloves
• dark chocolate, approx 80g

Method

1. Cut each black garlic clove into 4-5 pieces.
2. In an aluminum bowl, suspended over a saucepan of boiling water, melt the chocolate, stirring until smooth.
3. Using toothpicks dip each piece of black garlic into the dark chocolate, then allow to dry on a sheet of baking paper. Allow to harden at room temperature.
4. Devour and share with friends, if you are feeling charitable. Such a simple yet delicious way to enjoy and share black garlic.

Enjoy!!

This recipe could be your next dinner party winner.  It did well for me – a 100% hit rate with oohs and ahhs and coming back for more.

Now this wasn’t my brilliant idea (although I do have a habit dipping all sorts of things in dark chocolate like mandarin segments and frozen banana bites). I indeed tasted Dark Chocolate Dipped Black Garlic for the first time at the ‘May Market Day’ which is a fabulous annual event that the NZ Food Writers Guild holds with amazing growers and producers showcasing their latest and greatest foodie inspiration.

PS. Rediscovering old sayings: *pop my clogs is mainly British English slang expression (dating from the 1970’s). Clogs were the traditional workers’ footwear in several trades in the industrial towns and cities of midlands and northern Britain. Verb to pop may be the old term for pawning goods. The implication is that someone would only want to pawn his clogs when he had no further need for them, that is, when he was about to die (thanks Wiki).