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The Fastest, Easiest Way to Peel Garlic

This garlic peeling hack uses only a mason jar and a firm shake.

To peel a whole head of garlic, many professional chefs throw the head into a lipped metal bowl, top it with a second lipped bowl of the same size, pinch the bowls together, and shake vigorously. As the cloves knock about, their peels loosen and fall away. It’s a surprisingly effective method—but you’re out of luck if you don’t have two lipped metal bowls of the same size. We found an alternative approach that also makes shaking less unwieldy: Remove the outer papery skin of a garlic head, place the head in a 2-cup wide‑mouth Mason jar, screw on the lid, and shake the jar for 30 seconds. Pour out the cloves and inspect them. If any still have skins, put them back in the jar and repeat. This method makes it a cinch to peel two heads of garlic for our Garlic Confit—or even just a few cloves.

MAKESHIFT GARLIC PEELER

The shaking action removes the skins.

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