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How Many Tablespoons Is Equivalent To 3 Cloves Of Garlic?

Quick Answer: How Many Tablespoons Is Equivalent To 3 Cloves Of Garlic? As a general rule of thumb, a tablespoon of garlic holds about 3 average sized garlic cloves. This will vary slightly depending on the size of the garlic clove that you are using in your dish. 

In this article we will navigate the problem of garlic measurements and explore the ways garlic is measured and used in cooking.

Read on for more information!

Quick Answer: How Many Tablespoons Is Equivalent To 3 Cloves Of Garlic?

Converting Cloves To Spoons 

It can be frustrating when you are following your recipe and you want it to have the best possible garlic ratio as there can be a big difference between 3 small garlic cloves and 3 big ones. 

If you’re following a recipe that requires you to add 3 cloves of garlic, you might find it difficult to convert this to tablespoons if you are using pre crushed garlic from your spice rack.

If you have an average sized garlic clove chopped, then this is the equivalent to one teaspoon. This is dependent on the size of the garlic cloves as you may need two small ones to fill the teaspoon.

It will also depend on the age of the garlic because, over time, garlic can become withered and shrink in size.

Garlic cloves differ so greatly in size that some of the bigger cloves may even fill a whole tablespoon on their own. It really is a difficult question that depends completely on the size!

How Is Garlic Measured In Recipes 

There are two ways that you will find garlic is measured in recipes. The most common one that you will see is the recipe will specify how many garlic cloves you should add in.

Sometimes, the recipe will list the number of teaspoons or tablespoons that should be added to the meal. 

Every one of these measurement strategies is flawed and can’t be completely accurate due to the variety of sizes that garlic cloves are available in.

However, it does not often matter too much if you end up adding a small amount of extra garlic, or a little bit under the recommended amount.

In fact, it is common that people will deviate from the recipe with the amount of garlic they add because people have very different personal preferences about the amount of garlic that works well in meals.

Some people double the recommended amount of garlic, where some people just like to have a small hint of garlic so that it does not overpower the other ingredients.

It is fun to get creative with your spices to see which flavorings you like best! The recipe is not always the be all and end all.

So, here is a quick and easy way to remember the average conversion rates of garlic from cloves to teaspoons:

1 clove of garlic is approximately ¼ teaspoon of granulated garlic from your spice rack. If you use garlic flakes instead of granulated garlic the formula changes slightly. In this case, 1 clove of garlic is approximately ½ teaspoon of garlic flakes.

Minced Garlic 

Minced garlic is a great alternative to adding garlic cloves to your food. It saves you from having to peel and dice or crush the cloves which can be a bit of a tedious task!

However, there is something to be said about the difference in flavor between the fresh cloves and the canned garlic.

Garlic cloves add such a wonderful flavor to your food, while some processed garlic can have a bit of a bitter taste which does not work quite as well.

What Is The Difference Between Minced And Chopped Garlic?

What Is The Difference Between Minced And Chopped Garlic?

Minced garlic and chopped garlic are ever so slightly different from each other. The minor difference does have an effect on the food you are making, though, so it is important to pick the best one for your meal.

When you mince garlic using a machine, it will come out very fine and more like a paste. When you dice or chop the garlic yourself, it is usually in bigger pieces. 

What Is The Difference Between Minced Garlic And Garlic Paste 

You can buy garlic paste in most stores and it comes in a tube which is ready mashed and ready to be used. You will usually find it in the fruit and vegetables section.

This version of pre prepared, packaged garlic is delicious and it tastes very fresh in comparison to the minced garlic. 

Why Use Granulated Garlic? 

Granulated garlic is garlic that has been dried and powdered down to look like sand. To make granulated garlic, garlic cloves are placed in the oven and dried out.

They are then ground down using a spice grinder. You will find this garlic in the spice department and you should always ensure you have some on your spice rack in case of a garlic emergency!

Granulated garlic has a few different pros. Because it is so finely ground, it can be very evenly distributed through a meal. It is commonly used in drier meals where you don’t want too much moisture.

For instance, adding some granulated garlic to your marinade would work very well. It is also great in soups to give it some flavor.

Granulated garlic is also a great alternative to fresh garlic if you are making a quick dinner and don’t want to chop the individual cloves.

It is great to have on the shelf in cases like that because it keeps for quite a long time and can just add some extra flavor.

How To Make Garlic Flakes

Garlic flakes are another great way of flavoring food. They are delicious in pasta dishes. They are made by slicing fresh garlic cloves and baking them in the oven with some oil and salt and pepper.

To make them, you simply preheat your oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit and place the sliced garlic on a baking tray with some olive oil.

Add some salt and pepper and bake them in the oven for around 4 minutes. Keep an eye on them while they are cooking because they sometimes cook very quickly.

Jess Smith
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