Garlic paste is super easy to make and only requires 2 ingredients.
It’s delicious and gives your dishes such incredible depth of flavor without that harsh garlic sharp bite. All you need is fresh garlic, kosher salt, a sharp knife, and a cutting board.
Garlic paste is one of those things I learned early on in my career. It’s unlike the jarred stuff you buy in the store that is super acidic or bloated with water or oil.
Homemade stuff is so much better. You get the amazing flavors of fresh garlic without all of that harsh raw-tasting garlic chunks.
Let’s Make Garlic Paste!
- Grab your cloves and mince it up. It’s easier to start with smaller chunks.
- To a cutting board, sprinkle the kosher salt over top of the pieces.
- Hold the blunt side of the knife with your hands and rdra the sharp side of the blade across the garlic (at an angle). You’re pressing it down and flattening the salt into the garlic.
- Use the knife to put the garlic and salt back into a pile and repeat the process until you get a thick, rich paste.
That’s it, really!
How to store Garlic Paste
Just like fresh garlic, it’s best to use right away. If you’re not using it, you can store it in an air tight container in the fridge for about 6 hours. Any longer than that, transfer to smaller freezer bags.
I like to put it on a lined baking sheet, divide into small squares (1×1″) and then freeze. Small squares of that size are equivalent to about 1 teaspoon of garlic paste.
It’s advised to not store this in oil as the oil can become rancid. Some folks use water but I’m not a fan of watered-down garlic.
Ways to use Garlic Paste
This can go into any dish that calls for garlic
- Mashed potatoes
- Sauteed shrimp or chicken
- Meatballs
- Homemade dressings and vinaigrettes
- Kick up your mayo a bit with some garlic paste, and lemon to make a delicious aioli
- Pasta Sauce
- Marinades
Homemade 2-Ingredient Garlic Paste
- Prep Time: 2
- Total Time: 2 minutes
Give your dishes a delicious garlic flavor with this 2-ingredient method to make homemade garlic paste
Ingredients
- 12 cloves of garlic, smashed and peels removed
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Mince your garlic to make it easier to make the paste.
- To a cutting board, add the kosher salt to the chopped garlic. The salt will help the garlic to release its juices.
- Next rub the side of the knife against the chopped garlic, crushing and mashing the garlic against the cutting board.
- As you crush and scrape the garlic, you’ll be smearing the garlic across the board.
- The garlic will make crunching noises as you crush it.
- Scrape up the smeared garlic from the cutting board to gather it together.
- Continue to chop and smear until the garlic reaches a mashed up, paste-like consistency, as is as chopped up as you want it to be
Keywords: Homemade 2-Ingredient Garlic Paste
I’ve been doing this for years. I have a wooden bowl just for salads. I chop the garlic and put in the bowl with salt. Mash it up. The salts acts as abrasive. Then I add oil and vinegar, stir then swish it up the sides of the bowl and put my salad in. SO good and easy!
Oh wow! I never knew it was this easy to make! Thank you so much Lori! Love your site so much!
★★★★★