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If you aren’t a vampire, you know that garlic is essential to basically every meal. Whether roasted or raw, this pungent plant can be used in many different ways. And even though I know we are all somewhat familiar with the stinking rose, you might not know all the varieties you’ll see at the farmers market. If you’ve ever been curious what a garlic scape is, or which varieties are the most flavorful, this guide to garlic is just for you!
Why you should buy garlic at the farmers market
The first and most important reason to buy garlic at the farmers market is the variety. Unless you have the world’s most amazing grocery store, you won’t find green garlic or garlic scapes anywhere other than the farmers market. These two garlic crops have a particularly short season and large scale farmers with ultra-wide distribution networks focus on the garlic that has a longer season and shelf life.
Second, the garlic at the farmers market is way more fresh than what you’ll get at the grocery store. I’m sure you’ve rummaged through the piles of garlic at Safeway (or wherever) and only found dried out, shriveled, cloves, or they’re already sprouting green shoots. I rarely have this problem at the farmers market, as this garlic is generally fresher and more local. It’ll store longer and be more flavorful than the garlic at the grocery store.
When is garlic in season at the farmers market?
It depends. Fresher garlics, like green garlic, garlic scapes, and garlic chives, can be found at the farmers market in the springtime. Fully formed bulbs, however, take longer to grow and are found at the markets in the summer and early fall.
What’s the difference between Hard Neck and Soft Neck Garlic?
Generally, garlic varieties can be divided into two different categories: hard neck and soft neck.
Most commercially grown garlic is soft neck, which tends to have better yields at scale; most garlic you see at the grocery store comes from soft neck varieties. Hard neck varieties, which tend to have more flavor than their soft neck counterparts, are far more popular at the farmers market.
How do you store garlic properly at home?
Green garlic, garlic scapes, and garlic chives should be stored in your refrigerator. Keep them dry in the crisper drawer of your refrigerator for maximum shelf life.
Heads of garlic, however, need to be stored completely differently. Keep them in a cool, not cold, location, such as a pantry. Make sure they get plenty of air circulation to prevent them from going moldy. Peeled garlic cloves, on the other hand, should be stored in the refrigerator.
Want more tips on how to store your produce from the farmers market? I have a whole guide for you here!
Different Types of Garlic at the Farmers Market
Green Garlic
Don’t mistake green garlic for scallions; they’re not the same thing despite similar looks!
Green garlic isn’t any one specific variety of garlic. Instead, it is the garlic plant harvested before the bulb has a chance to develop. It is milder than the mature garlic cloves, and can be used both raw and cooked. Use the dark greens in salads, and sauté the whites and light greens to add a mild garlic flavor to your dishes.
Garlic Scapes
Like green garlic, garlic scapes are not a particular variety of garlic, but a way the crop is harvested. As the garlic plant matures, a central shoot will grow and form a flower and eventually go to seed. As the evolutionary goal of all living things is to reproduce, the plant will direct all of its energy toward that potential seed, but this often results in less tasty plants. This is especially true with garlic, so most farmers will harvest this shoot (the scape) early so that the plant’s energy is directed back toward developing the bulb. While not all types of garlic grow scapes, many do, and they are a springtime treat at the farmers market.
Think of garlic scapes as a cross between green beans and garlic flavor. The scapes have a firm, yet still tender, texture with a mild garlic flavor that holds up well to cooking and pickling. It is also a popular choice for pestos and hummus.
Garlic scapes might be my favorite type of garlic at the farmers market, and if you haven’t tried them yet, I highly encourage it. But, whatever you do, don’t procrastinate since you’ll probably only see them at your farmers market for a few weeks. Snap them up while you can!
Garlic Chives
While garlic chives are often grown for their ornamental flowers, they can also be used in your cooking! Treat them just like onion chives for a mild, garlicky garnish.
California White Garlic
This is what makes Gilroy famous! I’m sad to admit, though, that I never made it to the Gilroy Garlic Festival. Instead, I got to enjoy the garlic aromas whenever we were on a road trip headed to Yosemite.
California White Garlic is a softneck variety with a creamy texture and tons of garlicky spice. There are two harvests of this garlic: one in the spring and one in the fall.
Italian Purple Garlic
Italian Purple Garlic is one of the milder varieties on this list, but don’t write it off! It has large cloves that are extremely easy to peel, and the mildness makes this the perfect choice for dishes with raw garlic. Finely grate these cloves for use in salad dressings or smash them to add flavor to refrigerator pickles.
As a hard neck variety, Italian Purple garlic forms scapes! Chances are, a farmer that grows this variety will also sell the scapes at the farmers market.
Thai Purple Garlic
Another hard neck variety, Thai Purple garlic is characterized by purple streaks on its papery shell. The large cloves have a pungent flavor that mellows and sweetens when it is cooked. This is the perfect variety to use for a garlic confit.
Nootka Rose Garlic
Nootka Rose garlic is a soft neck variety developed in Washington state. Its leading characteristic are the light pink and red streaks on the cloves.
As a soft neck variety, Nootka Rose heads have a large number of medium sized cloves. While it has a bold garlic flavor, it is light on the spiciness factor. It’s a great variety for long term storage in your pantry.
Black Garlic
Black garlic is made by a special aging process of fresh garlic heads. The garlic is stored in a warm and humid chamber, where the sugars in the cloves caramelize and turn the garlic black.
Black garlic has a sweeter, funkier flavor than fresh garlic. Make black garlic the starring character of your cooking, not part of the supporting cast like most garlic.
Elephant Garlic
While these look like giant garlic cloves, Elephant Garlic isn’t actually garlic! Nope! It’s really a type of leek that forms garlic-like heads.
Elephant garlic has a very mild flavor, much more similar to onions than to garlic. Despite the extra large clove size, they won’t add much garlic flavor to your dishes. If you’re looking to add an extra punch of garlic flavor, stick to the other garlic varieties.
Best recipes for Garlic from the Farmers Market
If you’ve picked up some garlic scapes at the farmers market, and don’t know what to do with them, start with this pesto. Garlic scape pesto is extremely flavorful and versatile, perfect as a pasta sauce or sandwich spread.
Looking for a more adventurous garlic scape recipe? Try these pickled garlic scapes from Running to the Kitchen. They can be chopped up into a garlicky relish, or even sliced on burgers.
I have a ton of green garlic recipes for you to try: Sauteed Spinach with Green Garlic, where the green garlic adds a mellow flavor to the silky spinach; Lemon Potatoes with Green Garlic, where the green garlic is used in two ways to add tons of garlic flavor; and this Green Garlic Relish, which is an amazing garnish for fish, chicken, and pork.
Black garlic has quite a unique flavor, but the sweetness of it pairs wonderfully with shrimp in this pasta recipe from Tastemade.
And if you want to really emphasize and show off garlic, I can highly recommend Alton Brown’s 40 Cloves and a Chicken. It might sound like overkill on the garlic, but I can assure you there’s no such thing. Because the garlic roasts with the chicken, the flavor mellows out and becomes the star of the dish.
