A kitchen staple, garlic offers more than taste to your meals – it has health benefits as well. Find out what garlic can do for you, and why chopping it and letting it sit for 10 minutes before using it is a kitchen must.
Garlic is more than a culinary mainstay that can add flavor to meals; it is a natural, traditional medicine that has antiviral, antibacterial and antifungal properties. Research indicates regular consumption of garlic may:
- Alter how cholesterol is metabolized in the body, making it less likely to oxidize.
- Lower blood pressure and decreasing clot formation, thus reducing the risk of stroke and heart attack.
- Combat respiratory infections such as common colds and sore throats.
- Reduce fungal or yeast infections.
Eating raw garlic (chopped or mashed) releases the herb's full potential. That’s because the active component, allicin, forms only on contact with air. I suggest chopping garlic and letting it sit for 10 minutes to get the full health-giving potential. Garlic loses its antibiotic properties when you cook or dry it, and commercial garlic capsules do not preserve the full activity of the fresh bulb.
You can make raw garlic more palatable by chopping it fine, mixing it with food and eating it with a meal, or cut a clove into chunks and swallow them whole like pills.
Try these appetizers featuring garlic: