Garlic is truly a wonder of both the culinary world and the world of natural medicine, but pulling apart a bulb of the stuff is notoriously tedious and messy. Unless, of course, you use this brilliant hack shared by TikToker Farmer Jess (@yourfriendsfarm).
The scoop
They may be a beautiful testament to nature, but garlic bulbs can also be like that irritating product packaging that you just can't seem to penetrate. There's no need for knives, scissors, or teeth, though. You can break up those cloves with no problem if you know this trick.
@yourfriendsfarm I cant take credit for this genius hack for planting your hardneck garlic; i learned this from a friend this year. Its a real time saver and so simple. Friends don't let friends peel garlic. #garlic #gardenhack #garden #farmers #femalefarmer #planting #plantinggarlic #fallgarden #gardening ♬ Trendsetter - Connor Price & Haviah Mighty
In the video, Farmer Jess reveals a simple method she learned from another farmer for breaking up a hardneck garlic bulb into its individual cloves in a matter of seconds.
All you need to do is take the bulb and flip it upside down with your thumb and forefinger wrapped around the outside of it. Then, you bang the stalk against a hard surface, and voilà — the entire stem pops right out, leaving you with a handful of a medicinally beneficial superfood.Â
How it's helping
This trick is a simple one, but it can be life-changing for anyone who regularly uses garlic, either to cook or for its natural medicinal properties. Removing any painstaking prep work doesn't just save you time — it also helps keep the stress down and lets you appreciate the joy of cooking that much more.
Of course, this technique is even more useful to anyone who grows their own food. Breaking up one bulb using this trick is oddly satisfying enough, but if you've got a dozen or so of them lying around, it can be a godsend. Not only that, but it can also help you reduce waste by gathering up all your garlic cloves in place to more easily keep them fresh.
Gardening is beneficial in ways beyond accumulating your own stash of fresh garlic, too. It can help reduce carbon pollution, improve air quality, promote biodiversity, reduce waste, and much more.
Gardening can also be great for you.
Studies have shown that people who garden are healthier than those who don't, thanks to greater fiber intake and more physical activity. This peaceful, useful activity has also been shown to benefit your mental health — especially when you're no longer stressing over picking apart all those bulbs of garlic.
What people are saying
The comment section on Farmer Jess' TikTok post was understandably impressed with her little hack.
"I've never planted garlic, but this has me convinced, so easy!" one user exclaimed.
"I've been planting garlic for YEARS and I've never seen this before!" another added.
Another wrote: "Our garlic game just leveled up."
Apparently, even Farmer Jess hasn't had this hack in her back pocket for all that long. "This was new for me too this year," she responded. Turns out even the pros can still learn new tricks.
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