Why Don't Professinal Chefs Use A Garlic Press?

Pluff Mudder · 10-31-2008, 04:49 PM

Why don't professional chefs use a garlic press?

Posted by bareneed, October 30, 2008 at 1:34 PM
I have a garlic press that I love. I use it daily, whenever I need to add garlic to any of my recipes. It is quick and simple and easy to clean. I have noticed on Food shows on television, that almost all of the professional chefs, slice their garlic or hand chop it. It seems a waste of time to me. Can anyone out there enlighten me?

Why don't professional chefs use a garlic press? | Serious Eats : Talk : Cooking and Baking

Boy, Alton sure got talked a lot about in the comments.

Food Network Fan · 10-31-2008, 04:50 PM

I must admit, I love my garlic press.

MiseEnPlace · 10-31-2008, 05:14 PM

I had one. I saw some chef on TV (pre AB) use it. I thought it was cool. The one I had ended up breaking, plus it was a beast to clean, I didn't replace it.

Then AB taught me about unitaskers.

I'm a knife gal

Food Network Fan · 10-31-2008, 07:03 PM

Mine is quick, and easy to clean. It even gets the juice, that runs out on to the board if I chop it.

Pluff Mudder · 10-31-2008, 07:14 PM

I like the trick of using your microplane. I'll have to give that one a try.

ping · 10-31-2008, 07:18 PM

I just buy already pressed garlic in a jar.

BerryBaby · 11-01-2008, 11:40 AM

I've seen Guy, Michael and Giada all use a garlic press, depending on the recipe. Sometimes you want it to release the garlic juice and other times you want pieces. I usually use chopped because I like the little pieces.

Pluff Mudder · 11-01-2008, 04:08 PM

I usually use it whole or chopped, because I like a mild garlic flavor. Too much garlic or too strong, and I'm burping it for the next day.

bakerman · 11-01-2008, 05:48 PM

I think that for a while garlic presses were not thought of as "cool" it seems like the more serious "pretentious" chefs scoffed at the thought of using one. It is one unitasker that I am happy to have, the Zyliss that I have has a non stick coating and all I have to do is run hot water over it and knock out the holes with my dish brush, for me this is much easier than pulling out a cutting board to chop one clove of garlic and NO PEELING! Before I found this press, I used the stuff in the jar, to me the pressed garlic has much more flavor though.

Food Network Fan · 11-01-2008, 05:51 PM

The whole internal section with the holes folds out on mine and you can wipe it off as easy as a knife.