What is purple garlic?
Purple garlic is identified by its pretty purple striped skin. The cloves under the skin are not purple, they are white. Hardneck varieties of garlic contain the larger cloves, with fewer in each bulb, and purple garlic fits into the hardneck variety. Its cloves hold a bit more water in them and tend to be referred to as “juicier” than white garlic, making it excellent for garlic extract. Purple garlic has a pleasant and potent flavor and has the propensity to retain its taste longer than other garlic varieties.
What does it mean when the garlic is purple?
When you are lucky enough to find purple garlic, it means that you have found a less common variety and that you are going to have a tasty meal! Farmers’ markets tend to have purple garlic more often than supermarkets. The outer skin is a beautiful striped purple, and the inner clove is white. Some people say that the flavor is still full of garlicky goodness but a bit milder. The clove holds more juice, too, than the regular white variety.
What are some purple garlic varieties?
You may be able to find these varieties at a farmer’s market when garlic is in season. These have beautiful purple skins and white cloves inside.
- Persian Star-Allow this one to sit for a while.It gets hotter during its shelf-life.
- Chesnok-Excellent for garlic juices, grating it and mixing it into garlic butter for garlic breads, topping on pizza and pasta.
- Picone: an excellent all-purpose garlic that adds flavor to all of your sauces and stews.
- Russian Red or Siberian-Very high allicin content, super at keeping your immunity strong.
Grow your own Picone purple garlic, or any variety of garlic cloves that you already have!
If you’ve ever wanted to grow your own garlic, it is very easy! Today should be your day. You can start growing garlic at any time of the year. If it is winter, you can grow it inside in pots.
If you do not have access to a garden bed, you can grow garlic in pots on a balcony or even inside by a window. Garlic is a hardy plant and will make you feel like a gardening expert when you reap the rewards of planting it.
This video from Daleysfr shows you how in 2 minutes:
If you want to start growing your own Russian Red or Siberian purple garlic, you can get some here to either plant (or eat):
Russian Red Garlic, Big Purple Bulbs
2. Garlic Bulb (6 Pack), Fresh Siberian HARDNECK
Health benefits of purple garlic
There are many health benefits associated with purple garlic:
- Purple garlic is a great source of antioxidants. Antioxidants help to neutralize free radicals in the body, which can lead to a host of health problems.
- Purple garlic is full of beneficial vitamins and minerals like B6, Vitamin C, copper, selenium, calcium, and manganese.
- It helps with the synthesis of insulin, which is a preventative to Type 2 diabetes.
- It reduces inflammation in all systems of the body. Inflammation is the cause of many ailments and diseases.
- Purple garlic is also a potent antibacterial and antiviral agent, making it helpful in fighting off infections by significantly boosting the immune system.
- It contains sulfur compounds that have been shown to boost the immune system and improve circulation.
Some studies have even shown that garlic can help lower cholesterol levels and blood pressure.
Is purple garlic the same as white garlic?
They are essentially the same, though white garlic has a slightly milder flavor than purple garlic. The nutrient content is very similar, with purple garlic having slightly more allicin than white garlic. This translates to purple garlic having a stronger antioxidant composition and antibacterial effects. Both are super healthy and delicious!
Concluding Thoughts
We hope you’ve enjoyed this exploration of the health benefits of purple garlic and will consider incorporating more of it into your diet. If you live in an area where growing your own food is possible, we encourage you to plant some purple garlic bulbs this fall, or plant some in pots indoors anytime!
Not only will you get all the nutritional benefits of eating purple garlic, but you’ll also have a beautiful garden addition that releases its fragrance every time the cloves are chopped or crushed.
Thanks for following along with us on this journey to better health!
The links used on thewellthieone.com are affiliate links, which may provide a small commission. This does not increase the price of the goods for the consumer whatsoever. What it does is ensure that useful content like this can continue to be produced. Thank-you for enjoying our content and allowing us to continue to provide more.
