I love this Recipe for Oven Roasted Garlic Confit with Leeks. It’s my favorite way to turn raw garlic cloves into a spreadable, jammy, delicious condiment.
This easy garlic confit recipe can be used in salad dressings, homemade hummus, pasta sauces or pesto. Garlic lovers can eat it straight from the mason jar and let me be the first to suggest avocado toast, spread with this slow-roasted garlic dish….we’re talking next level delish!
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Why make Homemade Garlic Confit?
- Incredibly delish and can be used in sauces, spreads, soups, stews, pasta dishes…or spread directly on some crusty bread or crackers.
- Easy, peasy…and easily customizable.
- Bonus garlic-infused oil that you can use in all the things!
- Confit garlic is more easily digestible than raw garlic for many.
- Don’t let the total time intimidate….it’s mostly passive, waiting for this dreamy recipe to slow cook in the oven. The actual prep time is close to 5 minutes….go ahead, just do it!
What is Confit?
The word confit is a French term that describes a cooking method that uses slow cooking to preserve food. This can be done on the stovetop, slow cooker or in the oven. In the case of garlic confit, cloves of garlic are covered in enough oil to be submerged and then cooked slowly at a low temperature/low heat for a long period of time until they’re soft and golden brown. The cooking process will make the garlic easier to digest and can be stored in the fridge in a clean jar or freezer for longer periods of time.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Oil: Good quality olive oil is best. You’ll need enough extra virgin olive oil to completely cover everything….but much of that will be strained and the resulting garlic oil can be used afterwards for other things…you won’t actually be consuming all that oil. Do not use inferior quality, highly inflammatory vegetable oils, though avocado oil would be a decent sub.
- Garlic: There aren’t any substitutions for fresh garlic in this recipe. You could skip it all together and have leek confit instead, but do remember the roasted garlic confit will be easier to digest than raw garlic and have a more mellow garlic flavor. Buy pre-peeled garlic if you must, but I think heads of garlic are fresher and I give you some tips below on the best way to turn them into peeled garlic cloves in no time.
- Leeks: Substitute shallots, spring onions, red onions or sweet yellow onions.
- Jalapeno: Remove the seeds and membranes for less heat. You can also use spicier chili peppers (habanero, ghost or fresno peppers are great additions), or sprinkle in red chili flakes if you desire.
- Dried fruit: I love the jammy, sweet texture of dried cherries combined with the garlic confit. You can also use raisins, prunes, dates or dried apricots. Be sure your dried fruit is bite sized.
Variations
- Add sprigs of fresh herbs and a bay leaf, plus a handful of black peppercorns for even more flavor; discard after cooking.
- When grape or cherry tomatoes are in season, add as many as you can (no need to cut the small ones) for an insanely delish tomato confit. This is my favorite way to enjoy summer tomatoes and preserve them.
How to choose Garlic for Confit
- Fresh heads of garlic will be firm and tight.
- Garlic that has sprouted green stems that resemble scallions is not fresh.
- Either white or purplish papery husks are fine…brown or discolored skins are not.
- Store your garlic in a cool, dark place, but not in the fridge.
How to make Garlic Confit
Preheat your oven to 300 degrees, and get out a shallow baking dish.
Use the back of a chef’s knife and push down to break a head of garlic into cloves. Then peel each clove. I like to use this silicone tube roller because it’s quick and easy, inexpensive and easy to store. (Trust me, it will become your new best friend). You can also place whole garlic cloves into a jar, screw on the lid and shake vigorously…the peels and the cloves will separate from each other.
Trim the root end off the leeks and slice into round discs. Use the more tender white portion and a bit of the green, until it gets woody. Leeks tend to be gritty with dirt. If you can’t wash all the dirt off, cut it in half lengthwise to rinse well….you’ll have half moon slices, but that’s ok.
Trim the stem off the jalapeno, then cut into thin slices. Use your hands to pull out the seeds and membranes, unless you like a more spicy garlic confit.
Place garlic, jalapenos, leeks and dried cherries in an oven-safe dish.
Use enough olive oil to completely cover the other ingredients. Add a pinch of red pepper flakes for a bit of heat, if desired.
Bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes, until tender and golden brown.
Transfer confit into a clean jar. I use a slotted spoon and let most of the oil drip back into the pan. Transfer all the remaining oil to another jar and use it in savory recipes that call for olive oil….it will add so much flavor!
Debra’s Pro Tips
- When you’re done using your hands to pull out the spicy seeds and membranes from the jalapeno, wash well with dish soap and then douse with white vinegar so it doesn’t remain and risk transfer to your eyes.
- Check the confit after one hour….overcooking the garlic will cause it to taste bitter…..and make sure it’s all covered in the oil. Use a spoon to push down anything that has risen above the oil line.
- If the olive oil congeals in the fridge, that’s ok…it will quickly melt as the confit comes to room temperature.
- Use the confit oil in cooking…make salad dressing, roast veggies, drizzle into hummus or pesto.
- Finely chop some into chimichurri for a spectacular drizzle over any and everything….do it!
Storage Tips
- Use a slotted spoon to transfer confit into a mason jar. Pour a bit of the garlic oil into the jar as well.
- The risk of botulism with garlic confit is minimal, but you can avoid food-borne illness by placing the jar into the fridge in a reasonable timeframe and avoid leaving at room temperature for long periods of time.
- Preserved garlic will stay good in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2 weeks.
- For longer storage, freeze homemade garlic confit in ice cube trays and pop frozen into a freezer safe zip top bags for 3 months.
- Pour the oil that was used to cook the confit into a separate jar with tight fitting lid. Store at room temperature and use within two weeks for other purposes.
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📖 Recipe
Garlic Confit Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 heads garlic
- 2 large leeks
- 3 jalapeno peppers
- 2 tablespoon unsweetened dried cherries
- 2 cups olive oil extra virgin
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
- Prep the veggies: Separate heads of garlic into cloves and peel. Wash leeks, trim and thinly slice white parts. Thinly slice jalapenos and discard seeds and membranes.
- Place garlic cloves, leeks, jalapenos and cherries into shallow baking dish. Use enough olive oil so everything is totally covered.
- Bake in 300 degree oven for 1 hour and 20 minutes, until golden and garlic is tender. Check after 1 hour, to be sure everything is submerged and garlic is not overcooking.
- Store in clean jar with tight fitting lid in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. You can also transfer to ice cube trays, freeze and then pop into zip top bags for up to 3 months.
Notes
Nutrition
Note
The nutrition calculations were done using online tools. To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in any given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients you used. You are ultimately responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information is accurate, complete and useful.
Gloria
What a delicious way to enjoy garlic. This is a great food gift idea to take to a dinner. I would love this topping on so many things.
Debra Klein
Yes! I brought a jar last week to a dinner party….HUGE hit!
Tiffany
This is a major hit when I take with a big loaf of bread to family and friends gatherings! Thank you!
Debra Klein
Love it!
Rob
I just made this garlic confit this morning to shmear on some sourdough bread I just made. It was so delicious. I already froze some so I have it for future breads.
Debra Klein
Oh, your future self will thank you for that!
Leslie
SO.MUCH.FLAVOR! I love your idea of adding this to pasta sauces and so many other dishes! Love this!
Debra Klein
Thank you…totally agree, this easy recipe is a flavor boost and jumping off point for all the tasty recipes.
Elizabeth
Love the versatility of this recipe! So yummy!
Debra Klein
Thank you…totally agree!
susan redmond
Thank you for posting, I’ve been wanting to make this for quite awhile, finally did it and will make again and again. Simple but absolutely delicious and amazing once made, my kids can’t get enough of it.
Debra Klein
Thank you! It’s a winning combo with the leeks, garlic and jalapenos!