Can I eat this - fermented garlic edition

September 7, 2021 6:15 AM

I’m not sure if I fermented garlic the right way and now I don’t know if I should toss it.

I followed the steps for what most web sites have for fermenting garlic in honey. I used a mason jar with a rubber sealed lid (although a re-used one so maybe the seal wasn’t tight enough) It got watery after the first day as the recipes said would happen. However, mine never got the bubbles and didn’t seem to release the gas that recipes say will happen. The garlic has darkened but not black. Now I’m concerned about botulism. I mixed garlic with Whole Foods 365 pure organic honey (not specifically stated as raw honey but it is 100% honey and not mixed with anything). It’s been in the honey unrefrigerated for about 2 months.

Should I just toss it and try with specifically stated raw honey?

posted by archimago to Food & Drink (6 answers total)

I'm very cautious about these things in general, but botulism is so super scary and since home-preserved garlic seems like one of the main risks of getting it and the FDA advises extreme caution with garlic preserving for this reason,, I would personally toss if there are any doubts. The linked article is about storing garlic in oil, not honey, but since honey, like garlic, naturally has trace amounts of botulism, it would make me even more cautious.
posted by nantucket at 8:08 AM on September 7, 2021 [2 favorites]

I think if the jar doesn't say "Raw Honey" then it's probably not raw. It may be organic and pure honey but storebought honey is typically pasteurized and ultrafiltered so it may not work for a recipe expecting raw honey which will have natural fermenting agents included.
posted by muddgirl at 11:38 AM on September 7, 2021

I'd toss it and not start it again.
posted by lulu68 at 2:13 PM on September 7, 2021 [2 favorites]

I'm usually in favor of any and all home fermentation projects, but adding a low-acid carb like garlic to an unpasteurized source of sugar, then leaving it to ferment anaerobically for a couple of months, sounds like the absolute most efficient way to guarantee botulism for everyone who touches it. If you do try again, please promise us that you'll at least follow the regs on pressure-cooking the garlic to kill any botulinum spores?
posted by Mayor West at 5:58 PM on September 7, 2021

(The people who do this thing online seem to get darker-but-not-black as their result too. Black garlic is a different thing made by a different process -- and, FWIW, that's a process that follows normal safety standards. I get that lots of people are doing honey and garlic and not getting sick, but like others are saying, it really does break all the normal rules. I do a lot of wild fermentation and I don't touch it.)
posted by nebulawindphone at 4:19 AM on September 8, 2021

I'm almost always a "meh, I'd eat it" type, but garlic and anaerobic environments is my hard no of home preparations. I would not trust this, nor would I try it again with different honey. YMMV but botulism isn't anything to mess with.
posted by griffey at 3:24 PM on September 8, 2021