A delicious first course: spaghetti with black garlic and cherry tomatoes with pomegranate seeds.
I recently discovered black garlic, an exciting find — the flavor is extremely delicate and sweet and I like it a lot.
To be honest, given its black color I wouldn’t have bought it myself, but luckily it was gifted to me and it was love at first taste. I used it for the Roscoff onion and black garlic velouté.
So get ready because I’ll be preparing a few more recipes soon with fermented garlic that’s rich in properties.
The origin of garlic is very ancient; it was used as a medicine and as food back in the times of the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans.
Black garlic, however, made its appearance in Korea in 2004: they fermented garlic bulbs at a precise temperature and humidity, and from there black garlic spread to America and Europe.
Black garlic is fermented for 30 days without preservatives or additives, then rested for another 45 days; the garlic turns black. As it oxidizes the cloves darken, become soft and lose the sharp, strong flavor of fresh garlic. The taste of black garlic is very delicate with a hint of licorice, much sweeter and without the pungent odor.
I prepared this recipe with wholegrain spelt spaghetti.
If you’re looking for other spaghetti first courses try:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very inexpensive
- Preparation time: 5 Minutes
- Cooking time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 4 servings
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Summer, Summer, Autumn
Ingredients
- 10 oz spelt spaghetti (wholegrain)
- to taste unrefined sea salt
- 15 datterini cherry tomatoes
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp basil (chopped)
- 2 cloves garlic (black)
- 2 tbsp pomegranate (seeds)
- 1 pinch black pepper
- 1 pinch unrefined sea salt
Steps
Put plenty of water in a pot, add salt, bring to a boil and add the spaghetti for the time indicated on the package.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet pour two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, add the washed cherry tomatoes cut in half, salt, pepper, and cook for ten minutes until they soften. Add two sliced black garlic cloves and the basil. Let the flavors meld, add a couple of tablespoons of the pasta cooking water and turn off the heat.
Drain the spaghetti, toss with the sauce, add the pomegranate seeds and serve immediately.
Tips from Timo e Lenticchie
You can also use a different type of pasta and add rinsed (desalted) capers.
