Garlic turns blue or green

Public service announcement.
Had cut garlic pieces turn turquoise after letting it sit in acidic mixture overnight. This was a mixture (sugar, vinegar, garlic, ginger, dried spices) that was to be added to macerating lemons and zest for chutney.
Discarded them and went ahead, not sure if it was safe or not.
Later found Epicurious article that explained it sometimes happens when garlic is left in acidic mixture or aged (on purpose, in PRC). But/and it's safe to eat.
https://www.epicurious...
Has this happened to you? Context and what did you do?

Nancy
  • Posted by: Nancy
  • September 4, 2018
  • 2549 views
  • 2 Comments

2 Comments

creamtea
creamtea September 4, 2018
Always! I often squeeze a little lemon as well as some minced fresh garlic over my chicken prior to roasting. We always ate it and lived to tell the tale.
 
Lori T.
Lori T. September 4, 2018
I have only had it happen once, when making pickled veggies. I had sliced the cloves and added them to the jars along with the raw veggies, then poured the hot brine over them. Next day I noticed some of the cloves had turned blue green, so I did an internet search like you did. After discovering it was a chemical reaction, and did not pose a health hazard, I decided to leave them in a couple jars, but did replace them in others. I did notice that when we used the veggies with the blue-green garlic, the flavor of garlic was more pronounced than I had expected. It actually did look rather pretty, but I must say I'm just as happy that it hasn't happened again since.
 
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