The Delicious Swap For Making Garlic Butter That's Deliciously Complex

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Don't be fooled by black garlic's moldy appearance, this stuff is sweet, sticky, soft, and deep with rich umami flavors. It's actually pure black gold, bringing a darker richness that regular raw garlic could never compete with. So next time you're whipping up a batch of garlic butter, trying swapping in black garlic for a totally moreish result.

Black garlic is aged raw garlic, but unlike the latter, it isn't as pungent. It's actually surprisingly mellow (described as almost fruity or syrupy) and this plays really well with creamy and fatty dairy-heavy ingredients such as butter. Try mashing it into butter with a little pinch of salt and maybe even a tiny squeeze of lemon juice if you're feeling bold. The resulting condiment is going to blow your mind. From there, you can slather it on corn, melt it over mushrooms, or bake it into garlic bread. If you were ever curious, everything you've ever wanted to know about black garlic should start with trying it like this: in garlic butter. It's quite possibly the easiest and most effective way to understand what makes this ingredient so special.

This swap is so good because we're talking about way more than just flavor here — this is also a massive texture upgrade. Black garlic has a more caramelized, sticky, and almost meaty texture, which will melt right into the butter to bring a really complex warmth. It's unlike raw garlic in all the ways in which it can be a little harsh and bitty. If you've ever smeared roasted garlic onto toast, this is the level up.

Moreover, it isn't just a condiment for bread; this black garlic butter could be just as easily swirled into mashed potatoes, coated through spicy noodles, or used as the key ingredient to turn a simple pasta salad into a starring dish at the cookout. You can take it to all kinds of fun and personalized levels by adding in chopped herbs, crushed anchovies, or even a spoonful of gochujang, depending on the flavors of the dish you're adding it to. In fact, there are many creative ways to use black garlic, like adding it to marinades, dips, and even desserts, that probably doesn't even scratch the surface of all its potential. If this isn't a case to keep some black garlic on hand at all times, we don't know what is.

Now that you're fully convinced, buy some black garlic at your local speciality store or pick up a jar such as the one by RioRand on Amazon. If you want to get hands-on, you can also make black garlic in a rice cooker with just some patience and perseverance. However you get it into your kitchen, the compound butter is a truly magical way to show off black garlic's rich flavor without having to do much work at all.