Before starting our keto journey we watched a large majority of the keto videos on YouTube and researched countless recipes and ingredients only to discover nearly everyone was using garlic powder in their recipes.
I wondered why nobody was using minced garlic, you know the stuff in the jar that lives in the fridge and lasts for ages. It is so much easier than chopping up garlic every time you need to use it (which is all the time for us).
Check your Garlic Ingredients
Before we started keto, we went out and bought items in bulk that we knew we would use a lot of, including minced garlic. We checked most packages and jars to see what ingredients were inside before purchasing anything.
We didn’t think at the time to check minced garlic! We have been using this stuff for years prior to starting keto and never really thought too much into what ingredients it contained and assumed it was just minced garlic and maybe a little salt to give it some shelf life.
This Garlic contains Hidden Details
While researching and trying to calculate our macros for recipes we were testing, we found that minced garlic contained more net carbs than we expected. We were completely shocked to find that jarred minced garlic contained SUGAR!!! Why on earth would a company want to add sugar to a product that 1. doesn’t need sugar for ANY REASON, 2. tastes better without sugar?
We had to chuck away the giant jar of minced garlic. Now we understand why everyone uses garlic powder. The one we use is 100% garlic with nothing else added. If you prefer actual garlic as opposed to garlic powder we recommend using fresh garlic (the purple and white looking one or the white one if you can’t find the purple one).
Alternatively, many deli-style marketplaces have pre-peeled bulk packs of garlic that you can buy. We buy 500-1kg lots and split it up into ziplock bags and freeze them until we need it.
Garlic Powder For The Win
Garlic powder tastes different than fresh but it is great to use and stores well in your pantry although if it doesn’t contain anti-caking agent (which you DO NOT want), it kind of clumps together depending on the weather. I’m sure it’s still okay to use but don’t take my word for that.
Anyway, we will not be buying, nor do we condone the use of, minced garlic in a jar, unless you know it has no sugar in it and is preserved using other natural ingredients. We choose 100% garlic powder with absolutely nothing else added, or alternatively, fresh garlic.
Where to find Garlic Powder online
Luckily, there are a few different online stores that can supply good quality Garlic Powder. iHerb ships worldwide and Amazon will ship to the US and some other countries. Let me know in the comments where you get your Garlic Powder from.
