Is It Better To Use Fresh Or Dried Onions And Garlic In Your Chili?
Ah, the classic controversy. Do you really need fresh onions and garlic in your chili? Or is your partner/friend/parent absolutely right, and dried ingredients achieve a better result? It's a real crowd divider. Tasting Table caught up with Jesse Moore, corporate chef at Cargill Protein North America, to weigh in on the dilemma. "You're getting into heated debate at this point," Moore says, before revealing, "I like using dried/ground in cooking and keep the fresh for garnishing bowls of it." He believes that both types of onion and garlic belong in your chili. It's more a question of timing.
Moore's approach taps into the savvy rule of dried first and fresh last. Adding dry seasonings at the start effectively activates their trapped oils and fragrances. Dried onion and garlic just need that head start to really shine. Holding fire on those meticulously prepared fresh slices is worth the wait, though, as they'll create welcome textural contrast as a garnish. "Fresh onion crunch in a bowl of chili is one of the best things," says Moore.
The two formats have many pros and cons, including preparation demands and storage considerations. Nutritionally, dried and fresh onion and garlic are nearly identical, but practically speaking, there might be an option that you favor. It's a lot to consider; don't even get us started on when to use garlic powder versus granulated garlic.
Pros and cons of using fresh vs. dried for your chili
But if you need to choose one type of ingredient over the other, here are the pros and cons. The prime benefit of adding dry seasoning is to save time and money; there's no chopping, and portions go further. Two tablespoons of dried onions are equivalent to a medium-sized fresh onion, and ⅛ teaspoon of dry garlic is akin to one clove. With no streaming eyes, easily stored and longer-lasting containers, and minimal waste, dried onion and garlic are tempting. It's a quick solution for a tasty chili.
So, what's the trade-off, if any? Onions are more sorely missed from a textural perspective; as Moore commented, the crunch of fresh onion is hard to beat. Dried garlic is also less potent than fresh. It's true, sometimes nothing beats the real thing, especially when cooking a chili at leisure.
To enjoy chilis with fresh ingredients and fewer compromises, reconsider your storage strategies. It's common knowledge that storing in dark, cold conditions is one of the best ways to keep onions fresh. But, for the pantry-less, did you know that your fridge will keep onions fresher for longer? And that they'll be at optimum freshness if you bag them up in a pair of pantyhose? When refrigerated, the veggies last a whopping three months compared to a maximum of four weeks at room temperature. The same can't be said for garlic bulbs, for which refrigerating triggers sprouting, but since they already last up to six months in pantries, we won't complain. Store fresh produce properly, and you'll get the best value possible.