Ditch The Oven — Roast Garlic In Your Slow Cooker Instead

If you're someone who thinks turning on the oven in July is a crime that should be punishable by death, or maybe if you just love low-effort kitchen hacks, your slow cooker is about to become your new best friend. Roasting garlic is easy and practically foolproof. No more scorched bulbs or babysitting the oven. Just slice the top off a few whole garlic heads, drizzle them with olive oil, wrap them in foil, and nestle them into your slow cooker. Set it on low and walk away for three to four hours. The result isn't technically roasted, since that's what an oven does with dry heat, but it's basically garlic candy, a bulk batch of creamy, caramelized confit cloves that can be easily spread.

Why do this instead of the classic preparation of roasting garlic in the oven? First, it's almost impossible to burn the garlic; the gentle heat coaxes out the sweetness and keeps every clove soft and golden. Second, you can batch-roast multiple heads at once, making this method perfect for meal prep. It uses much, much less energy than cranking up the entire oven for one little project. And finally, you get that rich roasted garlic flavor with almost zero active work — your slow cooker does all the heavy lifting. It's so good, in fact, that when we tried every way to roast garlic, the slow-cooker version came out on top.

Once you have a slow cooker full of mellow, spreadable garlic, the real fun begins. Of course you can smear it on toasted bread, but why stop there? Mash a few cloves into softened butter for a next-level compound butter — from there you can slather it on corn, melt it on steak, or upgrade your morning toast. Add whole roasted cloves to homemade hummus or blend into a vinaigrette for a subtle, nutty boost. If you're the meal-prepping type, fold roasted garlic into cooked quinoa, chickpeas, or lentils with a little lemon and fresh herbs for a week's worth of protein-balanced, flavorful salads. You can even toss the soft cloves into mashed potatoes, whipped feta, or stir them into pan sauces.

Roasted garlic also freezes beautifully. You can freeze it whole or mash leftover cloves with olive oil and freeze in ice cube trays for instant flavor bombs. Just toss a cube into soup, risotto, or a tomato sauce whenever your cooking needs a little garlicky help. If you get carried away (and you probably will), remember: There's no such thing as too much roasted garlic. Your slow cooker does the work, and you get to reap the sweet, golden rewards.