Understanding the Garlic Germ: should it be removed?

Garlic is one of those quiet kitchen staples that does a lot of heavy lifting, loved for its bold aroma and depth of flavour. Its bold, savoury flavour can transform even the simplest dish, whether it’s sautéed gently in olive oil or roasted until sweet and caramelised. But inside each clove is a small detail that often sparks debate among cooks – the core, or germ.

What Is the Garlic Germ?

The germ of the garlic sprouts from the centre of a garlic clove. When garlic begins to age, the germ turns green and starts to develop into a full shoot. In fresh garlic, the germ is barely noticeable, soft, and pale. However, in older garlic, it becomes more pronounced, as the tip starts turning green and becoming firmer in texture.

The Garlic Germ’s Impact on Flavour

One of the primary reasons some advocate for removing the germ is its flavour. While the cloves’ outer flesh offer the classic garlic taste—rich, savoury, and slightly sweet—the germ can introduce a sharper, bitter note. This bitterness becomes more pronounced as the garlic ages and the germ matures. This matters because the germ’s bitterness might interfere with the taste of your dish.

The germ in younger garlic may not have the same level of bitterness or any at all because the germ has not had time to develop, turn green and become firmer. If you buy young garlic and find that it isn’t that pronounced and very small, go ahead and use the whole thing. Older garlic will have a firmer and more solid core that is easier to remove.

It really depends on what you’re making. For something where you need that very pronounced garlicky taste, like aioli or garlic butter, it’s probably best to remove it. If you’re roasting or sautéing garlic, sometimes the cooking process can mellow out the bitterness. However, it doesn’t remove it completely.

I find it hard to tell the difference between fresher/newer garlic and older garlic without looking at the germ. The germ of fresher garlic will be slightly soft and smaller, while the germ in older garlic will be firmer and more solid with the tip starting to turn green, and it’ll become greener as the garlic ages.

Removing the germ will be up to you; for fresher garlic with a small, less noticeable germ, I won’t remove it and will use the whole thing, whereas with older garlic with a more obvious, solid and pronounced germ, I will remove it. I’ve been let down too many times with garlic being bitter and ruining the taste of my dishes that I check it every single time. It’s not worth the risk.

How to Remove the Garlic Germ

Removing the germ is a simple process:

1. Peel the garlic clove. For smaller batches, I slice off the root at the bottom of the garlic clove and smash the side of the clove with my knife; it makes the peel easier to remove. YouTube has some great tips and tricks for peeling garlic in larger batches.
2. The germ will be in the centre. If the garlic has been smashed open, peel away the flesh until you get to the centre, or slice the clove in half. You’ll notice the germ has a slightly different shape and colour to the rest of the garlic flesh.
3. Use your fingers or the tip of a small knife to gently lift and extract the germ.

It’s funny how such a small thing can make such a difference to a dish. Whether you remove it will depend on the age of the garlic or your preference, I’m definitely sensitive to a well-developed garlic germ. If you’re curious about the impact of the germ on your cooking, do some experimenting, food with and without the core. I love garlic so much that I’ll add it to pretty much anything. Most of my savoury recipes will contain garlic, and lots of it.