Garlic Confit and Homemade Garlic Oil -- The Garlic I Keep in the Kitchen for the Dinners That Matter

Julio leaves Thursday. This is the end of his visit. I had him, Mami, Ana (who came back up for the last weekend), Eduardo, and me for dinner at my house Wednesday night. I made mofongo. Island-style, with a pilón. The garlic and chicharrón method. Served with a little broth. Ana brought a bottle of rum that she had saved for Julio — he does not drink much anymore, but he would have one on his farewell dinner — and Eduardo brought out his good rum glasses.

The dinner was quiet. Mami was tired. Julio was tired. Ana was tired. I was tired. The visit had been ten days of Delgado intensity, of Spanish spoken at full volume, of stories unfolding that had not been told in decades. We were all drained and full.

Before dinner I took Julio aside. I said, "Julio." He said, "Carmen." I said, "Thank you for coming." He said, "Carmen, I came for her." I said, "I know. She needed to see you." He said, "She needed to say goodbye." He said it directly, in Spanish. "Ella necesitaba despedirse." I did not answer. I did not argue. He had said the truth that I had not yet said.

Thursday morning Eduardo drove Julio to Bradley. Before he left, Julio went to Mami's apartment at 7 AM. They had an hour together alone. Nobody knows what they said. I am not going to ask. When Eduardo picked up Julio at 8, Mami was in her chair, eyes closed. Julio hugged me on the sidewalk. He said, "Carmen, I will see you in September." I said, "Julio, thank you." He said, "Cuídala. Take care of her." I said, "Yes." He got in the car. Eduardo drove him away.

I sat with Mami that afternoon for four hours. She did not say much. At one point she said, "Carmen, he is my baby brother." I said, "I know, Mami." She said, "I am glad he came." I said, "He is glad he came." She closed her eyes. She slept for a while. Carmen the aide came at 5. I drove home.

Eduardo made dinner. He had bought takeout from the Chinese place because he was exhausted. I ate it. I did not cook. I did not cook Thursday night. This is the first Thursday I have not cooked in twenty years. The food bank on Monday and Thursday had given me my cooking days, but last Thursday's food bank had not happened because of Julio's visit (Amelia had given me the two weeks off), and this was the second Thursday, and I had not cooked. Eduardo knew. He had bought takeout. He understood.

I wrote in the notebook before bed. "Julio visited June 9-20, 2024. Mami had her brother. We all had him. He brought the island. He took the island home. I am okay." I was mostly okay. Wepa.

The mofongo I made that Wednesday — the real work of it — begins with garlic, and the garlic I reach for on the nights that matter is always the slow kind, the kind that has had time to go soft and golden and deeply itself. I have kept a jar of garlic confit in my refrigerator for years now, and it was there on the counter that night alongside the pilón, the chicharrón, the green plantains. Julio was leaving in the morning and I wanted the food to say what I could not say out loud. Good garlic does that. Here is how I make it — the oil goes into everything too, and you will not waste a drop.

Garlic Confit and Homemade Garlic Oil

Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cook Time: 1 hour | Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes | Servings: 20 (makes about 1 cup confit garlic and 1 cup garlic oil)

Ingredients

• 2 heads of garlic, cloves separated and peeled (about 40–50 cloves)
• 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil (enough to fully submerge the garlic)
• 3–4 fresh thyme sprigs (optional)
• 1 small dried bay leaf (optional)
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
• Pinch of kosher salt

Instructions

1. Prepare the garlic. Peel all garlic cloves. If any are very large, you can halve them so they cook evenly. Remove any green sprout from the center if present — it can taste bitter.
2. Combine in a small saucepan. Place the peeled garlic cloves in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan or oven-safe dish. Pour the olive oil over the top until the cloves are fully submerged. Add thyme, bay leaf, red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt if using.
3. Cook low and slow. Place the saucepan over the lowest possible heat on the stovetop. The oil should barely shimmer — you want tiny, lazy bubbles, not a fry. Cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour, turning the cloves gently once or twice, until the garlic is completely tender, pale golden, and a skewer slides through with no resistance. Do not rush this step; high heat will fry rather than confit.
4. Cool completely. Remove from heat and allow the garlic and oil to cool to room temperature before transferring. This is important for food safety and for the oil to finish infusing.
5. Store properly. Transfer the garlic confit and all of the oil into a clean, dry glass jar with a tight-fitting lid. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Always use a clean spoon to remove cloves and keep the remaining garlic submerged in oil.
6. Use the garlic oil. Do not discard the oil — it is deeply flavored and beautiful. Drizzle it over mofongo, roasted vegetables, crusty bread, rice, or anywhere you would use olive oil. It is the best part.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 110 | Protein: 1g | Fat: 11g | Carbs: 3g | Fiber: 0g | Sodium: 15mg