The night a sous chef yelled at me for my garlic prep changed my whole weeknight routine

I was staging at this Italian place in Portland last month and the sous chef straight up told me my minced garlic was too chunky for their 30 minute pasta sauce. He showed me how to smash and grate it instead, which takes maybe 2 extra minutes. Does taking a bit more time on prep like that actually save you time overall, or is fine chopping good enough for busy nights?

2 comments

2 Comments

morganhayes1mo ago

Saw a test kitchen article that said finer garlic releases more flavor compounds faster so it kind of infuses the sauce in less time. That 2 extra minutes of grating probably saves you from needing to simmer for an extra 10-15 minutes to get the same garlic punch. Smashed/grates also dissolve more evenly so you don't get random raw garlic bites in your final dish.

white.grant1mo ago

So does that 2 extra minutes actually make the sauce come together faster or something?