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heat Heating garlic to replicate hot-filling changes taste

Hey all, I have combed through the forums and haven't been able to find an answer yet. Maybe one of you have the answer.
 
I have a hot sauce, that uses raw garlic as one of the ingredients. I am working with the formula, seeing if I can come up with a consistent product to potentially bottle and sell. To meet FDA requirements, I am told I will need to hot-fill the sauce because of the raw garlic.
 
Ingredients: Jalapeños, cider vinegar, raw garlic, honey, salt and water (nothing ground-breaking).
 
I tried to replicate hot filling at home by bringing my sauce to a boil for a few minutes, but the raw garlic takes on a new flavor. Right off the bat, the smell is a bit more pungent, and the flavor has changed. It is less bright/crisp and a bit funky. It is a pretty significant shift. I am about to explore cutting the garlic in half, but thought I would see if anybody in the forum might have a suggestion/solution to keep this sauce as close as possible to the original flavor, even though the garlic will have to be heated.
 
Thanks in advance,
Andy
 
I would try a bunch of different options..
option 1.. do as you have done before.. for the same taste. maybe try a fifferent type of garlic like

Porcelain garlic

Rocambole garlic

Rocambole garlic

Artichoke or Italian garlic
option 2.. try doing dried garlic from at least 2 different sources...
option 3.. precook your garlic or roast it prior to adding it to the sauce.
I would try this technique in very small batches .. say a bottle or 2.. then submit them for evaluation with friends or coworkers.. the more opinions the better..
 
Who knows maybe you will like the new variation better..
 
Just my 2 cents..
 
Thank you all for the suggestions.
 
I started with granulated this evening as that was unanimously the recommendation. My store didn't have "granulated," but did have "dried minced" without additives. I am about 95% certain they are the same thing according to a bit of googling and comparing grain/images, but please correct me if I am wrong. 
 
Raw, the sauce tasted pretty much identical to my original recipe. After boiling the finished product for a few minutes and a bit of cooling, there was a drastic improvement of aroma and taste with the dried garlic, versus the fresh garlic. I think I added just a bit too much as the raw/dried conversion on the bottle is by volume and my recipe is by weight (grams), but with a slight reduction in the next batch, I think the problem might be solved. It seems to change a bit overnight as it completely cools, so I will try it again in the morning.
 
Pretty much psyched with the results so far.
 
a
 
Tried it again this morning. The garlic issue is fixed. Thanks again. Great forum. 
 
The only issue I have is the cooked sauce lacks the tartness of the original uncooked. Probably due to the heating of the vinegar. That said, it is pretty insignificant so I am not too concerned. It might even be better without it. I just need to get used to the change as I have been making the original recipe for a couple of years now.
 
coccoc said:
Tried it again this morning. The garlic issue is fixed. Thanks again. Great forum. 
 
The only issue I have is the cooked sauce lacks the tartness of the original uncooked. Probably due to the heating of the vinegar. That said, it is pretty insignificant so I am not too concerned. It might even be better without it. I just need to get used to the change as I have been making the original recipe for a couple of years now.
 
If you're really missing the tartness you can hold back a small portion of the cider vinegar and stir it in just prior to hot fill.  It will retain some of that tang.  Sounds like you found the solution though.  :)
 
coccoc said:
Will I have issues with the food safety dept? Do you think 25% of the vinegar until the end is too much?
 
Thanks again.
 
I'd cook down with 75% of original volume and then add the last 25% at the end just before hot packing.  So your sauce is already at hot fill temp, add last bit of vinegar, stir to combine and then pack.  The small amount of volume added at the end won't pull down your fill temps very much at all and you won't have it on heat for long enough to cook out.  Easy to experiment with 'finishing vinegar' volume (50/50 or 75/25 or whatever) in your next few batches.
 
Note:  You can also forego all this heating and hot packing IF you choose to go the 'raw' route - don't have to change a thing about the recipe at all - but you will then have to keep the product refrigerated at all times.  Just like with cold packed salsas/hummus, etc.
 
Thanks. Since it is a pretty subtle difference, I might go the 75/25 route just to get a bit of tang back. It would be way more convenient to not have to worry about a cold-chain, and probably best to keep this product on the shelf, where consumers will be looking for it.
 
I appreciate the advice.
 
Most people want to tame that fresh/harsh garlic bite but to preserve it, deep fry your cloves for a couple seconds only! This seals them up. Now put into your sauce for your hot bottling boil and they will cook but retain most of the original properties internally. Puree the sauce at the very end with a stick blender during the boil to incorporate the garlic. Keep the sauce at 180 during bottling.
 
You will have to taste your sauce after blending to figure out the right amount of cloves to use. But since you need to boil for 10 minutes the sear on the clove helps keep that flavor in w/o being compromised. Disperse at the end.
 
What about pickling some garlic first? lower its PH in vinegar before putting it in the sauce. worth a shot.

Glad you found your solution though, sounds like a good sauce. I love garlic.
 
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