Garlic - why not?!

[Jill<br><br>Jill (99)]

Tonight, my husband noticed that I had put garlic with the beef I was roasting for dinner and complained that you don't put garlic with roast beef! For years now, I've put garlic and herbs and often a drop of wine if a bottle is open, with whatever meat I have been roasting. Am I out of order here? He hasn't complained before except on one occasion when I put garlic with chicken. I've always done it, I can't believe he has only just realised! I can't understand it. I always put 3 cloves of garlic in a spag bol, boeuf bourgignonne or chilli etc, yet lately he complains I'm over doing it! Yet he was the one who always said put a minimum of 3 cloves in and if you are following a recipe which has garlic - double it! He still likes the Indian recipe where the marinade for the leg of lamb contains 24 cloves of garlic, so I'm a bit confused. Actually, the recipe says 12 cloves, but obviously, we doubled it at some stage and it has stuck in our minds! To my mind,a piece of meat or a chicken put in the oven with no herbs or seasoning is a tad boring and then claims the need for something else to be added at the table - like horseradish which my husband insists on having with beef (but I don't have it). He said that beef has enough flavour without the garlic - so why the horseradish!?

I'm perfectly happy to accept that we all have our own preferences, but to say "you don't put garlic with roast beef" did surprise me a bit. I'm sure I started doing it when I saw a French friend doing it.

I think I'm right in saying that garlic is more heavily used in the south of France, but do those of you living in various areas find that garlic is used much in your region? I'm sure that garlic used to be used in Britain far more than now - I mean in English cuisine, not just the foreign cuisine that has caught on in the last 20-30 years. Same with herbs. When I was a child, all I knew was mint sauce or sage in sage and onion stuffing. But herbs were in use in Britain much more in previous centuries. I was never much of an eater as a child, and became more inspired by cooking when I stayed with French families. Even before that, I was known at school for looking up the more unusual recipes - even though I had been brought up on the most basic foods. For years I still thought English food was boring, until I adapted it, by adding herbs and garlic. I don't believe this actually changed the nationality of what I was cooking.

Anyway, do you do your beef plain or with garlic?

Jill (99)

[Teamedup]

I use garlic a lot, but never in with the roast beef. I hate garlicy gravy to go with yorkshire puds. We don't have roast beef that often, but I really love it as it is if it is good and tender beef.

[Pucette<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3>Pucette<FONT><P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3><P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt">"Qui ne connaît pas la campagne lhiver, ne connaît pas la campagne et ne connaît pas]

Three possibilities spring to mind:
- garlic is not fresh at present and the flavour is more noticeable and to many less pleasant
- he's just bored with all the garlic!
- perhaps it doesn't go with the horseradish, haven't tried the combination but it's not appetising to my ears; also horseradish sauce doesn't flavour the meat - you can have a mouthful without, can't get rid of the garlic

[Julie_and_Dick]

I do mine plain, but with red wine for sauce/gravy, but then I am usually doing a 'traditional roast dinner' when I do it. I'd be quite happy with it for a background flavour, though.

[PeternJane]

The other advantage we have found is that we haven't been bothered by vampires for years.

Jane

[roger taylor]

Jill

We cook a dish simply titled chicken with 30 cloves of garlic.

Peel 30 cloves place them in the bottom of a casserole dish put the whole chicken on top and roast till tender and browned. The garlic changes its characteristics and the dish is not at all "garlicky"

Roger - Lancashire and Deux-Svres 79