Note to self: if you ever host a dinner party, only do it for those friends who don't know how to cook.

Jess, I definitely use dried herbs but they aren't nearly as vivid as fresh ones, and that's the same way I feel about garlic vs. garlic powder. Even in stews, fresh garlic makes a big difference, particularly in the scent.

I'm a big proponent of learning how to use a real chef's knife properly. It kills me watching JZ cutting up garlic with a little paring knife. You need the lever action of a big knife. You can chop, you can slice, you can smash, you can scoop - all in one exciting knife.

Does anyone else here watch Michael Chiarello

sometimes. he is a little "we will have this experience" for me. But I watch him, just not regularly. I don't think I've noticed the chopper.

he is on the food network -t.

The trick is not to get the oil too hot. If you're searing something, put the garlic in the pan before you turn the heat on and keep it low for a while.

This is a good tip! I too have problems burning the garlic too.

If you are doing onions for your red sauce - sautee them and then add the garlic.

But this is what I do. If I'm making onions I just use the same food processor to chop the garlic.

Glad we're having the cooking discussion, b/c I need help! I bought a cast-iron pot to make bread lo those many weeks ago and after finishing the bread had no idea what to do with the pot. Aren't I supposed to season it or something instead of cleaning it?

Huh, I will have to keep an eye out for this NapaStyle thing.

Damn it, Grandma, why'd you have to go and feud with that branch of the family? I could be getting free meals or cookbooks or something.

I've tried the smashing garlic with a knife thing, and I just can't do it. Pretty much anything that involves using the flat of a blade is beyond me.

Make sure it's a big enough blade. Then whack the shit out of it.

I'm a big fan of whacking garlic to peel it. Very therapeutic.

With nice new knives, I think I'm willing to be a little more lenient on this matter, though I'm more interested in Hec's final-mash technique.

Note to self: if you ever host a dinner party, only do it for those friends who don't know how to cook.

No no no, shrift. You bribe a friend who knows how to cook into helping you with the dinner party, then either remain nicely mum on the subject of who actually cooked, or deflect compliments to you by pointing out your enduring wisdom in choosing the right person to actually cook.

Pretty much anything that involves using the flat of a blade is beyond me.

1. Place clove on cutting board.
2. place knife above clove, resting on it, holding knife by handle with your regular cutting hand (with sharp end pointing away from you).
3. Make fist with other hand (or use the palm of your hand) and SMACK THAT BLADE.

Alternatively:

Find heavy pot. Smash garlic with pot. Smash, garlic, smash. Good garlic. Yum!

if you ever host a dinner party, only do it for those friends who don't know how to cook.

Or make the food before they get there to ensure they won't sneer at your technique or choice of ingredients!

If you don't smash the garlic with a knife, how do you peel it? The rolling-between-your-hands technique is painful, and those garlic-peely devices always get lost in my house.