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Eating garlic is a great way to boost your health. In addition to being nutritious, garlic has been shown to reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and certain types of cancer. The greatest health benefits come from fresh, raw garlic. But if you prepare it properly, you may be able to get many of the benefits of garlic from its cooked form as well.
With only 13 calories per serving (that counts as three cloves), garlic contains healthy vitamins and minerals. Raw garlic provides B vitamins, especially vitamin B6, providing 6 percent of the daily value (DV) in a serving, and niacin, pantothenic acid, riboflavin (B2) and thiamine. B vitamins act as coenzymes that help your body produce energy from food.
Fresh garlic is a good source of the antioxidant vitamin C, providing 5 percent of the daily value for every three cloves. Garlic also contains vitamin K for blood clotting. The minerals in garlic include manganese, with 8 percent DV per serving, for the nervous system and brain. In addition, garlic contains smaller amounts of copper, zinc, phosphorous, potassium and iron according to the nutritional value.
Unfortunately, cooking garlic reduces its vitamin content significantly. Vitamins B and C in garlic are water-soluble, so it is easy to destroy them during food preparation, especially cooking. Since boiling reduces vitamins, especially vitamin C, the National Institutes of Health suggests that steaming and shortening cooking times may help preserve the vitamin C in garlic. Vitamin K is fat soluble so cooking will not affect it.
Although the minerals can’t be broken down, boiling garlic may leach some manganese, calcium and other minerals, according to Austin Community College. To retain the garlic vitamin content in your recipe, add it at the end of the cooking process to avoid prolonged exposure to heat.
