Garlic is a delicious seasoning in dishes, so the chances are that you have a few bulbs in your kitchen. But how long can you actually leave garlic before it goes bad?
The answer to this question depends mainly on where you store it and whether the garlic has already been peeled.
Guidelines for garlic storage
If you store an unpeeled garlic bulb in a kitchen cabinet, it will keep for about six months. An unpeeled garlic clove will keep for about three weeks. When you remove the skin from the garlic, it also deteriorates faster. For example, you can throw away a peeled garlic clove after only a week. Chopped or crushed garlic deteriorates fastest: you can keep it for a maximum of one day.
Damaged garlic
If garlic is no longer good, it will have dark or green stains. Also if garlic feels a little softer it is usually no longer good. Fortunately you will never really get sick from spoiled garlic, but it is not tasty.