535
Increasing the surface area of a substance increases its reaction rate. Proof by garlic.
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L'chatelier principle
this post was submitted on 19 Dec 2025
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This is also partially due to more cells in the garlic being crushed and the intracellular compounds reacting with things on the outside.
Vegetables are trying to kill us so we won't eat them
Eat them raw and you can taste their screams
Or are they trying to be so delicious that we cultivate, spread, and ultimately keep their species alive?
No, they were trying to kill all the mammals but failed successfully because naked apes love mildly toxic substances for some reason and started mass reproducing them instead.
Humans prefer pain to boredom, on average. I remember reading about a study where subjects were left alone in a room with a button that shocks themselves (they were warned what it does) and they would eventually shock themselves just because there's nothing else in the room.
Maybe I should get a self-shocking device.
Make sure it has a flared base. Just in case.
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It's also important to note that allicin breaks down with time, acid, or the application of heat.
Another note here, it takes time for the allicin to form. So your maximum flavor is about 10-15 minutes after crushing the garlic. After that, you start losing flavor.
That said, allicin is only one of many flavors. And different preparations can highlight those flavors. A rich tomato sauce that has simmered for hours is elevated with garlic, but fresh garlic is a waste. Use jarred or even powdered (soaked in room temp water for a few minutes first) and it will taste much the same.
Food science is probably my favorite science
It is the tastiest science. Now, I have not personally tested that statement for every science, but I have licked a lot of things over the years.
Licking things to see how they taste is the essence of science.
~~Girl Boy~~ Scientist dinner
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This reminds me of the time we went to SanFran for a conference and 30 of us all went to the Stinking Rose (a notorious garlic overload restaurant) for dinner then all took the same red eye back home.
The smell on that plane was causing complaints from passengers.
You just brightened my day. That was one of my favorite restaurants in LA until it closed, and now I'll have another chance next time I go north!
Did they know it was you? Or did you sheepingly pretend to also be annoyed at the smell
They didn't know who exactly, but it was literally 30 out of 150 so VERY INTENSE and pervasive. You can't localize it.
"Oh god, honey, you would not believe. The plane smelled like 30 people farted all at once!"
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Obviously this is proof that garlic can sense your aggression and react with anger.
Fuck zodiac signs, what type of garlic are you?
So how do you eat 1️⃣? Just swallow it whole?
Roasted bulb - squeeze on crusty bread. (Or just squirt in face)
Sliced - pan fried and pasta
Diced - chimmichuri
Puréed - snort uncut, or soup.
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Oh, it's amazing. Get a head of garlic and rub off all the exterior papery stuff (but not the skin of the individual cloves. Some people also cut the pointy tips off. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast until soft. Get some nice bread, warm bread. Pull off a clove, hold it by the bottom and squeeze it like toothpaste onto a slice of bread. Enjoy the most wonderful garlic bread variant.
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Mush it with Butter.
I prefer chewing it till it becomes something between #3 and #4
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I am not really sure if it is due to surface area directly, but more with the number of garlic cells being crushed, causing the potent component to be released in defense.
You also need to cook 2,3 in this state, or you just crush all the cells in your mouth and end up with 4.
A friend of mine (from Palestine) taught me another trick with garlic: mince the garlic, then generously sprinkle it with coriander powder and mash it all together with a fork. Add to a dish (like a sauce or a stew) when it's already mostly cooked, just at the end. It has a pretty intense flavor and is really yummy.
This is why it's smart to use a blend. People ask why I have both powedered and granualted garlic and it's because the size of the grain affects the taste and to get the best taste, it's a good idea to use all 3: Fresh garlic cut the way you want, powder and granulated. It's so much more robust than just using only 1.
It's also why powdered sugar is a better topping (like for strawberries) than granulated sugar.
I have to agree and think this is really underappreciated. People hypercorrected from "powdered garlic is a terrible substitute for fresh garlic" to "you should only ever use fresh garlic". They taste different and sometimes you will benefit from using powdered or granulated.
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"Hot" is a strange way to describe something without capsaicin. I'd go with sharp, or maybe at a stretch I could possibly see spicy.
Ive seen "piquant" used to refer to this kind of heat. Like what horseradish brings.
Proof! Except the results have almost nothing to do with surface area and everything with chemical reactions and compositions. :D
Keeping an aquarium teaches you this, also, especially saltwater.
Why are you keeping garlic in an aquarium? They're terrestrial pets.
Funny you should ask...
How Much Garlic to Put in Aquarium for Healthier Fish and Effective Parasite Control
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