BLACK GARLIC

Abstract

Benefits of garlic for human health are widely known for centuries. Despite strong recommendation for garlic to nutrition programs due to its nutrient content many people do not prefer consumption because of the pungent smell. An alternative garlic called black garlic is released due to this disadvantage of garlic. Black garlic is a fermentation of fresh garlic which turns quite dark until black color is developed and, this process changes nutrientcontent. During fermentation process, alliin and allicin that are major compound in garlic and responsible for characteristic smells are reduced. As a result, garlic loses its undesirable smells and pungent flavor. Compared to fresh garlic, black garlic has much higher antioxidant activity. Nutrient content of black garlic makes it more attractive to use as a diet supplement in addition to smell and taste. Recently, black garlic has begun taking attention in Asian and European countries. Japan and Korea consume black garlic due to anti-carcinogenic properties and aroma. They use as snack in their diet. Black garlic is becoming more important commercially in United States of America, Canada, and the United Kingdom. This paper reviewed the studies on black garlic.