Smoked Garlic

I love garlic! Finding new ways to work it into my favorite recipes is always fun. Smoking garlic adds a whole new level of flavor complexity. Add Smoked Garlic to any dish for a bold flavor, and prepare to be amazed.

You can use this smoked garlic recipe to kick up the flavor of almost any dish, but in its simplest form, just squeeze some cloves out and enjoy it on a nice piece of rustic Italian bread. So delicious!

One of our favorite restaurants was called the Garlic Rose in Madison, NJ. It was a wonderful place with garlic all over the menu. When you sat down, they provided you with freshly baked bread and a whole head of roasted garlic that you could squeeze out and spread on your bread in place of butter. It was so lovely. They even had mouthwash in the bathroom for after your garlicky meal. Our dinners there were my inspiration for this recipe.

If you are also a garlic lover, try our Honey Garlic Chicken Wings Recipe next!

How to Make Smoked Garlic

1️⃣ Prep the Bulbs

Take several garlic bulbs and just slice them in half so that you expose all the cloves. Place them on a piece of aluminum foil and drizzle them with olive oil. Season them with a little salt and black pepper.

Tip: We place the cloves on the foil so the cloves don't fall apart and fall through the grates of your smoker or grill.

2️⃣ Smoke the Garlic

Preheat the smoker while you go to prepare the garlic. You will be smoking garlic on medium heat at 250 F for 90 minutes.

If you are looking for very soft garlic, similar to that of roasted garlic, at the 90-minute mark, drizzle a little more olive oil, wrap up the foil, and keep cooking at 250 F for an additional 60 minutes.

Once the garlic is cooked to your liking, remove it from the smoker and let it rest for 5 minutes.

Since some of the cloves are different sizes, you may have a few cloves that are a little more crispy. Enjoy them as a snack!

Storage

These smoked garlic bulbs store pretty well, so I like to do at least five or six heads of garlic at a time. These last up to a week or two in an airtight container or plastic storage bag in the fridge.

Common Questions

What Wood Should I Use for Smoking?

I prefer cherry, apple, or maple for smoking vegetables on my Traeger pellet grill. The maple in particular will provide a little more of a sweet flavor to the garlic. But you can really use any flavor of wood that you prefer or have available at home. The beauty of garlic is that its flavor can stand up to any wood smoke that you plan to match it with. Try different combinations to see what you like best.

How to Use Smoked Garlic

The ways to use smoked garlic are really endless. All your favorite ways to use roasted garlic will also work with smoked.

As mentioned above, you can simply spread it on bread. I even found myself tossing them one by one straight into my mouth. You can easily incorporate it into any food you are making where the recipes call for garlic.

It will enhance the flavor of salads, soups, potatoes, or can even be included on charcuterie boards. We like to use it in Garlic Herb Butter.

I used it in a sour cream-based dip for veggies and chips. It added another whole depth of complexity to the flavor. Just puree the smoked garlic cloves, add half mayo and half sour cream, and season to taste. This is similar to our Smoked Onion Dip.

Or use it in this out-of-the-world Cheese Stuffed Garlic Bread.

 

Recipe

Originally Published May 17, 2021. Revised and Republished March 6, 2026.