# Roasted Garlic re: Botulism **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 11, 2019, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roasted-garlic-re-botulism/830956 "2019-03-11T17:01:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2019, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roasted-garlic-re-botulism/830956/1 "2019-03-11T17:01:11Z")
I roast garlic by buying prepackaged prepeeled cloves then slow poaching them in olive oil. The oil goes halfway up the cloves and it takes close to 2 hours to roast the garlic to a light golden brown. I then dump them into a bowl, oil and all and covered loosely with plastic wrap and use it as necessary. The cloves are covered (at least partially) with oil in the refrigerator but it is not the anaerobic environment similar to canning or throwing in olive oil and while not cooked at 250[sup]O[/sup] for 30 min it is certainly not raw. So how likely is botulism with oil prepared this way as opposed to 1. Roasting garlic in the oven them putting it in olive oil and sticking it in the fridge. 2. Roasting the garlic similarly and putting it in a bottle of olive oil and sticking it in the pantry. 3. Putting raw garlic in a bottle of olive oil and sticking it in the pantry. ---
**Author:** ![BrianDime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ad7895/32.png) [@BrianDime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrianDime)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2019, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roasted-garlic-re-botulism/830956/2 "2019-03-11T18:15:03Z")
While it does not specifically address roasting in oil and storing, this document seems to indicate that, unless you are acidifying the solution, what you are proposing is not enough heat to kill the spores. \ > **[250352.pdf](https://ucfoodsafety.ucdavis.edu/sites/g/files/dgvnsk7366/files/inline-files/250352.pdf)** > > 1079.65 KB ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2019, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roasted-garlic-re-botulism/830956/3 "2019-03-11T18:21:01Z")
You might have viable botulism spores in your garlic, but that’s not a problem unless they can grow, which requires an anaerobic environment, which you don’t have. ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2019, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roasted-garlic-re-botulism/830956/4 "2019-03-12T11:05:40Z")
I assume the OP didn’t mean “botulism” in a strict sense, but rather “food poisoning”. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2019, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roasted-garlic-re-botulism/830956/5 "2019-03-12T12:19:14Z")
> [@clairobscur](#): > > I assume the OP didn’t mean “botulism” in a strict sense, but rather “food poisoning”. No, I think _Clostridium botulinum_ is specifically the concern with garlic in oil. ETA: [Cite](http://theolivepress.com/news-blog/be-aware-of-the-risks-of-botulism-with-homemade-garlic-infused-oil) ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2019, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roasted-garlic-re-botulism/830956/6 "2019-03-12T14:35:07Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > No, I think _Clostridium botulinum_ is specifically the concern with garlic in oil. > > ETA: [Cite](http://theolivepress.com/news-blog/be-aware-of-the-risks-of-botulism-with-homemade-garlic-infused-oil) Beat me to it. Raw garlic stored in oil is a big no-no in food canning/preservation circles because of the risk of botulism. It’s not common, but there have been several botulism outbreaks/cases in the US linked to home-canned or preserved garlic in oil. ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2019, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roasted-garlic-re-botulism/830956/7 "2019-03-14T10:45:07Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > No, I think _Clostridium botulinum_ is specifically the concern with garlic in oil. > > ETA: [Cite](http://theolivepress.com/news-blog/be-aware-of-the-risks-of-botulism-with-homemade-garlic-infused-oil) > [@pulykamell](#): > > Beat me to it. Raw garlic stored in oil is a big no-no in food canning/preservation circles because of the risk of botulism. It’s not common, but there have been several botulism outbreaks/cases in the US linked to home-canned or preserved garlic in oil. Well, I had no clue. I thought botulism was only a problem for preserves and canned food. Thanks for educating me. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2019, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roasted-garlic-re-botulism/830956/8 "2019-03-14T11:44:20Z")
It’s also present in honey, which is why you aren’t supposed to give any to babies under 1 year old (underdeveloped immune systems). **star trails a rainbow** The More You Know ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2019, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roasted-garlic-re-botulism/830956/9 "2019-03-14T23:40:26Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > It’s also present in honey, which is why you aren’t supposed to give any to babies under 1 year old (underdeveloped immune systems). > > **star trails a rainbow** The More You Know Again, I had no clue. I thought that honey was one of the safest food, because bacteria couldn’t grow in it. So basically anything you can’t get food poisoning from can in fact bring botulism?