CNB Fruity&Veg Thursday: Garlic(Ayu/Galiki/Tafarnuwa)

      
Garlic is an herb with botanical name as Allium Sativum, In Ibo it is called Ayuu-galiki, in Yoruba it is called Ayu, while Hausa's call it Tafarnuwa.
It is best known as a flavoring for food. But over the years, garlic has been used as a medicine to prevent or treat a wide range of diseases and conditions.
This week, we celebrate the unique flavor of garlic.It is guaranteed to transform any meal into a bold, healthy culinary experience.
Garlic add interesting flavor to your favorite food (rice, stew, source, beans, porridge yam, salads etc), it also provides a wealth of health-promoting benefits, such as reducing the risk of heart disease and lowering cholesterol levels.

 Garlic is a wonderful seasoning to add aroma, taste, and added nutrition to your dishes. You can add raw chopped or pressed garlic in your dishes to take advantage of the benefits derived from garlic. However, if you cannot tolerate raw garlic, you can add chopped garlic to foods while they are cooking. It is best to add it towards the end of the cooking process to retain the maximum amount of flavor and nutrition.
 
        
Garlic is a common flavoring in food, some scientists have suggested that it might have a role as a food additive to prevent food poisoning. There is some evidence that fresh garlic, but not aged garlic, can kill certain bacteria such as E. coli, antibiotic-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, and Salmonella enteritis in the laboratory.
      
A recent study by the National Cancer Institute showed that less than one clove a day may cut prostate-cancer risk in half, and other research links garlic to a lowered incidence of stomach, colon and possibly breast cancers.
Garlic’s active agents—allyl sulfide compounds—are produced when the clove is chopped or crushed.
           
According to the NCI research report, chopped garlic tossed directly into hot oil, or whole garlic cooked without crushing (or at least cutting off the top), will still impart the desired taste, but little or no cancer-fighting benefits. Once the compounds develop, however, they are quite stable and will withstand the heat of cooking. Crush or chop the cloves, then let them sit for 10 or 15 minutes while you prepare other ingredients. This will give the anticancer compounds a chance to form.
           
 With their unique combination of flavonoids and sulfur-containing nutrients, allium vegetables—such as garlic—belong in your diet on a regular basis. There's research evidence for including at least one serving of an allium vegetable—such as garlic—in your meal plan every day. If you're choosing garlic as your allium family vegetable, try to include at least 1/2 clove in your individual food portion. If you're preparing a recipe, we recommend at least 1-2 cloves.
      
Garlic is used for many conditions related to the heart and blood system. These conditions include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, coronary heart disease, heart attack, and “hardening of the arteries” (atherosclerosis). Some of these uses are supported by science. Garlic actually may be effective in slowing the development of atherosclerosis and seems to be able to modestly reduce blood pressure.
CNB fruity&veg is where we talk about health benefits of different fruits and vegetables.
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