Step 1 of 4

Start the garlic in cold oil

Put the olive oil and the crushed garlic cloves into a wide pan and set it over a medium-low heat. Starting them cold together means the garlic perfumes the oil for a minute or two before it can color. Cook until it smells sweet and is just turning pale gold, about 3 minutes.

— Garlic dropped into already-hot oil browns in seconds and turns bitter. Cold start, low heat, and you cannot get it wrong.