This post covers garlic powder nutrition, compares garlic powder vs garlic salt, and provides garlic powder substitutes and replacements.
Garlic Powder
Garlic powder lives in almost every spice pantry. It is incredibly versatile and is used in a large amount of recipes and dishes. Garlic powder can enhance the flavor and add depth to a recipe and is more convenient to use and store than fresh garlic. Garlic is well known to have beneficial health benefits, but what about the health benefits of garlic powder? This article will cover garlic powder nutrition and compare garlic salt vs garlic powder. Finally, it will discuss garlic powder substitutes and replacements.
Garlic Powder Nutrition
Garlic powder is made from garlic that is first dehydrated and then pulverized. Below is the macronutrient breakdown for 1 Tbsp of garlic powder.
| 1 Tablespoon (Tbsp) Garlic Powder – 9.7 grams | |
| Calories | 32.1 |
| Carbs (net carbs) | 7.1 g (6.2 g) |
| Fat | 0.1 g |
| Protein | 1.6 g |
While garlic is high in vitamins and minerals, the process of making garlic powder reduces the nutritional value. Both the dehydration and powdering process cause nutrition losses. The result is that garlic powder contains only a small fraction of the nutritional value of fresh garlic. Therefore, garlic powder is great for an easy and convenient flavor enhancement but does not have any significant nutritional value. Fresh garlic is much healthier.
Garlic Powder vs Garlic Salt
Garlic salt is essentially garlic powder mixed with table salt. Typically this proportion is 3 parts salt to 1 part garlic powder. Garlic salt nutrition has the same issue as garlic powder nutrition. The dehydration and powdering of the garlic result in a large nutritional loss. In terms of flavoring, it is recommended to purchase garlic powder and salt separately and steer clear of buying garlic salt. This allows you to adjust the amount of each seasoning independently. This is much easier than using a premixed combination for which the ratio may be unknown.
Garlic Powder Substitutes and Equivalents
Typically you can use garlic powder and fresh garlic interchangeably without any issues. The following table shows garlic powder substitute amounts for fresh minced garlic, fresh garlic cloves, and granulated garlic.
| Garlic Powder Substitute | Equivalent amount for 1/2 teaspoon (tsp) garlic powder |
| Freshly minced garlic clove | 1/2 teaspoon (tsp) |
| Medium sized garlic clove | 4 |
| Granulated garlic | 1/2 teaspoon (tsp) |
