[rushx1]

Trekwars.....

Truth be known, those are NOT always a guarantee, people visiting from the central are just that, visiting....they do NOT come here all the time,consistently and the product I have seen is not always the best not to mention variety. We Live In Vegas fer cryin out loud, this isnt downtown Gilroy, people arent going to make the trek every weekend just so they can sell there produce. I have been to those on numerous occassions and found myself everytime asking "What did I actually expect".
As a Chef of over 12 years in this town, I know who and where things come from and how they are brought. I wont deny anything you said about whole foods,but on a produce level ,especially this year, it cannot be helped..again,we live in a desert!
So , in a nutshell, referring to the OP, it isnt worth the effort but to use what you know. If we lived in the central valley or central coastline california, I would be MORE than willing to visit farmers markets as I have also done when I lived in Santa Cruz,but then, thats where we get spoiled now isnt it. Not In Vegas! And believe me, I have exclusive contracts with multiple purveyors who will the day I order it get me anything I need in lines of micro's , exotic's and organics. From Specialty Produce in San Diego to Chino Farms and OCC in Northern Cali. Believe me, if I could, I wouldturn people on to these everyday of the week, but..I cant. WE LIVE IN A DESERT!

I'd also like to point out the truth's you spoke of.
Think about it, the harvest is made during the weekend. Stacks of produce.Now, lets use your example of transport from Fresno. That is a 7-8 hour trek in NON cooling trucks. Then, if your lucky, by the time it reaches from high 90 temps to 105-110 temps you have 80% which is now starting to degrade on Monday. Then, the produce is not stored in temperature controlled environments which = more degradation. By Wednesday and constant scorching weather, you had better hope you have sold your product because by Thursday and Friday...it's g-o-n-e. Now,what makes you think someone is going to purchase this? Sorry, Whole Foods ftw!

[trekwars2000]

Originally Posted by rushx1

I'd also like to point out the truth's you spoke of.
Think about it, the harvest is made during the weekend. Stacks of produce.Now, lets use your example of transport from Fresno. That is a 7-8 hour trek in NON cooling trucks. Then, if your lucky, by the time it reaches from high 90 temps to 105-110 temps you have 80% which is now starting to degrade on Monday. Then, the produce is not stored in temperature controlled environments which = more degradation. By Wednesday and constant scorching weather, you had better hope you have sold your product because by Thursday and Friday...it's g-o-n-e. Now,what makes you think someone is going to purchase this? Sorry, Whole Foods ftw!

See that is where you are incorrect. The people that my wife worked for had cooling trucks, running the engine all day during the days they were selling food to keep it cool (and of course on the drive over). They came up every week and the same people were at every market. The only issue they would run into (my wife sold the strawberries a lot) were the ones that had been out for a while that day on the table to sell, but they moved them quick enough that it wasn't too much of an issue. (When I say out all day it's from about 345p to 8p).

Now I agree on the variety as the only things they ever brought were in season but, as you know, seasonal fruits and veggies are much better than thoes out of season. Seriously you should check it out before you pass judgement. The website is at Las Vegas Farmers Market Home Page, however the Thursday one isn't listed (as it isn't that big and it is in Henderson). It's from 4-8p at Boulder and Sunset. However, if you don't want to give it a shot then I guess you can just keep paying twice as much for an inferior product from Whole Paycheck.

[KD Hawaii]

Sunflower Market on Rainbow and Flamingo

[Buzz123]

Mountains out of molehills...

The OP just wanted to know where to find ORGANIC garlic. Didn't say it had to have been pulled right out of the ground that day. I suppose he or she could grow his/her own if he/she was that persnickety. Garlic lasts a long time anyway doesn't it? Isn't that why they tie it in strands...so it will keep? Or is that just to ward off werewolves?

[dynimagelv]

hmmmmm I always thought ALL garlic was organic


always keep it around and haven't had a werewolf in years.....

[aqualung8705]

It's vampires who don't like garlic. Werewolves have a problem with silver bullets.

[Buzz123]

Originally Posted by aqualung8705

It's vampires who don't like garlic. Werewolves have a problem with silver bullets.

So is it a wooden stake I need for my ex-wife or a cross?


I guess all vegetation is organic isn't it? Besides the bulbs have been under ground away from the bug bully spray until yanked up.


A little off subject here, but since garlic ristras came up, don't let anyone tell you that red chili ristras hanging on your front door are good luck. We did that once and everything that could go wrong, did.

[Buzz123]

Originally Posted by dynimagelv

hmmmmm I always thought ALL garlic was organic


always keep it around and haven't had a werewolf in years.....

Do the ceramic ones work too? That's what we've got. They taste pretty bland though.

[teach1234]

Originally Posted by Buzz123

Mountains out of molehills...

The OP just wanted to know where to find ORGANIC garlic. Didn't say it had to have been pulled right out of the ground that day. I suppose he or she could grow his/her own if he/she was that persnickety. Garlic lasts a long time anyway doesn't it? Isn't that why they tie it in strands...so it will keep? Or is that just to ward off werewolves?

Don't know how much you really want to know about garlic, but after garlic is pulled out of the ground it's dried for about 3 weeks. If it's properly dried, it will last a long time. The garlic is braided for 2 reasons: it looks nice, and you can hang it on wire racks easily. The other method of drying requires a lot of ventilated shelf space; most growers don't have this kind of room.

Garlic growing is a major undertaking; the seed goes into the ground in the fall, requires weeding, cutting the seed pods (scapes), undercutting the garlic so you can pull it out without the bulbs sticking in the ground, sorting for size (companies like Territorial will only take stuff that's 2 1/4 inches in diameter and bigger), chopping the stalks down to 18" or so, braiding and then hanging. And all in the dirt too, harvesting in July so it's nice and dusty. Then 3 weeks later you pull it down from the racks, clip the stock off and remove the bulb wrapper.

Anyway that's probably more than you wanted to know, and enough to discourage most people from growing it. Thanks for all the replies.

[jjameson922]

Interesting what I am learning about garlic. Your garlic dip recipe sounds good too. Can you explain why organic garlic is stronger than the other garlic? I was thinking if you could not find organic, why can't you just use double the amount of the regular garlic or even liquid garlic?