Raw, whole garlic does not contain Alicin (the magical anticancer and antibiotic compound). Garlic contains two separate ingredients: Aliina (protein) and Alinase (enzyme). They are in separate compartments. Only when you crush or grind garlic, you break cellular walls and allow the two to mix. They need to react chemically to create the Alicina. This reaction takes a while. And more importantly: Alinasa enzyme dies of heat.
The Common Mistake: You chop garlic and throw it in hot oil in 30 seconds. Heat kills the enzyme before it had time to create the Alicina. You eat delicious garlic, but medically useless.
Hack Tip to Vitalize Garlic:
Chop or crush the garlic, leave it on the cutting board then wait 10 minutes. During this time, the reaction occurs and the maximum amount of Alicina is created. Once created, Alicina is heat resistant.
Now you can cook it. This simple step of patience turns your dinner into a preventative chemo session.
Source: Journal of Nutrition, “The influence of heating on the anticancer properties of garlic”, Biochemistry Study.