A fiery garlicky mayo that can be used as a sauce or as a dip.
Hola!
Spanish food is very well known for its garlic in it, and that is something I had never thought about. I will always remember Victoria Beckham saying that Spain smelled like garlic, when she moved to Madrid for a while. It struck me like, what does she mean? What is wrong with that?
I never realised how much we use it because for us Spaniards it’s so normal. Then, you travel to other European countries and you understand that yes, we put it in everything. But, isn’t that nice? It adds a wonderful flavour without the need of excessive seasoning. It makes any meal feel homely.
Do I need to explain what aioli is? This fiery sauce has crossed the English Channel and it is spreading like wildfire in the UK and in the rest of the world. It is no wonder it’s making the rounds since it has been part of many cultures from ancient times. Aioli was already known by the Egyptians, and the Romans helped to spread it through the Mediterranean. Then, it was taken up from the South of Spain to France, and this is actually where the borrowed French word “aioli” comes from (see below).
Originally, aioli was an emulsion of only garlic and oil. My step-mom always says this is the authentic one. In order to make it, one or two garlic cloves are crushed in a mortar and oil is added very slowly so that the emulsion doesn’t break.
Nowadays, in spite of the purists, aioli has become a garlicky mayonnaise, and this is how most people make it or buy it. The most common version’s main ingredients are garlic, oil and raw egg (emulsifier).
PLANT-POWER, MAKE UP!
Aioli/mayo is one of the easiest vegan conversions: you use soya milk instead of egg. I tell you, not even the omnis would notice any difference. It is as fluffy and light as the one with egg.
I normally use kala namak salt, black salt or Himalayan salt for the eggy illusion. According to Wikipedia, it is “a kiln-fired rock salt used in South Asia with a sulphurous, pungent-smell”. This salt, despite its name, actually looks pink-grey, and the smell is sulphurous, which smells like boiled eggs. Kala namak is cleverly used in vegan dishes to give a hint of the eggy smell. This is not necessary at all, so please do not panic trying to find it. You can buy it online.
BONUS TRACK: PRONUNTIATION
“Aioli” is an English borrowed word from the French aioli. And here I thought they got it from the Spanish/Valencian-Catalan, which literally means “garlic and oil”. In Valencian we say “allioli” (ay-ee-oh-lee) and in Spanish we say alioli (ah-lee-oh-lee) or ajoaceite (a-ho-ah-thay-teh), which again is the literal translation for “garlic-oil”.
VEGAN AIOLI
Prep: 10 minutes
INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup blend of sunflower oil with a bit of olive oil
1/4 cup unsweetened soya milk
1-2 garlic cloves (up to taste)
1/4 tsp. white wine vinegar
1/4 tsp. kala namak salt or Himalayan black salt, or table salt
INSTRUCTIONS
- Blend all the ingredients with a hand blender until all the elements are well combined and the emulsion is formed. Adjust seasoning to taste.
- Keep in the fridge for a couple of hours before use.
Aioli goes perfect with patatas bravas, as a sauce for a baguette filled with your favourite veg, or as an accompaniment for a vegan seafood paella.
You can keep the vegan aioli in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Bon profit!