Arabic Garlic Sauce (Toum)

Ingredients

• 2 garlic (whole heads, with cloves peeled and germ removed)
• 200 ml sunflower oil (or any neutral oil)
• 40 ml lemon juice (fresh)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp cold water (helps with the emulsion)

Steps

1. 1

   Prepare the garlic by removing the skins from the two heads and, most importantly, removing the germ (the internal sprout) from each clove so that the sauce is more digestible and not bitter.

2. 2

   If using a hand blender (immersion blender), place all ingredients in the beaker: the garlic, 40 ml of lemon juice, 200 ml of oil, the teaspoon of salt, and the tablespoon of cold water.

3. 3

   Insert the hand blender all the way to the bottom and turn it on. Keep it at the bottom without moving it until you see the base is crushed and starts to emulsify.

4. 4

   Raise the blender slowly and gradually so that all the oil incorporates and a stable, creamy emulsion forms.

5. 5

   If using a traditional countertop blender, first blend all ingredients except the oil. Once processed, add the oil in a very slow stream while the blender is still running until the desired consistency is achieved.

Notes

If you store the sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator, it can last up to 3 months. Removing the garlic germ is the most important step to prevent the sauce from being excessively strong or repeating on you.

Nutrition per serving

• sauce
• side dish
• garlic
• toum
• arabic food
• lebanese
• gluten-free
• vegetarian