Garlic aioli sauce is one of the most famous dipping sauces in all of Spain, and its popularity is so great that it has spread to all parts of the world.
It is so well known that even the big brands of mayonnaise or condiments have made their own version of aioli to sell on a large scale, but nothing beats this Spanish garlic sauce.
Served with some of the best Spanish tapas, this creamy Spanish garlic sauce is exactly what you need for your next meal.
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Background of the Dish
The origin of the Spanish aioli recipe dates back to Roman times when the Egyptians took the recipe to Andalusia, who then took it to the north of Spain.
Although in its beginnings it was only oil and garlic, today the recipe also contains eggs.
In this article, I will tell you how to make garlic sauce, and some extra tips so that you don’t fail when making it.
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Things You’ll Need for Spanish Garlic Sauce
The thing that I love the most about making homemade garlic sauce is that it’s very simple and it’s actually cheaper than buying it in the store.
The main ingredients are garlic, egg, oil, and a teaspoon of salt, so you shouldn’t have any trouble finding them.
You will need a food processor, or a hand mixer, or a stand mixer to make this recipe, but nowadays most houses have one.
Ingredients
- 2 egg yolks
- 1/2 lemon juiced
- 2 cloves garlic
- 3/4 (170ml) cup olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt.
How to Make Spanish Garlic Sauce – Step by Step Guide
- To start with this garlic sauce recipe you have to peel and mince the garlic. Then transfer it to a bowl or the container of a stand mixer, add 2 egg yolks, a dash of salt (around 1/2 tsp.), and a dash of oil.
- With the help of a hand mixer (it can be a stand mixer or even a food processor), blend everything and at the same time pour in a thin stream of oil. You’ll see that it thickens as you add more oil, which means that the emulsion is happening and everything is going well.
- For the next step add the juice of half of a lemon and continue to blend until it is completely incorporated. You can continue to add in more oil if you think it’s necessary. But be careful because this can make your sauce get too oily.
- You’ll know that the aioli is thick enough when it reaches a mayonnaise-like consistency, so you can test this by turning it upside down and it shouldn’t fall. At that point stop blending the aioli.
- Finally, do a taste check and add in more garlic, lemon juice, and salt to match your personal taste.
Substitution of Ingredients
As you can see above, this recipe only calls for a few ingredients so you should be able to find all of them.
But anyway, here I’ll show you some replacements that you can make, other versions of aioli, and different ways to customize this recipe!
The first substitution that you can make is to change the olive oil to sunflower oil (or any other neutral oil).
This is because olive oil adds a lot of flavors, but sometimes it can be overpowering. So if you aren’t a big fan of olive oil then you should use sunflower oil.
Apart from that, you can change the flavor of the aioli by adding herbs and spices.
For example, you can add one tablespoon of chopped parsley, one teaspoon of paprika, or any other of your choice to add more flavor.
If you want to try other delicious Spanish sauces, you must give a try to the tasty Spanish romesco sauce and the Spanish mojo sauce.
Finally, if you liked this recipe and you like garlic in general then I encourage you to try Cold Garlic Soup – Spanish Ajo Blanco and the famous Hot Spanish Garlic Soup.
Tips on Serving Spanish Garlic Sauce
This dish is usually served as a garlic dipping sauce, so I’ll recommend you some dishes that will go really well with this garlic dip.
The easiest thing you can do is to toast some bread and spread some of the creamy garlic sauce on top.
If you are looking for a healthy alternative, you can make a vegetable platter, with chopped carrots, celery, cucumber, cooked eggplants, and any other vegetable of your choice, and dip them into the aioli garlic sauce.
Now if you want to make an authentic Andalusian meal, you can make a Spanish Garlic Shrimp Recipe or even a Patatas a lo Pobre recipe, and then serve the garlic cream sauce as a dip.
You can serve this garlic sauce with the Spanish garlic chicken because we all know how good chicken tastes with some garlic sauce on the side.
How to store Spanish Garlic Sauce
The homemade aioli can be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days. If you make this garlic dip recipe then you have to keep in mind that it can’t be frozen.
This is because being an emulsion if frozen the chemical composition of the sauce will change completely, causing it to spoil.
Anyways, it is really fast to make, it should only take you about 10 minutes so there’s no need to freeze it.
If you have some leftover and you’re afraid of having to throw it away, you can add heavy cream to the aioli and use it as a sauce for chicken or even pasta.
Recipe Card: Spanish Garlic Sauce
Spanish Garlic Sauce Recipe
Garlic aioli sauce is one of the most famous dipping sauces in all of Spain, and its popularity is so great that it has spread to all parts of the world.
It is so well known that even the big brands of mayonnaise or condiments have made their own version of aioli to sell on a large scale, but nothing beats the homemade version
Ingredients
- 2 egg yolks
- 1/2 lemon juiced
- 2 cloves garlic
- 3/4 (170ml) cup olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt.
Instructions
- In a board peel and mince the garlic. Then put it in a bowl or the container of a stand mixer, add 2 egg yolks, a dash of salt (around 1/2 tsp.), and a dash of oil.
- With a hand mixer (you can also use a stand mixer or a food processor), blend everything and at the same time pour in a thin stream of oil. You'll see that it thickens as you add more oil, which means that the emulsion is happening.
- For the next step add the lemon juice and continue to blend until it is fully incorporated. You can continue to add in more oil if you think it's necessary.
- The aioli is ready when it reaches a mayonnaise-like consistency. At that point stop blending the aioli.
- Finally, taste it and add in more garlic, lemon juice, and salt if necessary.
Notes
You can use more garlic in this recipe, it entirely depends on how potent you want the garlic flavor to be.
Besides that, you can also use sunflower instead of olive oil. It depends on how much you like the flavor of olive oil.
If you don't like it then don't use it because you will be able to taste it in the aioli. Just use sunflower oil instead, since it doesn't add any flavor.
Nutrition Information
Yield
1Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 150Total Fat 15gSaturated Fat 3gCholesterol 12mgSodium 180mgCarbohydrates 6gFiber 0gSugar 0gProtein 0g
Short FAQ about Creamy Spanish Garlic Sauce Recipe
How to make Spanish garlic sauce?
Making Spanish Garlic sauce it’s as easy as blending the ingredients together until you get an emulsion. Of course, as you’ll see in the step by step there are some tips to make it easier and without spoiling the sauce.
Is it safe to use raw egg?
If you want to be completely sure, you can boil the egg for 4 minutes at 140°F, this way it won’t get cooked but it will kill any bacteria. Anyways, keep in mind that using raw egg or egg yolks it’s still pretty safe, and like I said the chances of getting salmonella due to egg are extremely low.
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