Arabic recipesStarters
Toum: Fluffy Lebanese & Syrian Garlic Sauce Without Egg
Authentic Levantine toum whips peeled garlic, salt, chilled neutral oil and lemon juice (or ice-cold dissolved citric acid) into a cloud-white, mayonnaise-thick emulsion with zero egg, potato or starch. Ready in 15 minutes, it is the unmistakable companion to chicken shawarma, shish tawook and crispy potatoes.
Also known as:Lebanese & Syrian garlic sauce (Toum / Toumieh)Eggless shawarma garlic whipMiddle Eastern whipped garlic dip
Servings8
Prep time15 min
Cook timeNo cooking
Ingredients
Add ingredients to cart- 130 g peeled garlic cloves, split to remove any green inner germ
- 1 level tsp fine salt
- 700 ml well-chilled neutral sunflower or rapeseed oil
- 1/2 tsp food-grade citric acid dissolved in 60 ml ice water (or 60 ml chilled lemon juice)
- 2 tbsp extra ice water at the finish
Preparation Steps
- 1Remove the green sprout from each clove so the sauce stays sweet-pungent rather than harsh, then pulse garlic and salt in a food processor, scraping down the bowl until finely pasted.
- 2With the blade running continuously, drizzle in the cold oil in the thinnest thread for the first 2 minutes until the paste turns pale and thick.
- 3Once emulsified, alternate a thin stream of oil with 1 teaspoon at a time of the ice-cold citric acid water (or lemon juice) until all oil is absorbed.
- 4Stream in the final 2 tablespoons of ice water and blitz for 15 seconds until snowy white and pillowy.
- 5Transfer to a clean glass jar and chill for 1 hour before spreading inside warm Arabic flatbread wraps.