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Aioli with olives

Aioli or aïoli (/ˈli/; Provençal Occitan: alhòli [aˈʎɔli] or aiòli [aˈjɔli];[1] Catalan: allioli [ˌaʎiˈɔɫi]) is a Provençal sauce made of garlic, olive oil, usually egg yolks, and seasonings.[2] The proper recipe does not include lemon juice, though many people add it. [3] There are many variations, such as the addition of mustard. It is usually served at room temperature. The name aioli (alhòli) comes from Provençal alh 'garlic' (< Latin allium) + òli 'oil' (< Latin oleum).

Aioli is, like mayonnaise, an emulsion or suspension of small globules of oil and oil-soluble compounds in water and water-soluble compounds. Egg yolk can be used as an emulsifier and is generally used in making aioli today. However, mustard and garlic both emulsify oil, and some variants such as Valencia allioli, and Maltese aljoli omit the egg.

Basic recipe[edit]

Egg yolks, garlic, and seasonings are whisked together, then the oil and the lemon juice are added, initially very slowly, whisking to emulsify. Once the emulsion has started to form, the oil can be added faster.

In Occitan cuisine, aioli is typically served with seafood, fish soup, and croutons, in a dish called merluça amb alhòli. In Malta, arjoli or ajjoli is commonly made with the addition of either crushed galletti or tomato. In the Occitan Valleys of Italy it is served with potatoes[4] boiled with salt and bay laurel.

In Provence, aioli or, more formally, Le Grand Aïoli, also designates a complete dish consisting of various boiled vegetables (uniformly carrots, potatoes, and green beans), boiled fish (normally soaked salt cod), other seafood, and boiled eggs, served with the aioli sauce. Other commonly used vegetables are cauliflower and raw tomato.[2]

Other forms of aioli[edit]

Similar sauces are found elsewhere in the region.


Allioli (pronounced: [ˌaʎiˈɔɫi], also spelled alioli [ˌaɫiˈɔɫi]), from all i oli, Catalan for "garlic and oil", is a typical paste-like cold sauce of Catalonia, Balearic Islands and Valencia. It is made by pounding garlic with olive oil and salt in a mortar until smooth. It is often served with arròs a banda from Alicante, with grilled lamb, grilled vegetables and arròs negre, and comes in other varieties such as allioli de codony (allioli with boiled quince, not the preserve) or allioli with boiled pear.


Aillade is the name used in southern France for two different garlic-based condiments. In Provence, it is a garlic-flavored vinaigrette, while in areas such as Languedoc-Roussillon, it is the name given to aioli.

See also[edit]


  1. ^ In Provençal Occitan, the same word is written alhòli according to the classical norm or aiòli according to the Mistralian norm.
  2. ^ a b Olney, Richard (1994). Lulu's Provenc̜al table : the exuberant food and wine from Domaine Tempier Vineyard. New York: HarperCollins. p. 124–5. ISBN 0-06-016922-2. 
  3. ^ BBC Food: Aïoli recipe
  4. ^ "La cucina occitana (area cuneese)" (in Italian). Retrieved 2009-04-11. [dead link]

External links[edit]