What You Need to Know
The technique involves slowly pouring olive oil into a mixture of garlic and egg yolks while whisking, creating a stable emulsion through the formation of a complex network of lipids and proteins. The key variables are temperature, pH, and the ratio of oil to egg yolks.
This technique is unique to Calabrian cuisine, where it is used to create a variety of sauces and condiments, such as aioli and salsa verde.
Steps
- 1.
Bagna Cauda (Piedmont, Italy): Forms the creamy base for this warm dip
- 2.
Skordalia (Greece): Provides the emulsification for this garlic-potato spread
- 3.
Toum (Lebanon): Creates the ultra-stable garlic sauce emulsion
The Science
Primary Reaction
Lecithin-mediated emulsification