Homemade Wild Garlic Aioli – Mayo Recipe
This Homemade Wild Garlic Aioli (fancy word for garlic mayo) is astonishingly simple to make and packs a real punch in the flavour department. Thanks to the wild garlic it has a real punchy garlic taste without tasting bitter or overpowering. I actually never realised just how easy it is to make mayo at home until I came across Sunny With Shadows Homemade Mayo with Avocado Oil Recipe which this recipe is based on!
What is wild garlic?
Wild garlic is a plant that grows in the wild usually. It has a mild garlic taste and can be eaten raw. The plant grows from a bulb and produces dark green leaves and sometimes white flowers. Wild garlic typically grows in clumps in shaded areas near water like forests. It grows in abundance in Ireland between April and June. For tips on how to forage safely and mindfully, check out this Wild Garlic Foraging article I wrote for the Anglo Celt.
So how do I make this Homemade Wild Garlic Aioli from scratch?
This aioli, or mayo, is super easy to make and only requires a couple steps. To make this recipe, I highly recommend using a hand blender to make the wild garlic nice and smooth. You could also use a food processor or blender but you would need to double or triple the recipe to make sure the blades are able to reach it. To begin, add the wild garlic and 3/4 of the oil to a jar with an opening wide enough for the hand blender to fit in. Blend together for 2-3 minutes until the wild garlic gets really smooth.
Add the egg, mustard, salt and lemon juice and blend for another 3-4 minutes until the mayo thickens significantly and lightens in colour. Add the rest of the oil and blend for another minute. Taste to see if it needs more salt or mustard. Seal the jar by adding the lid or transfer to an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Frequently Asked Questions
They are very similar! They have the same base ingredients however aioli usually contains fresh garlic that has been mashed to a paste first. In this recipe, I have substituted wild garlic for garlic and blended it to a puree. I also add a little vinegar into my recipe which aioli doesn’t usually contain where mayo does.
While you can use wholegrain instead, I would recommend using dijon. This is because dijon is more like a paste and the mustard helps to bind and stabilize the emulsion between the oil and egg. In short, if you use wholegrain mustard the resulting aioli will be a little less thick and will be more prone to splitting.
Nope! You can use any oil that you’d prefer. You can opt for avocado oil like the inspiration recipe from Sunny with Shadows uses or you can use a more flavourless oil like rapeseed or sunflower.
If stored in an airtight container in the fridge, this can be kept for up to 2 weeks. Some websites claim you can keep homemade aioli for longer than this, and that may be possible but I can’t guarantee the freshness. Always make sure to give a good visual and smell check if you plan to use something a little outside it’s best by date and use your own judgement.
You can use this aioli just like you would use any kind of garlic mayo. Dip your chips or wedges into it, dip bread into it. Add it to a BLT sandwich, or any sandwich for that matter! Or your bagel, toastie, steak, fish. You can add it to potato salad or even use it as a base for caesar dressing, whatever tickles your fancy.
For Bread Recipes to dip into this aioli, check out my Bread category, here.
Wild Garlic Aioli
Equipment
- 1 jar, wide enough to fit a hand blender or jug/container
- 1 Hand blender
Ingredients
- 15 grams wild garlic washed
- 200 grams oil olive oil or a neutral oil
- 1 whole egg
- 1-2 tsp dijon mustard depending on personal preference
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp vinegar cider or white wine
Instructions
- In a wide jar or jug, add the washed wild garlic and 150 grams of the oil.
- Using the hand blender, blend the wild garlic and oil together for 2-3 minutes until the wild garlic gets really smooth.
- Add the egg, mustard, salt, lemon juice and vinegar and blend for another 3-4 minutes until the mayo thickens significantly and lightens in colour.
- Add the rest of the oil and blend for another minute.
- Taste to see if it needs more salt or mustard.
- Seal the jar by adding the lid or transfer to an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
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