Toum, the fluffy Lebanese garlic sauce, turns a plate of grilled chicken into something you think about for days, and it is naturally Low Carb at about 1 gram of net carb a spoonful. It is also the one sauce that humbled me in my own kitchen. Mine broke into a soupy mess the first night, so before you get to the recipe, here is exactly why that happens and the three things that saved it.
I have a confession to make. When I posted the picture of my chicken shawarma the other day, the white sauce on the side was not garlic sauce. It was in fact mayonnaise. My plan that night was to make the garlic sauce while my chicken was cooking in the oven. Well my plan didn't quite go so well. You see I followed all the tips in this video on how to make garlic sauce and all I ended up with was a soupy garlicky mess! I finally gave up at nine o'clock and just served my chicken shawarma with ranch dressing (the only similar thing I had in my fridge at the time).
Yesterday I was still so frustrated that I couldn't even look at my food processor. Well today I woke up with more confidence and started all over again. I am happy to say that this time around I had success!! I blame my flood lights for my first failed attempt because I think they overheated the sauce. My tip for making this sauce is lots of oil, work in a cool environment, and chill your lemon juice. Don't give up if your first attempt turns out like mine. This is a sauce that is definitely worth trying. If you love garlic then you will fall in love with this sauce. This sauce will definitely keep the vampires away. Serve it alongside chicken shawarma, gyros, and kafta.
Why toum breaks, and the three things that fixed mine
Toum works as an emulsion, the same balancing act as mayonnaise, except the garlic does the job the egg yolk does in mayo. Tiny droplets of oil have to stay suspended in the garlic and lemon, and three things knock them loose. Pouring the oil too fast at the start is the big one, so the first third has to go in a thread you can barely see. Warm ingredients are the second, which is what got me, since I think the heat from my flood lights thinned everything out. The third is tired garlic, because old or sprouted cloves do not hold the emulsion the way fresh ones do.
The fixes follow straight from the causes:
- Use plenty of oil and add it slowly, drop by drop for the first few minutes before you move to a thin stream.
- Keep everything cool. Work away from a hot stove or bright lights, and chill the lemon juice before you start.
- Start with fresh, firm garlic and pop out any green germ in the center, which is bitter and harder to emulsify.
How to rescue a broken batch
You can save a broken batch. Pour the soupy toum into a measuring cup, then start over in the clean processor with one fresh clove of garlic and a teaspoon of cold lemon juice. Buzz it smooth, then drizzle the broken sauce back in slowly, the same way you added the oil the first time. It pulls back together into a fluffy cloud. A spoonful of cold water, or an egg white if you are not keeping it vegan, can do the same rescue, but the fresh-garlic restart keeps it true to the original.
The salt question, traditional and mine
My version skips the salt, and it has worked for me for years, but the traditional Lebanese method keeps it in. In a proper kitchen the garlic gets pounded with coarse salt in a heavy mortar, clove by clove, until it turns to a smooth paste before any oil goes in. The salt does more than season, since the crystals help grind the garlic down and give the emulsion something to grab. If you want the more traditional taste, or a little extra insurance against breaking, pound or process a half teaspoon of salt into the garlic before you start the oil. I have found both versions keep equally well.
Lebanese garlic sauce, naturally Low Carb
Toum is one of the easiest sauces to keep on a Low Carb plan. There is no sugar, no flour, and no egg, so it is gluten-free and vegan by nature, and a 2-tablespoon dollop runs about 1 gram of net carb, almost all of it from the garlic. The oil choice is about flavor more than carbs: skip olive oil, which turns bitter and cloudy when you whip it this hard, and reach for a neutral oil like the canola here, or avocado. A food processor makes the long whip painless, though a bowl and a steady whisking arm will get you there too.
Serving and storing your toum
Beyond the shawarma and gyros, toum earns its place anywhere a Low Carb plate needs a punch: smeared under the skin of roast chicken, dolloped on grilled steak or salmon, thinned with a little water into a dressing, or used straight as a dip for raw vegetables. It also steps in for ranch dressing when you want something bolder. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge and use it within about 2 weeks. Toum is raw garlic in oil, so the lemon juice does more than flavor it: the acidity lowers the pH and slows the bacteria that garlic in oil can grow, so keep it in and keep the sauce cold rather than out on the counter. For longer storage, freeze it in a sealed bag for up to 3 months, where it holds well and only loosens a little as it thaws. A paper towel over the top for the first hour stops condensation from watering it down. Keep an eye out for more Low Carb sauces and dressings to put it next to.
Sources:
USDA FoodData Central, nutrient reference for garlic and canola oil
Maureen Abood, Rose Water and Orange Blossoms, traditional Lebanese toum method
Sugarfreechic test kitchen, low-carb garlic sauce notes
