Toum is a creamy, bold, and totally addictive Lebanese garlic sauce with just 4 ingredients: garlic, oil, lemon juice, and salt. Once you make this simple recipe, you’ll be hooked!
I first learned about this Lebanese garlic sauce from my mother-in-law, Dina, who owned a Mediterranean restaurant in grand Rapids, Michigan. Toum was one of the most requested items at the restaurant, where they served it with all their grilled meat and veggies. Every morning, Dina would whip up a large batch of her special toum recipe, and it was inevitably sold out by the end of the night! That’s how good it is!
Growing up in Egypt made me a firm believer that it’s the dips and sauces that take a meal to next-level delicious. You may already be familiar with tahini, tzatziki, and hummus. But toum may be the most under-rated! Once you master this easy 4-ingredient garlic sauce recipe, you’ll be using it in all sorts of ways. Some of my go-tos:
- To dip pita chips and fresh vegetables.
- With grilled meat and fish.
- As a sauce for sandwiches, wraps like gyros, and burgers.
If you love big flavor and you’re not afraid of a little garlic–or a lot of garlic, rather–this recipe is for you!
What is in Toum?
Some toum recipes call for mayonnaise, but this traditional recipe is completely vegan. To me, it tastes far better while remaining nice and creamy. You only need 4 ingredients:
- A whole head of garlic: Toum means “garlic” Arabic, after all!
- Kosher salt
- Neutral oil: As much as I love my extra virgin olive oils, grapeseed or sunflower oil is best for toum. The lighter flavor lets the garlic do all the talking.
- Lemon juice: Or substitute lime.
How to Make Toum
Making toum (or touma) is all about the very slow and steady emulsification process that whips the garlic and oil together. Traditionally, a mortar and pestle are used to make this garlic sauce recipe, but I have found a small food processor to work just as well.
- Process 1 whole head of garlic. Smash the garlic with the side of your knife, then remove the peels. Optionally, remove the green germ from the center as you go (it can be bitter). Place the peeled garlic and 1 teaspoon kosher salt in the small bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times until the garlic looks minced, stopping to scrape down the sides. Add the juice of 1 lemon and pulse a few times to combine, again scraping down the sides.
- Slowly incorporate 1 3/4 cups neutral oil. With the food processor on low speed, drizzle in the oil in ever so slowly through the opening at the top. After you’ve used about 1/4 cup or so, add in about 1 tablespoon of the ice water. Stop to scrape down the sides of the processor bowl.
- Finish, adjust the seasoning, and serve. Keep the processor running and continue to slowly drizzle in the oil, adding a tablespoon of ice water after every 1/4 cup of oil. Continue on with this process until you have used up the oil entirely. The garlic sauce has thickened and increased in volume (it should look smooth and fluffy). This should take somewhere around 10 minutes or so. Taste and adjust the seasoning with more salt and or lemon juice if necessary. Enjoy!
Toum Tips
I have a few tips for this toum recipe before you get started, which will ensure a light and airy sauce that’s beautifully emulsified:
- Use the best fresh garlic. This toum recipe is all about garlic! Avoid using peeled garlic from a package, which won’t pack quite the same punch.
- Slice the garlic in half and remove any green sprouts. This is optional, but it prevents the bitter flavor it can impart.
- Don’t skip the lemon juice. Fresh lemon juice adds brightness, and it should be added at the beginning to help the emulsification. (Some recipes add the lemon juice toward the end, which causes the sauce to break.)
- Do not rush the emulsification process. Adding the oil ever so slowly is what makes this sauce! Alternating the oil with a small amount of water prevents the emulsion from breaking.
- Use a small food processor. For the amount of garlic used in this recipe, a smaller processor works well because the blade can easily mince the garlic without it flying all over the bowl. (I use the small bowl attachment on this one). If you double or triple the recipe, you can easily use a large food processor.
Too(m) Strong? Three Ways to Mellow
For some who need their toum to be less powerful, three things you can do:
- Leave it in the fridge a few days. Time in the fridge will take a bit of the edge off.
- Place the peeled garlic in ice water for 30 minutes or so before making the garlic sauce. But be sure to dry the garlic very well before you start.
- Add boiled potato (mashed) or a couple tablespoons of Greek yogurt. Either of these items will thicken the toum sauce and take a bit of the garlic edge off. You would add a little bit at a time during the process.
What to Serve with Toum
This Lebanese garlic sauce is a versatile condiment you will use over and over. Pretty much anything you think might need a kick of garlic, you can use toum! It’s a great swap for mayo and aioli. Some ideas:
- Meat: Chicken kabobs, shawarma, grilled lamb, Shish Tawook.
- Vegetarian: Falafel and the traditional Greek roasted vegetables, Briam, are both delicious.
- Fish: The garlicky punch is absolutely delicious with fresh and smoky grilled seafood.
Love Garlic? Try These Recipes Next!
I always say I would wear garlic as a perfume, so you’re in good company! I know you’ll love these recipes as much as I do:
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 head garlic
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 lemon juiced
- 1 3/4 cups grape seed oil or sunflower oil a neutral tasting oil
- 4 to 6 tablespoons ice water
Instructions
- Process the garlic. Smash the garlic with the side of your knife, then remove the peels. Optionally, remove the green germ from the center as you go (it can be bitter). Place the peeled garlic and kosher salt in the small bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times until the garlic looks minced, stopping to scrape down the sides. Add the lemon juice and pulse a few times to combine, again scraping down the sides.
- Slowly incorporate the oil. With the food processor on low speed, drizzle in the oil in ever so slowly through the opening at the top. After you've used about 1/4 cup or so, add in about 1 tablespoon of the ice water. Stop to scrape down the sides of the processor bowl.
- Finish, adjust the seasoning, and serve. Keep the processor running and continue to slowly drizzle in the oil, adding a tablespoon of the ice water after every 1/4 cup of oil. Continue on with this process until you have used up the oil entirely. The garlic sauce has thickened and increased in volume (it should look smooth and fluffy). This should take somewhere around 10 minutes or so. Taste and adjust the seasoning with more salt and or lemon juice if necessary. Enjoy!
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Notes
- Visit our shop to browse quality Mediterranean ingredients, including olive oils, honey, jams, and spices.
- For best results, do not rush the emulsification process. Remember to add the oil very slowly as the processor is running, alternating with a little tiny bit of ice water. If your processor does not have a top opening to drizzle the olive oil, still add the oil very slowly, about a tablespoon or so at a time, and run the processor to whip the garlic well. And again, don’t forget to add a bit of the ice water as well. Keep whipping the garlic until you have used up all the oil. Alternating the oil with a small amount of water prevents the emulsion from breaking.
- It helps to use a smaller food processor. I used an older version of this one.
- Storage: toum can best be stored in a tight-lid mason jar or container in the fridge for 4 weeks or so. You can also freeze some for later use (do not thaw out, use from frozen). I do prefer the fridge method.
- This recipe is adapted from Maureen Abood’s cookbook Rosewater and Orange Blossoms.
Nutrition
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*This post has recently been updated with new information for the readers’ benefit.
Suzi,
I love, Love, LOVE toum. But especially for the lady getting garlic soup, may I suggest the way I learned to make it? I use a stick (immersion) blender. Put all your ingredients -minced garlic, salt, fresh lemon juice and oil in the bowl all together. Note:I prefer safflower oil because it is light, but also makes snowy white toum. Turn on the stick blender, and within seconds it is beautifully blended. Add a little cold water to thin. Voila!
Chris, thanks so much for sharing! This is wonderful
2nd try. Can’t get it to thicken, no matter how slow I go.
Taste is fabulous though. Any hints to thicken after it hasn’t worked?
I’m sorry happy, I have had many failures with food processors can’t wait to try this. Tjsnld
Thanks for the tips, Chris! I used avocado oil, but did not know about using safflower oil to make a snowy white toum. Thank you for posting. I learn so much reading the comments!
Oh Suzy I am so beyond happy that you have published this recipe! I had tried to make toum using a different recipe in a normal food processor a few months ago, and it didn’t work at all. Today I tried your recipe out in my Cuisinart mini processor and it worked amazingly!!! I was beyond happy to open the lid and see how thick it came out, each time I had to scrape down. I was a little worried as my last experience was so bad and also because I used cold water from the tap, rather than ice water – but it came out beyond perfect! So delicious and strong, but not pungent either! It was also the perfect quantity for the processor as well as just in general – filling around 3/4 of a mason jar. The best accompaniment to my chicken shawarma. I am so pleased, thank you!
Wonderful, Zulekha! Thank you for sharing your experience! Very helpful!!
I tried this recipe and also ended up with garlic soup. Definitely wasted a lot of avocado oil. Not sure how you are supposed to get this to thicken without an egg. I added the oil VERY slowly (probably took about 20 min). Anyone have suggestions?
Hi, Selvi. I’m sorry :(. It’s hard to say what may have gone wrong here. Adding the oil super slowly is key (which sound like you did). The alternation between small amounts of oil and some very cold ice water is also important. Thanks for giving it a try!!
I had the same issue using my ninja food processor so I’m guessing to big I stuck my garlic soup in one of the smoothie cups and blended it some more and voila it totally worked. Good luck on your next attempt because it is worth it! ☺️
I had a similar experience with really runny and loose sauce. I tired the recipe two times (once w olive oil and another with grape seed oil) and had similar results. Even after adding an egg yolk, my sauce would not thicken. I wouldn’t recommend this recipe based on the instructions given.
Hi Suzy, I tried this for the first time about 6 months ago & I absolutely love it! If I wanted to make a big batch with all the garlic I’ve grown in my garden, what’s the best way to keep it? How long would it last in the fridge? Thank you for sharing
Hello! I recommend placing it in a tight-lid mason jar or glass container and keeping it in the fridge to use as needed. It will keep for 4 weeks or so this way. If you need to, you can divide it into smaller portions and freeze. I do prefer the fridge method, though.
Excellent!
Thank you!
I recently discovered this at a local Mediterranean Restaurant where I ordered some chicken kabobs. The food there is fantastic. So I asked the waitress one time when I was there how they make that garlic sauce and what is the proper name for it. She told me the name (Toum) and what ingredients are used to make it and how to make it. So I looked it up on the internet (here) and decided to give this a try. I could not believe that the first recipe I saw said to use 4 cups of oil. To me, that just didn’t sound right at all. So, I made my attempt using only one cup of oil and two whole garlic rounds (or, whatever they’re called). I peeled all the paper covering off all the cloves and then I put them into my food processor and ground them up into a paste. I also added some salt per the recipe and some lemon juice and kept whipping it all up in my processor for the required time of about 10 minutes and it never got creamy. So, seeing as how I did not have any more garlic I put the liquid in a container and put it in the fridge for three days during which time I purchased some fresh garlic in a big bag from Costco. Today, I took 2 garlic rounds from the bag and peeled them and got a nice bunch of cloves from it and put them in my processor and made a paste with them then I got that container out of the fridge with the garlic and oil and salt and lemon juice in it and poured it into my processor and whipped it up for about 10 minutes and it still stayed kind of liquidy but was getting closer to being thicker but not yet where it needed to be. I poured that mixture out of the processor into a large stainless steel bowl and used a Cuisinart Smart Stick hand blender to whip it up and within about a minute or so it became thick and pasty just the way it was in that restaurant that day. It was quite strong because of all the cloves I had in it but I mellowed it out some by adding more lemon juice to it and I must say… it came out FANTASTIC TASTING. It takes some time and patience but then… it magically thickens after a while and makes you happy that all that effort paid off.
By the way… the oil I used was Sunflower oil.
Thank you for sharing your experience, Norm!! I’m so glad you enjoyed this one!!
Can you use olive oil?
Hi, Senica! Any neutral tasting oil you prefer will work.
I wouldn’t say this is an “easy” dip to make as Suzy listed. I made this six times and still failed with trying out 3 different food processors and following the directions. So people who are about to make this, I just want to let you know that this recipe is not beginner friendly and not fool proof. I think next time I will use a processor until the mixture looks smooth and then transfer the mixture in a mixing bowl on top of an ice bath, and then use an electric hand mixer..
Thank you for sharing your thoughts, Daisy.
Made garlic soup twice. The second time, I TIMED myself to make sure I was spending at least 10 minutes slowly drizzling the amount of oil indicated through a funnel and alternating with ice water. Still watery white garlic soup. I’d love to be refunded for how much oil I just wasted on this project.
Wow… I guess you haven’t mastered it yet. Sometimes things don’t work out the way you plan and in that instance you make it work by adding in a cooked potato for instance.
I haven’t made the toum yet but I was thrilled to see my mother’s wedding dishes used in your display….Johnson Brothers Old Britain Castles! I have only one of her plates left.
Thank you, Claudia! I just love the pattern of these dishes!!
Hi. This will produce a very sharp tasting toum which is ok for the strong stomach. I boil one yellow potato until very soft and then I mash it and add to the garlic and lemon and salt. Then I start adding bit by bit the oil. You will get a milder delicious toum.
Thanks for sharing that tip, Rima!
Turned out wonderfully!
That is so great to hear, Lama!
This is the yummiest! I’ve been making this all summer.
For all the questions about when their product turns to liquid- you’ve broken the emulsification! It’s hard to fix an emulsification once it’s broken, so follow her directions!
Thanks for sharing that tip, Nicole!
I made a batch and followed your directions exactly. It turned out wonderfully!! Then I made a second batch and it turned out great too. I put the second batch in the freezer. When I thawed out the toum it turned to liquid! What did I do wrong? I would really appreciate your advice. Thank you for all the wonderful recipes.
It’s hard to say, Charotte. Try storing it in the fridge in a tight-lid jar, it will last a good 4 weeks that way.
I made the recipe in my food processor the first time and I think it was too big. It was thick milk. Then I tried it today in my Vitamix and added the oil slowly but had the same results. Is the secret in adding the oil in something like a drizzle? I still use it. I’ll put it in salad dressing, add to yogurt with mint for a dip, I have also added it to the meat when making burgers. Flavor is awesome. But,,,,,what do you think I need to do differently the next time. I am determined for this to work. johanna
Hi, Johanna. It is meant to be thick, but, yes, the secret to getting just the right texture and thickness, it’s best to add the oil very, very slowly. Also, alternate adding drizzles of oil with a little bit of ice water. Hope that helps!
What can you use if you don’t have a food processor
Hi, Kathlyn! You can go the more traditional route with a morter and pestle.
This turned out amazing!!! Thank you Suzy
Yay! That’s great to hear!