A Vegetarian Dish A Month – May 2024: Toum!
I already know what you’re thinking: “What the heck is toum?”
That was exactly what I thought when I bought my first toum (or “Toom” as it was branded). It was being sold as a “delicious vegan sauce”, and I thought I’d give it a shot, and bought some pita bread to go with it. For those uninitiated, it’s a Lebanese traditional sauce that is simultaneously very salty and very sour and tastes exactly like the main ingredients it contains: salt and lemon. My first reaction to it? It went something like this:
“Oh…Uh…That’s an…Interesting flavor…Well I guess I’m gonna have to figure out how to choke all of it down before it goes bad…”
I was not a fan.
But the next day, I woke up and thought “Let’s give it another shot.” But this time I was prepared for the very potent salty-sour taste.
“…Not bad!” I thought. Maybe I’d be able to eat it a little bit every day for the next couple weeks.
The next day, I was driving home from work, when suddenly it hit me: I want to eat that toum stuff at home…I’m craving it!
I went home and immediately downed 2-3 pieces of sizeable pita bread with toum.
I was hooked.
May 2024: Toum
After finishing my first batch of store bought toum, I looked at the ingredients: garlic, oil, and salt. That’s it. I could make this! And I wouldn’t have to worry about plastic packaging!
Toum immediately became my next new vegan thing to make. I even had all the ingredients to make it in my house already!
The Recipe
As simple as it is to make, I still wanted to be sure I got it right, so I found a recipe online: https://feelgoodfoodie.net/recipe/lebanese-garlic-sauce/
All it took was:
- 1 cup garlic cloves peeled
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 3 cups neutral oil such as safflower
- ½ cup lemon juice
And for the most part, you just blend them together, being aware of a few things!
- Remove any green sprouts! They will make your garlic bitter.
- Blend the sliced garlic and salt in a food processor until the garlic is pretty well minced.
- Slowly pour oil in. If you go too fast, the mixture never gets enough air folded into it. Always let it turn nice and white before adding more! Once it starts looking creamy, start alternating oil and lemon juice till it’s all in, and all creamy!
And that’s it! Take your time, really let that food processor do it’s thing for at least a minute between additions of oil and lemon!
The Verdict
In the end, it came out just as good as the store bought version! My toum was really creamy, super sour, and super salty. Just like it’s supposed to be. I’m basically manufacturing my own new addiction at home.
Be warned – it’s not for everyone. I’ve offered it to family and friends, many of whom weren’t a fan, but if you’re anything like me, if you try it a few times and get used to it, it can be your new vegan addiction too!
