HERBY ALIOLI
Never without, always within, alioli with any herbs we can forage is a constant somewhere in our fridge. It’s a simple mayonnaise with a little garlic and the combined flavour of one or many soft leafed herbs – dill, parsley, coriander, chive, tarragon, basil, chervil or mint. I like it best with every single one, then pimped with a big spoon of Dijon or English mustard stirred through. Second wave pimping takes it to a whole new planet and Id really recommend any of these, tho not all together:
A spoonful of tiny capers in brine or thin slithers of cornichon stirred in at the end
A small spoon of pickled green peppercorns and some of their pickle liquor or a few anchovy fillets added to the egg yolk at the beginning.
A few of my favourite accompaniments – boiled eggs, hot smoked salmon, roast chicken, doused on steamed greens, in a ham sandwich, with a bowl of crudité and just on its own with a hunk of bread and olive oil
Here’s to a first go tho with any herbs you can find. Slather it all over anything and look foreword to the next time you make it with a few other additions.
It’s really difficult to go wrong unless your kitchen is a fiery furnace or your egg is icy cold. If everything is at room temp when you start you’ll glide through
1 egg
sea salt
1 unwaxed lemon
1 garlic clove
little room temp water
1 cup of oil (I mix 50:50 extra virgin olive oil and rapeseed oil)
2 big handfuls of herbs or as many as you can find
1 tsp English mustard
Into the Magimix goes:
1 egg yolk
big pinch of sea salt
zest of an un-waxed lemon
1 finely grated garlic clove
1.5 tbs room temp water
1tsp English mustard
Blend all this together, take the lid off and scrape down the bowl so everything is settled on the bottom again.
Turn the blade back on and slowly slowly drizzle in the oil, you will have to stop a couple of times to scrape down the Magimix bowl and continue.
The mixture will become glossy and waxy
Add the juice of your lemon, all the herbs and blitz again – I prefer to have little flecks of green so I don’t blend it for long, you may like to combine it more so it takes on a greeny hue.
Check if it needs salt or maybe a little more lemon.
Pot up and keep in your fridge for 4-5 days
