Passadoc Gazette – No 167

Aioli... Let us proceed carefully, because the subject is sensitive and the inhabitants of the south of Occitanie are susceptible and eyebrowful as soon as we approach this typical Provencal dish!

What do the dictionaries say?

In his first edition (1872), Émile Littré* if prolixe en citations – Bossuet, Pascal, Corneille, etc.; at random: three pages of reading for the single word mouth – shipsaioliwhich he writes aillolisin one line: finely ground garlic coulis with olive oil.

Pierre Larousse* is just as brief: Mayonnaise with garlic.

Yet, theaïoli has long been known since, according to the research of Maguelonne Toussaint-Samat* – Nero [...] goes for having invented, personally, theaïoli. The historian also describes a Byzantine recipe rich in garlic, roasted in the oven, then crushed with olive oil and salt. It is a delicious preparation that we find in Spain. Of course, you must like garlic!

François Mauzy* (1853) wrote: It is said [...] that the Phocaeans, who came to lay the foundations of the great Marseille city (600 B.C.), noticed that, not far from the places where they had established their first camps, the farmers used to crush a few cloves of garlic between two pieces of black and hard bread, and that, to activate the trituration and give more flavor to this food, they mixed a yellow liquid, the red of a raw egg, and then ate this mixture with extreme pleasure.

It is also said that Louis XVIII, visiting Provence, was invited to a banquet: [...] He was served for the first time traditional bourride and garlicli. He found them so much of his taste, returned so often and so copiously, that he could hardly touch what followed [...]. When he asked how this sauce was called, he was told that it was butter from Provence.
– It is excellent, he said, but the animal that gives the milk from which this butter is removed must not have very soft habits.

Let's give up and run fast to Mr. Frédéric Mistral.* : Is a delight; There is nothing better for health, and it is the basic element of a Provencal meal. It is seasoned with boiled fish, burrido, cod and snails in brine; And next to him, if you have to say everything, the mayonnaise of the French is just a pharmacist's ointment!

Under his pen we also find: Around a good ailloli, well mounted and fragrant and red like a gold thread, where are, answer me, the men who do not recognize themselves brothers?

Moving on to the recipe. This one would be that of Cousinié Macàri* :
For 3 to 10 people, finely stack in mortar 10 to 15 cloves of garlic, add two egg yolks, salt modeer, and, gradually, drop by drop, without ceasing to stir by turning with the drumstick in the same direction and with the same rhythm, incorporate a liter of good olive oil until you get a thick mayonnaise. If it becomes too thick, add one or two spoons of temperate water before finishing.

– What! Ten to 15 cloves of garlic? So much? You need a few dallebore grains! And tell me, when do you incorporate the crushed potato?

... because « the » recipe seems not to exist! A quick search and the list enriches with ingredients such as grape seed oil, lemon juice, milk, bread crumb, mustard and even grated cheese! Half of the inhabitants of Occitanie pass away and school the other half!

En fait, il semble qu’il y ait autant de recettes qu’il y a de foyers en Provence…

– Ton aïoli n’est pas mauvais… je dirais même qu’il est bon… mais il ne vaut pas celui de Mamzette !
– Mamzette ?
– Bah oui ! Mamzette !… Ma grand-mère du Puget !

Le 6 janvier 1891, Mistral fonde L’Aiòli, un journal provençal qui vécut jusqu’en 1898.

Jeanne Monin