Le grand aïoli (or, my favorite, “aïoli monstre”) is a Provencal dish of boiled vegetables and simply prepared fish or shellfish served with aioli. In other words, a really elaborate excuse for eating copious amounts of garlicky mayonnaise. While quickly-snarfed desk lunches might be most of our realities, this is my argument for the snacky lunch—one that’s very low-maintenance, but just as grand-feeling as an aioli.
Let what's in your fridge guide your aïoli. Reach for a variety of textures (crisp, watery, soft, custardy) and aromas (herby, menthol, earthy, sweet, spicy). And don’t feel limited to blanched or raw vegetables. Roasting adds nice diversity and warmth, especially when fresh produce might feel limited or lackluster. (Try grilling, too, in the summertime.)
On Sunday afternoon, put on an episode of This American Life, and a pot of salty water to boil. Fill the sink with cool water, and drop in your fridge-tired vegetables for a good scrubbing. Towel them off and admire your work—freshly-scrubbed, gleaming, ready to be nestled alongside aioli and an ever-rotating can of seafood.
Experiment with any and all tinned seafoods (tuna, mussels, mackerel, octopus!), imported or not, you come across. The most expensive and prettily branded tins aren’t always the best tasting—just look out for whether the seafood is wild-caught or sustainably-sourced. I like getting extra-virgin-olive-oil packed tins—it makes for delicious eating right out of the can, but you can zhuzh up a water-packed fish by draining it well, tossing it with a mild, fruity olive oil, a squeeze of lemon, some crunchy salt and pinch of aleppo or freshly cracked black pepper.
If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can certainly whisk the aïoli by hand. Just be extra sure to add the oil very, very slowly, and have a friend with a good whisking arm on hand to tag you out. —Coral Lee
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