ailler

Ailler is a rare culinary verb meaning to rub or season something with garlic, as in ailler un gigot d'agneau before roasting. It survives mainly in older cookbooks and regional recipes — most modern French speakers would simply say frotter d'ail or ajouter de l'ail.

• La recette dit d'ailler le gigot avant de l'enfourner. — The recipe says to rub the leg of lamb with garlic before putting it in the oven.
• On aillait autrefois les croûtons directement à la gousse. — Croutons used to be rubbed with garlic straight from the clove.
• Ce vieux livre de cuisine utilise encore le verbe ailler. — This old cookbook still uses the verb ailler.

Learners are very unlikely to encounter this verb outside old recipes — in everyday spoken French, frotter d'ail or ajouter de l'ail is what people actually say.