Healthier Homemade Mayonnaise

What do you put on your sandwich? Some ketchup, mustard, or even some mayo? Mayonnaise is found all over but why buy it when you can make it? Making your own mayonnaise allows you to flavor it the way you want. And you control what goes in it (so none of that hydrogenated or preservative stuff :) Although homemade mayo doesn’t last as long as store bought, it’s a bit healthier for you and you can have fun making it. Homemade mayonnaise is a better alternative than store bought mayo and is very simple to make.

Note: This does have raw egg in the product which will spoil quickly if left at room temperature so keep the mayonnaise refrigerated! After all, no one likes to be sick :)

Step 1: Ingredients

Here’s what you need:

• 18 oz of olive oil- you can use other kinds of oil but olive oil is the healthiest choice (be sure to have some extra handy as the oil is what makes the mayonnaise thicken)
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1/4 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon lemon/lime juice
• Any other flavorings you want- Add some dry mustard or white pepper. Or even go green and add some vegetables.

That’s all the ingredients you’ll need to make about 18 fl oz of mayonnaise.
However, some equipment is also recommended:

• A stand mixer- you can use a whisk, but trust me a stand mixer saves a lot of work and time
• A spouted measuring cup (this is important for the incorporation of the oil)
• A glass container to hold the finished mayonnaise

Comments

[XofHope]

This is so great! For the first time in my life I was able to make my own mayonnaise! Unfortunately, it also led me to discover, and this has nothing to do with your great tutorial, that I don't like home made mayo... tastes to much of olive oil.

[jen7714]

Great! And thank your for the nice comment :) Although it's unfortunate that you don't like the taste. I'll suggest using vegetable or canola oil for a more "traditional" taste. I hope you try it again!

[Honora]

In New Zealand a long time ago, the government health authorities asked the department of home science to come up with an egg-less recipe for mayonnaise due to cases of food poisoning. In those days, not everyone had a refridgerator.

So we have a recipe that uses condensed milk from a can and adds vinegar, It's quite nice! But only old ladies seem to make it now...

Regarding the salmonella issue, apparently boiling an egg for one minute is sufficient to kill the salmonella on the outside of the shell but not to cook the egg within. I have read that salmonella isn't found in the white and yolk but only on the outer shell.

[chgoliz]

So would washing the eggs before cracking them solve the problem?

[drgn369]

this sounds great to bad I can't eat egg any more Guess I will have to stick to Nayonnaise (made with soy)

[jen7714]

I've never tried that! May have to look into it :)

[vincent7520]

Great.
May I add one important thing that I didn't see (maybe I read too fast) : the egg yokes must be at room temperature otherwise the difference of temperature between oil and egg will prevent the mayonnaise to mix up : the whole thing will be liquid.
You don't have to have an electric mixer, a fork or a hand batter will do thanks to elbow grease and a very fast and steady hand (that shouldn't not last 10' !
5' will do at the most : y aunts and grandma never used any other tool than a fork and made some almost every day !…)
Vinegar or any watery particle is needed to have both egg and oil emulsify (that is why some use mustard, the vinegar that's in the mustard doing the same thing). Some say the water particle in the egg yoke are enough, I tried it but did not succeed.
Otherwise salt, pepper or sugar is used according to taste : they do not help in the emulsifying process.
The main variation in France comes from the south : that's called "aioli". Basically you add 4 to 5 garlic finely mushed down to a thick paste (not chopped !…) and you can do without the vinegar (same : water from the garlic and elbow grease should do the trick). Make a very thick mayonnaise. Cold cod and all sorts of vegetable with aoili is a wonderful treat ! … In fact it has been known as THE local dish from the south of France … 
I promise : with a cool white wine called Muscadet or Entre Deux Mers supply will never meet the demand !!!…
Enjoy !…

[-chase-]

also the mixing bowl should be warmed - (according to Julie Childs)

[vincent7520]

well have the bowl at the same room temperature as the ingredients

[-chase-]

well - they all are supposed to be warm... so if you like your ac at 65 degrees - don't think that is considered warm.

I think home made mayo is great - and hey who the heck am i to argue with a Julia Childs let alone anyother women in the kitchen - I'm not that brave. Unless it's "my" kitchen - then i prefer that "my" women stay out of "my" kitchen. which - they seem to prefer as well so i'm not getting any arguements nor stuck with a "house wife" that sits on a couch eating mayonnaise she made getting fat.

Out of my kitchen and leave my dishes pots and pans and... my laundry alone - simple rules. And i like the results - so do they.

as for the mayo recipe above... here's what Julia has to add...

Julia Child’s tips for homemade mayonnaise:

Room Temperature: Have all ingredients at room temperature. If they aren’t, warm the mixing bowl in hot water to take the chill off the egg yolks; heat the oil to tepid if it is cold.

Egg Yolks: Always beat the yolks for a minute or two before adding anything to them. When they are thick and sticky, they are ready to absorb the oil.

Adding The Oil: The oil must be added very slowly at first, in droplets, until the emulsion process begins and the sauce thickens into a heavy cream. Then, the oil may be incorporated more rapidly.

Proportions: The maximum amount of oil one large egg yolk can absorb is six ounces, or ¾ cup. When this maximum is exceeded, the binding properties of the egg yolks break down, and the sauce thins out or curdles. If you have never made mayonnaise before, it is safest not to exceed ½ cup of oil per egg yolk.

[vincent7520]

well … anything that makes a good homemade mayonnaise is great …
As with any home made recipe each cook has his / her way of doing things (their "tour de main"), his / her secrets transmitted from generations … and the pleasure is tasting them all and compare and discuss our preferences …
The joy of cooking is as much in talking and trading as enjoying the food itself !…

So do not take my recipe and my informations as a norm …

[-chase-]

well said vincent

[t.rohner]

It's interesting, that a mayo instructable makes it into the newsletter. Don't get me wrong, i strongly support making these things yourself. In my parents house, there was no store bought mayo in the fridge. Every time, we needed some, my mom let us kids batter the stuff, while she slowly poured the oil in. Doing it by hand, lets you see the emulsification very nicely. In fact, it's the lecithin from the egg yolk, that helps to distribute the oil in the water.(Emulsion)
I would also like to mention mayo's close relatives. The Hollandaise sauce and the even more refined Béarnaise sauce. These are also emusified sauces, but the oil is replaced by molten butter and the watery component is a reduction of wine, vinegar, shallots and herbs. These sauces are so devilishly good, it should be forbidden to even talk about. (I didn't hear about them from Wikileaks ;-)
Eat it with asparagus tips or a medium grilled beef fillet or both...

[KittyF]

Hmmmm, what's the sugar for? can you make it without? I'm diabetic and I don't use anything with sugar in it.

[feralmonkey4]

sugar cuts the acid taste a bit. am diabetic also and the pinch or 2 of sugar that you use is nothing in the diet it doesn't even add one carb to mayo.

[KittyF]

maybe I'll try stevia. sugar raises my blood sugar.

[pdub77]

Sugar is not necessary. It is in there for flavor. Mayo can be made with nothing but egg and oil, but other ingredients act for flavor and as emulsifiers.

[porcupinemamma]

Next week i will be 54 years old, and home made mayo hasn't killed me yet :0)

[8bit Hero]

Alton Brown made mayonnaise on an episode of Good Eats and recommended that you leave the mayo sit at room temperature for one to two hours before you refrigerate. The acid in the lemon juice will indeed inhibit bacterial growth, but apparently colder temperatures reduce it's effectiveness. The cause for the rest at room temp isn't listed in the recipe on Food Network, but if you reference the show it's in there.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/mayonnaise-recipe/index.html

[kaosfury]

The reason is that the acid's ability to reduce bacteria is itself reduced at lower temperatures. Leaving it at room temperature for 1-2 hours will kill the bacterium. Of course, you could just buy pasteurized eggs and not worry about it at all.

[jen7714]

Really? I would have to check that out. I always refrigerate mine right after I make it.

[Computothought]

Im sure right . I would sparate the yolk from the whites and add just a tiny bit of water to keep them moist and stir well. You would probably have to experiment with the time. 75 seconds would be way too long. Say try 30 at first and take the temp of the cooked yolk. Go from there.

[jillcatt]

How about a raw egg disclaimer?

[jsil]

This article must be read; it clarifies many things said here: "Assuring safety of egg yolk-based sauces and salad dressings ":

http://www.hi-tm.com/Documents/Mayonnaise.html

[Cyberscann54]

vinegar and the lemon/lime juice cooks the egg and kills anything that can possibly cause any harm to you from the eggs. Plus they are also natural preservatives.

[jillcatt]

Not to be argumentative, but you're saying that vinegar and lemon juice will kill the salmonella bacteria that may (tiny chance) be in the egg? And what do you mean by "cooks the egg?"

[ERNesbitt]

Similar to ceviche, the acid chemically changes the protien structure of the egg, "cooking" it without adding heat.

[jillcatt]

But my question was, does it kill salmonella? I'm not a bacteria freak, in fact I always use unpasteurized raw eggs in making mayo. Just curious.

[feralmonkey4]

yes the acid in vinegar will kill salmonella if you let it work so when you make this leave it at room temp for 2-4 hours then refrigerate for up to 6 days. the acid works at room temp cold in the fridge stops the acid from working and therefore you will not kill the bacteria unless it is left out warm. I do this with every batch of mayo I make and have never had any problems at all. As an aside if you are really worried (as in can't stop thinking about it ) they sell pasteurized eggs so your .003% chance of getting salmonella drops to 0.

[jen7714]

I'll be sure to add that to be extra clear.

[John Sphar]

Don't know about the newer food processors, but most models of the old Cusinarts have a small hole in the bottom of the food pusher/plunger that is for adding oil slowly in a very small stream/drip into the blending mixture when making mayo. You just start the food processor with all the other ingredients added and put the oil in the food pusher/plunger letting it drizzle down into the blending mixture. No need to worry about adding the oil too fast. If your food processor has a hollow pusher/plunger and does not have a hole, you could add one.

[Netjunnkie]

don't use the whole egg, just the egg whites and it will be even more heathier

[feralmonkey4]

don't let people tell you that the white is healthier that the yolk there are nutrients in the yolk that you would be hard pressed to replace with just the white if cholesterol is a concern don't let it be because they have found that cholesterol in the blood stream comes from saturated fat not cholesterol you eat.

[ERNesbitt]

The yolks are what contain lecithin which creates a stable emulsion. Without the lecithin, it will eventually seperate back into water and oil.

[moutngrrl]

Could you just add the fillings from lecithin capsules, or would you just might as well use the yolk?

[jen7714]

That's good to know. I always use the yolks but I know some recipes just use the entire egg.

[aeray]

Only the yolks are being used here. If only the whites were used, it wouldn't be mayonnaise. It would be meringue.

[jen7714]

I agree. The egg yolks are a pretty key part to mayonnaise. It makes the flavor and helps provide the texture as well. Egg whites are used to incorporate air in some recipes which means it won't work well in making mayonnaise.

[marymac]

Any time I ever made mayo I used the whole egg. Plus, anyone with allergies to eggs the allergen is in the whites. Meringue is made with only the whites. Not with yolks.

[Netjunnkie]

Maybe true but look at this. It does not use eggs at all http://www.ezhealthydiet.com/homemade-mayonnaise-recipe.html
Though I have not tried it yet and don't know if it is going to taste as good as this but it seems that it could be even more healthier. Since Healthy is what we are looking for. But I do not want to sacrifice taste though. Guess I should try both.