The recipe’s introduction gave me confidence: “Ever tried making mayonnaise and wound up with a runny mess? With this simple recipe, you can’t go wrong!”
I hadn’t tried making mayonnaise before. But that recipe, from “Better Made at Home: Salty, Sweet, Satisfying Snacks and Pantry Staples You Can Make Yourself” (Black Dog & Leventhal, 2014), did look simple — simple enough to inspire me to give it a shot.
I liked that the short ingredients list was all pantry staples, and I could even make it 100 percent homemade by using homemade mustard, also from “Better Made at Home.”
Further selling this mayo recipe was the fact that you can leave the food processor or blender on the shelf. A bowl and a wire whisk will get you smooth, creamy mayonnaise — thicker than the jarred variety, and that’s a good thing.
Biggest surprise: This recipe is quick and foolproof. With each addition of oil, I was pleasantly surprised by how easily it yielded to the egg yolks, thickening into a lush emulsion.
Critical steps: The stubborn hard-boiled egg yolk may threaten to leave your mayo lumpy, but don't give up. A minute of faithful whisking will fix that. Also be sure to use pasteurized-in-the-shell eggs (at least for the raw yolk) to protect from food-borne illness and increase the mayo's shelf-life.
Comparison to its commercial counterpart: This mayonnaise is pale yellow, not white — but we all know better than to judge based on appearances. (OK, maybe that's not always true for food, but it is for this mayonnaise.) It's richer and more luxurious, with an eggy undertone. After tasting this, the jar of commercial mayo in my fridge seemed too tangy and sweet. Homemade wins the taste test hands down.
Is it worth it? If your household goes through a lot of mayo or you have reason to use it up right away, then yes. But since it contains raw egg yolk, you don't want to keep homemade mayonnaise for more than two weeks. With a non-pasteurized yolk, you should use it within a few days.
Other notes: The recipe notes that if you intend to refrigerate the mayonnaise (and you should) you should use grapeseed oil, which won't harden in the fridge. I saw that note too late and used canola but noticed no ill effect upon refrigeration.
Homemade Mayonnaise
This mayonnaise is rich and velvety. The recipe is from “Better Made at Home: Salty, Sweet, Satisfying Snacks and Pantry Staples You Can Make Yourself” (Black Dog & Leventhal, 2014).
Makes about 1 cup
Tested by Alison Sherwood
2 large pasteurized eggs
1 tsp. prepared mustard
1/4 tsp. salt
Few drops of vinegar or lemon juice
3/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. sunflower, grapeseed or canola oil, or whatever oil you prefer, or a mixture of oils
Freshly ground pepper
Preparation
Boil one egg 8 minutes in salted water. Drain and peel under cool, running water. Remove yolk from egg and put it in a small bowl. (Reserve white for another use.) Let yolk cool about 5 minutes.
Separate remaining raw egg and reserve white for another use. Add raw yolk to bowl with cooked yolk. Add mustard, salt and 2 drops of vinegar or lemon juice. Mix well and let mayonnaise sit 1 minute.
Gradually add oil to bowl little by little, mixing constantly. Each time you add oil, stir mayonnaise until oil is completely absorbed and mayo is homogeneous. When all the oil has been absorbed, season with pepper. Then, if you wish, add more salt and vinegar or lemon juice to taste. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 24 hours before using.
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