Homemade Mayonnaise: Science, Techniques, Troubleshooting, Storage

[culinary bear]

*ponders stealing a bottle of 6M hydroflouric acid for the purposes of mayonnaise research*

[rascal]

*ponders stealing a bottle of 6M hydroflouric acid for the purposes of mayonnaise research*

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Might have a tough time with the mayo jar on that one

[Dave the Cook]

*ponders stealing a bottle of 6M hydroflouric acid for the purposes of mayonnaise research*

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Might have a tough time with the mayo jar on that one

A glass jar would be fine, wouldn't it? It's the whisk you'd have to worry about.

[Marlene]

Your impulse to substitute some of the EVOO is a good one. Mayonnaise made entirely with unrefined oil will break in short order. If you had any left over and put it in the refrigerator, you probably found that out already. That aside, you can vary the flavor by changing the proportion of EVOO to neutral oil. Keep the unrefined oil to less than 30% of the total, and the sauce will be stable.

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I can attest to this. When I make mayonnaise as the base to my Ceasar salad, I find using EVOO with the beaten eggs makes it break every time. I've started using half canola and half EVOO to make the base. I also use an electic hand mixer which seems to work well for me.

[rascal]

*ponders stealing a bottle of 6M hydroflouric acid for the purposes of mayonnaise research*

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Might have a tough time with the mayo jar on that one

A glass jar would be fine, wouldn't it? It's the whisk you'd have to worry about.

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HF acid dissolves glass IIRC and has to be stored in Teflon or the like.

[pam claughton]

I just took a cooking class recently and made mayo for the first time. We used rice wine vinegar and lemon and there was not a sharp lemon taste at all. In fact, I thought it was kind of bland, until we added the rest of our seasonings. We were making a remoulade sauce, so it went from bland to wow in seconds.

I'd give the rice wine vinegar a whirl.

If your mix breaks or you go too slow (like I did, I was afraid of breaking, and we were in a commercial kitchen with a super powered food processor that turned my mix into rubber), you can fix either mistake with a few drops of warm water.

:) Pam

[Dave the Cook]

HF acid dissolves glass IIRC and has to be stored in Teflon or the like.

Yikes. I didn't know that.

[maremosso]

We have only home made mayo "chez nous", as no one in the family can stand the ready made type.

There are all kinds of home made mayo recipes, and extra flavourings and ingredients can be added as you go.

But I would say that a good basic mayo would consist of 1 whole egg, whizzed for a few seconds, just to blend, in a blender with salt. pepper and 1 tablespoon lemon juice (or best quality white wine vinegar; here you can let your imagination go wild - terragon vinegar, cider vinegar, raspberry vinegar are all excellent substitutions).

Then, with top of blender open, drizzle in 1 cup (or 1 and a quarter cups) salad oil, and continue until your mayo reaches the right consistency.

That's it.

Don't use olive oil: keep that for another variation of your basic mayo, for example, when making Aioli.

With Aioli, you would also add garlic - as much as you can take.

P.S. Half a cup lemon juice for only 1 yolk is definitely too much!

[DanaT]

Hi all.

I'm a New Yorker so I don't cook much but I got the urge to make some homemade mayonnaise to go with my poached salmon. Its the second time I'm trying it and it tastes delicious but seems too runny-like a Creme Anglaise.

Is there a special trick to making THICK mayonnaise? Or is homemade mayonnaise naturally just thinner?

The recipe is 2 egg yolks, 1 whole egg, 1 tablespoon of mustard and 2 cups of olive oil. I added an extra egg yolk and its a bit thicker but not creamy mayonnaise. I hesitate to put another egg in there.

Any advice?

[godito]

when you do mayo, it's important to whisk the egg yolk (without any other liquid... including the egg whites) really well. Make the egg yolks thick and creamy. then add the liquid (lime juice, egg white, water, raspberry juice or whatever you're using) whisk again, and only then start adding the oil. Make sure, though, that whatever the liquid you're adding is, it's not to much, or your mayo will turn... well... thin.

[DanaT]

Thanks gordito. The recipe came from a Silver Palette cookbook. I was a little suspicious of the 2 cups of oil and the egg whites but the proportions seem on a par with other recipes I scoped out.

[Corinna Dunne]

I use yolks only. It also helps to have them at room temperature. This will give you a very thick mayonnaise, which you may even need to thin out a bit with some lemon joice.

I have seen receipes that use the full egg, but normally these are for 'quick' mayonnaise made in a blender or liquidiser, with the oilve oil poured in a slow stream as the motor runs. It doesn't sound like this is what you are doing, so dropping the egg white completely should give you the result you are looking for.

[Really Nice!]

A large egg yolk will absorb 7 oz of oil, so don't use more than that per yolk. Also, when starting add the oil a few drops at a time while whisking the egg yolks. As it begins to emulsify add the oil more quickly.

[DanaT]

I use yolks only.  It also helps to have them at room temperature.  This will give you a very thick mayonnaise, which you may even need to thin out a bit with some lemon joice.

I have seen receipes that use the full egg, but normally these are for 'quick' mayonnaise made in a blender or liquidiser, with the oilve oil poured in a slow stream as the motor runs.  It doesn't sound like this is what you are doing, so dropping the egg white completely should give you the result you are looking for.

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Thanks so much, Corinna. That explains it, I am using a blender recipe. I'm not likely to try the blender experiment again, the stuff separated when my back was turned so I threw it out.

Is there a good basic recipe for homemade mayonnaise posted on the boards?

Thanks Really Nice!

[jackal10]

Why here: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=29574 in the eGCI unit on it...

[DanaT]

With wonderful pictures no less! Thanks, jackal. I think I'll make a smaller quantity next time.

[Luckylies]

also if you want it really thick whisk really fast in the beginning and when it starts to hold some weight you can slow down. it's a workout but well worth it. dont forget to use alot of salt otherwise it may taste "funny"

[BarbaraY]

Sounds to me that you may have been adding the oil a bit too fast. We were taught to start by adding one teaspoon at a time beating well after each addition until it began to thicken and then add a little faster but just a little. Have never used that particular recipe, though.

Jackal10, very good instructions in the link.

Saddly after 40 or so years of being aesthetically, correct one developes conditions like torn rotator cuffs and bursitis and finds that perfectly lovely mayonnaise can be made using electric devices.

Edited May 30, 2005 by BarbaraY (log)

[francois]

You really don't have to be so carefull nor to pour the oil so slowly. Use a wisk, not a spoon. It is a myth that mayo is difficult or long to make by hand.

To make a small amount:

1 egg yolk, 2/3 cup oil (I prefer grapeseed oil- it makes a more stable mayo when cold), a bit of Dijon mustard (1 teaspoon), a few drops of white wine vinegar or lemon juice, a few drops of boiling water (to whiten the mayo and thin it out if too thick).

Wisk the yolk with the mustard. Wait a couple of munites while you measure the oil and prepare the other things. Wisk it again for a few moments then slowly pour in the oil while wisking. No need to go drop by drop, just go slowly. When it gets a bit too thick, a a bit of wine vinegar or lemon juice (about 1/2 teaspoon). After all the oil is used up, adjust the thickness with more vinegar or lemon (to taste) or whiten it with a few drops of boiling water. With asparagus for exemple, I prefer it on the thin side.

After you have done it a few times it does not take more than a couple of minutes; much faster than cleaning out the food processor. It makes a small amount so it is easy to use it quickly. I find it better when freshly made.

[Abra]

Francois, I do it exactly as you do, except that I use ice water instead of boiling water. It's amazing that both can work - I wonder why that is?

[jackal10]

It doesn't matter what temperature the water is; it just adds more water droplets.

There is a myth that a little boiling water somehow sterilises the mayonnaise. Simple arithmetic, or experience shows that this cannot be so, since the temperature of the mass is not raised significantly. What dding water does is change the ratio of oil:water, and so may make the emulsion more stable and less prone to split.

Cold is also the enemy of mayonaise, expecially if made with an oil, like unrefined olive oil, that thickens on cooling. Mayo made with such oil is likely to split on being refrigerated.

[Corinna Dunne]

And a bit of good news I forgot to mention: If your mayonnaise does split when you are making it, don't throw it away. You can start again with another egg yolk and gently drip in your split mixture while you whisk.

[Clerkenwellian]

And a bit of good news I forgot to mention: If your mayonnaise does split when you are making it, don't throw it away.  You can start again with another egg yolk and gently drip in your split mixture while you whisk.

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Alternatively, if you're lucky, a reasonably powerful blender will be able to re-emulsify it without needing to use another yolk.

[k43]

I've never had any luck re-emulsifying broken mayo with a blender or food processor.

The sign of broken mayo is a clearish liquid with tiny white droplets in it, a bit like curdled milk.

The way to avoid breaking is to go really slow at the beginning. Add a single drop of oil, beating constantly with a whisk or wooden spoon, and make sure it gets absorbed. Then one more drop, then maybe 2 drops. Eventually you can go a teaspoon at a time, but I've broken the emulsion far too often when I tried the "steady stream" method.

The process also works for hollandaise (egg yolk and melted butter). I found my sister-in-law in tears after beating a broken hollandaise by hand for over half an hour. I rescued her fancy asparagus dish by starting with a fresh yolk. A great combination even if she didn't clarify the butter first.

[francois]

Francois, I do it exactly as you do, except that I use ice water instead of boiling water.  It's amazing that both can work - I wonder why that is?

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Interesting! Actually, I never thought of using cold (or room temperature) water. Since I had always read that the water had to be boiling hot, I just assumed that it had to be that way! I would have been worried that the cold water would make the mayo turn (No it is obviously not to sterilise the mayo).

Next time I will give it a try. It is even faster if you dont have to heat up the water!

I still dont understand why so many people insist on putting the oil drop by drop...

Thanks.