Homemade Mayonnaise: Technique, Troubleshooting, Storage

[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.

←

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.

←

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?

←

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.

[redfox]

The other thing to keep in mind, counterintuitively, is that adding more oil (obviously, only up to the point of what the yolk can keep in emulsion) is actually what makes the mayonnaise thicker.

[Abra]

Perhaps it makes a difference when you add the liquid? It looks like the drop-by-drop folks are adding liquid upfront, instead of at the end, whereas Francois and I are adding the oil in a slow stream to the egg yolk and mustard before adding the liquid. I've only ever done it this way, but I've never had it break. Who's the Guru of Mayo around here? This is a good mystery.

[jackal10]

Mayo is a balance. You need to add liquid from time to time as you go along or it gets too thick to stir. However too thin, and its harder to get the oil to disperse rather then clump.

[Kevin Weeks]

A large egg yolk will absorb 7 oz of oil, so don't use more than that per yolk.

←

According to Harold McGee's experiments in The Curious Cook (page 118) a single egg yolk can emulsify 100 cups of oil.

[Really Nice!]

...a single egg yolk can emulsify 100 cups of oil.

←

1 cup equals 8 ounces

100 cups equals 800 ounces

A single egg yolk can emulsify 800 ounces of oil? That has to be one heck of a large egg yolk. That's 6 gallons and 1 quart of oil per egg yolk.

Please test using a 25 quart stock pot and report back.

[jsolomon]

No, that's the power of phosphates. It doesn't take much to whip a large amount of water into shape.

[kurl]

I make mine in a food processor (sacriledge?) and it generally comes out at a thickness I'm comfortable with (and no wrist strain necessary).

[Kevin Weeks]

Please test using a 25 quart stock pot and report back. 

←

No need. As I said, McGee performed the experiment:

"The figure I came up with for that same ordinary yolk was on the order of 100 cups. Something more than 6 gallons of oil! Of course I didn't just add the oil straight, gallon by gallon; that would have been a waste of oil and work. After adding a certain amount of inexpensive soy bean oil, I took a small portion -- around a teaspoon -- of the mixture and then added more oil to just that portion. I repeated this subdivision several more times, periodically adding water to prevent the emulsion from breaking solely on account of crowding. When all the additions and multiplications were done (if a portion containing one-tenth of the yolk absorbs 1 tablespoon of oil, then the whole yolk would have absorbed 10) that astonishing figure emerged: 1 yolk, 100 cups of oil. It seemed impossible, so I did the whole experiment again from scratch. There were some differences, but the result was of the same order of magnitude. There can be no doubt that the egg yolk is a prodigious emulsifier." -- The Curious Cook, Harold McGee, pg 118.

[evilhomer]

don't test mcgee