Foolproof Homemade Mayo
For when you can’t just run to the store and get it.
Oh the oil I’ve wasted trying to make my own homemade mayonnaise. Many, many swearwords came out of my mouth after each $5 flop of liquid garbage.
I followed all the conventional wisdom on how to do it…use only room temperature eggs, slowly drizzle in oil while blending in a food processor, whisk it by hand, use only the yolks, etc…I’ve probably failed at making mayo at least 10 times before coming across a suggestion that I read online somewhere — and I really wish I could remember where I found it because I would absolutely credit that person right now.
There is special equipment required, that hopefully you will already have in your kitchen. You will need a nice and powerful immersion blender and a tall jar or glass that is only slightly wider than the immersion blender itself. It doesn’t have to be fancy, I actually use an old plastic souvenir cup from a friend’s birthday party (see picture below).
This is the cup I actually use because it happens to be the only one I have that works with the blender. I actually just bought this blender a few weeks ago after my other one busted…which turned out to be a happy accident because this one is more powerful and makes better mayo. I’m going to go off subject for a bit…if you are looking to buy a new blender I would highly recommend a metal one. My old one was a cheap plastic model, and it broke apart into tiny bits while I was blending a full pot of homemade tomato soup so I had to dump it all out. WHAT A WASTE!!
In this picture you can see that the cup is only slightly wider than the blender itself. That is what seems to be the important trick to making quick (and did I mention easy?) homemade mayo.
Now, to make it.
Ingredients
1 egg…that does not have to be at room temperature
1 cup of mild oil (I always use extra light tasting olive oil, but you could substitute another mild oil like avocado oil or canola oil)
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1 tablespoon lemon juice
a pinch of salt
Note: you can add in fresh herbs or other seasonings to make it more interesting but for now the above ingredients are my basic recipe.
Directions
The order you do this in is important so follow exactly.
First, crack the egg into the bottom of the jar. Remember it doesn’t have to be at room temperature…just take it right from the fridge.
Next squirt in your dijon mustard on top of the egg.
Then add your lemon juice (freshly squeezed or from a bottle…doesn’t matter which).
Now add your salt.
Finally add the oil last, so all the other ingredients are sitting underneath it in the jar.
Now, the way you blend it is very important as well. If you rush it, it may not come out thick or the oil may not blend all the way.
Place your blender all the way to the bottom of the cup. When you start blending, make sure you keep you blender at the bottom of the cup for at least 20 seconds. Then, SLOWLY start to raise it up. Do not bring it all the way up though if you still see a lot of oil. Twist it around and try to get the remaining oil to suck down into the blender until it is mostly all blended. If you bring it too close to the top you will loose your suction and won’t be able to blend the rest of the oil very well. If there is a little bit of oil left on the top that is ok…you can mix that in with a spoon or something later.
That’s it! I store mine in a glass jar in the fridge with the date I made it. It lasts up to two weeks unless you add other herbs or spices to it…then I would use it within 5 days for sure.
Good luck and health to you all!
