Easy Homemade Mayo

by Angela Gallardo in Recipes, Sides & Snacks

5 comments

Let’s get this going again, shall we?  With a remodeled 28′ travel trailer (pics to come soon, promise) and an abdominal surgery under my belt, it’s been about 2 months since I’ve joined you guys here.  I’ve missed it.  I need it.  So we’re back.  Did you miss me? 😉

I’m working on a new sub category:  5 ingredients or less.  Sometimes you want make simple recipes.  Or sometimes you move into a trailer and now your cupboard only fits a fraction of the ingredients you used to be able to store in that “spacious” townhouse you so often took for granted.  Either way, this journey is (painfully) teaching me that less is often better.  By less, I don’t mean for less flavor or less delicious, but less steps and less fuss.  So I hope you can embrace the more simple recipes that come along here at Bare Root.

First up for our 5 ingredients or less is a basic homemade mayo recipe.  It took me quite awhile to conquer this one.  I’d experimented with recipes calling for just the yolk of an egg, like this or this (sorry, Alton), and never achieved the thick, traditional mayo consistency I was shooting for.  Not to mention, they always ended up tasting much too tangy like Miracle Whip (gross), due probably to the addition of vinegar.

Another problem was found in the oil.  Canola/vegetable oils are most commonly used, both commercially and homemade recipes, but we know that’s out of the question.  And healthy raw oils like olive or coconut impart way too much flavor to mayo, which is most often used as a vehicle or enhancement for other flavors in a dish.  That’s where my recent love affair with avocado oil comes into play.  I’m continually surprised by the many great uses for this MUFA-rich, mild-flavored, expeller-pressed wonder of an oil and homemade mayo is now hitting the top of the list.  Add in simple lemon juice rather than vinegar and this homemade version comes pretty dang close to the jarred mayo I’d lick right off the spoon growing up.

At some point I’d re-checked the ingredients label on some basic mayo brands and noticed they added simply “eggs” and not “egg yolk.”  Why it took me so long to try this out, I have no idea but the egg white did the trick!  If you can handle the (nutritionally-dense) idea of ingesting raw yolks than please wrap your head around adding the white in, as well.  The proteins in the whites bind up the mix and yield a stiff, stable cream.  So unlike this its yolk-only counterpart, this mayo can stand up to many diverse applications.  Creamy favorites like chicken salad, egg salad, or potato salad are once again within your reach.

Get a printable PDF of the recipe

Easy Paleo Homemade Mayo

1 fresh whole egg

2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

¾ c. avocado oil

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

Directions:

Crack the egg into a deep measuring cup.  Pour in the avocado oil, lemon juice, sea salt, and pepper.  Blend the mixture using an *immersion blender, holding it flat to the bottom of the cup for about 15 seconds before slowly raising it up.  Move the blender slowly up and down 1-2 times to fully incorporate all the ingredients.  Do not bring the blade above the top of the mixture or you’ll get mayo all over your kitchen and yourself!  Enjoy immediately.  Leftovers can be kept in the fridge for up to a week.

*Note:  Older eggs will get watery and will give you a different consistency mayo.  Always use the freshest eggs possible, and local if you can!  Particularly because you are not cooking the egg, sanitation is a priority here.  

*Note #2:  I absolutely swear by my stick immersion blender for this recipe.  And so you believe just how much I value this uni-tasking kitchen tool, it made the cut during our down-sizing and it’s presently taking a small tidy spot in one of our trailer cupboards.  If you don’t have an immersion blender, your next best tool is a blender, although it may be a little more tough to get things blended uniformly.  A food processor could work as well but you may not get the same consistency as shown in the images here.