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Homemade mayonnaise.
When you perfect the recipe and technique, it’s amazingly delicious. However, the process of trial and error to get to that point often leaves a bit to be desired, at least in my experience! 🙂
I have a confession to make.
Kraft Mayo is, and forever will be, my standard of what mayo should taste like. While I don’t eat it anymore, due to the nasty, rancid, GM ingredients, it will forever be my standard. My homemade mayo will never taste like Kraft, and I have made peace with that, despite countless attempts to recreate it. However, my homemade mayo is just as delicious in its own special, healthy way. And, now that I have a recipe I am happy with and have learned the proper technique to make it, I am pleased to keep it real in my kitchen.
Did I mention the countless batches of mayo I made that either didn’t emulsify, broke, or otherwise tasted nasty? I finally got a combination of oils and spices that I like and wanted to share the recipe with you. I make this regularly, as long as I have a supply of fresh, pastured eggs from a source I trust (my parents). Everyone’s taste is going to vary, so what I consider delicious mayo might not be what you consider delicious. However, in an effort to keep rancid oils and GMOs out of our kitchens, it’s worth a try!
I have made mayonnaise with all sorts of different oils. I have experimented with different varieties of olive oils. Honestly, I have never liked the taste of olive oil, even when it’s not in mayo. I can eat it mixed into salad dressings, but the overall flavor of olive oil is not my favorite. I even tried (many times) making it with the olive oil from Chaffin Family Orchards, which I was told was the BEST for making mayo. Even though their olive oil is delicious (and that’s coming from someone who doesn’t really like EVOO), it was still too strong of an olive oil taste for me.
I also experimented with different coconut oils, various nut and seed oils, and combinations of all of the above. Some of them tasted good, some, not so much. I finally settled on a combination of expeller-pressed coconut oil (affiliate link) and avocado oil. This will give you the best, neutral-tasting mayo (in my opinion). I sometimes add a little macadamia nut oil in to the mix, which yields a very rich, buttery, flavored mayo.
On a side note, I really don’t venture out into the various nut and see oils too much, as they tend to be high in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs / Omega 6’s), which lead to inflammation in the body if we get too much. There is a fine balance between Omega 3’s, 6’s, and 9’s and most vegetable, nut, and seed oils can easily throw that balance out of whack. However, in my quest to find the perfect oil combination for homemade mayonnaise, I stumbled across this great post from Mark’s Daily Apple, and was introduced to avocado and macadamia nut oils. Avocado oil has a fatty acid profile that is similar to olive oil and has a wonderful, neutral flavor. Macadamia nut oil is high in monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) and low in PUFAs, so it is a much better choice than most nut oils. It has a very smooth, rich, buttery taste. Both, I found out, make delicious mayo. Both are relatively expensive though, so in order to keep the costs down, I decided to add in the expeller-pressed coconut oil (affiliate link) and my recipe was born!
I use an immersion blender to make my mayo. I have also made it in a blender and in a food processor. I do prefer the immersion blender, because it requires the least amount of clean-up and saves me some dishes. I use a wide-mouthed, pint Mason jar that I found at the thrift store. It is the perfect size. If you don’t like, or don’t have macadamia nut or avocado oil, then you could sub that for any other oil that you like. Except coconut oil. If you make mayo out 100% coconut oil, it sets up really firm in the fridge, ending up more like butter than mayo. Trust me on that. It was one of my many failed experiments! 😉
Note: I don’t ferment my mayo. Frankly, I use it so fast, that I am not concerned with extending the shelf-life of it and I eat enough other fermented foods, that I’m not worried about missing out on this one item. If you do want to ferment it, please do not use the typical “whey” way of fermenting it. Whey drops the pH of the mayo too low and you miss the critical lactofermentation steps. If you want to ferment it, I recommend following this recipe from Divine Health, which is based on the lactofermented mayo recipe from Lisa’s Counter Culture.
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Simple Mayonnaise Recipe with Coconut and Avocado Oil
I have linked to the products from my affiliate partners that I personally use and recommend.
Ingredients
- 1 whole pastured egg, from a source you trust, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup liquid expeller-pressed coconut oil
- 1/2 cup avocado oil (or macadamia nut oil for a nuttier, butterier flavor)
- 1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp. sea salt
- sprinkle of white pepper (optional)
- sprinkle of garlic powder (optional)
- dash of paprika powder (optional)
Instructions
Important: Make sure all of your ingredients are at room temperature. This is critical and will ensure that the mayo will emulsify properly.
1. If you’re using an immersion blender, find a jar that the blender will fit into, no smaller than 2 cups. If you’re using a blender or food processor, you don’t need this step.
2. Pour your oils into something that will allow you to drizzle it out slowly. I use my glass Pyrex measuring cup and that works great. Reserve 1/4 cup of the avocado oil.
3. Place your egg, 1/4 cup of the avocado oil, lemon juice, ACV, sea salt, mustard, white pepper, garlic, and paprika in the jar (or blender or food processor bowl) and blend until creamy.
4. With the immersion blender (or blender or food processor) running, slowly, slowly, s-l-o-w-l-y drizzle the rest of the oil (3/4 cup total) into the egg mixture. As it starts to emulsify, you can start pouring it in a little faster, but be careful not just to dump it in there. You may have to tilt the immersion blender slightly as the mayo starts to thicken so it can continue to pull the oil down to the bottom and blend it in. When you get to the point where you have about 1/4 cup of oil left, it might seem like it’s getting too thick. Just keep pouring the oil in. It will emulsify and be perfect!
5. The whole process will take about 5 minutes. Don’t rush it, just be patient and stay focused on the drizzle!
6. When all the oil has been poured in, the mayo should have reached a nice, thick, fluffy texture. Stop the immersion blender, clean it off, and enjoy your mayo! Will keep in the fridge upwards of a week, but I doubt it will last that long!
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I’ll have to give this a try! My very first homemade mayo was from The Primal Blueprint cookbook, and I ignored the recommendation to use LIGHT olive oil, using all EVOO instead. BIG mistake! It was inedible. The next attempt was from the Paleo Diet Lifestyle site (really great recipes there!), which was a 50/50 mix of light olive oil and coconut oil. I still like that one a lot. I’ve since made it with all light olive oil and I still like the way it comes out, but it doesn’t have as much body as when you throw some coconut oil in there. I’m intrigued by the avocado/coconut oil combo, and I like the spice recommendations as well. I’ve been playing it safe with my mayo, spice-wise. Well, except when I turn it into a dipping sauce for shrimp and stir in copious amounts of Old Bay, hot sauce and lime juice! 🙂
Hi Beth – I hope you enjoy it. I tried so many different combinations of oil and finally found that I liked this best. One time, I did make it with straight EVOO – BLECH! 🙂 Let me know what you think!!!
Can’t wait to try this! We go through phases where we eat quite a bit of mayo, and I’d like to make my own. If I use regular gold label oil instead of expeller pressed, what difference will there be?
It’s delish! I prefer the expeller-pressed, because I don’t like the taste of the coconut in my mayo. Some people don’t mind it, but I personally didn’t care for it. Let me know what you think when you make it!! 🙂
Hi Jessica. Happy New Year.
I’ve been making my mayo by dumping the eggs – I use a whole egg and an egg white – along with 1 c olive oil and salt and pepper. I use my immersion blender and have thick, creamy mayo in about 30 seconds. No having to drizzle in the oil. And the mayo doesn’t separate after weeks in the fridge.
I add lemon juice or apple cider vinegar after I’ve blended the mayo so I don’t thin it too much.
I’ve been fermenting as you said not to where I use 1 tbl liquid whey to my mayo, then let it ferment in the covered jar for about 8 hours on the counter. Then I refrigerate it for weeks. It’s never gone bad. I live in South Florida, and the heat doesn’t seem to affect the ferment.
Thanks for bringing this to my attention so I can investigate further.
Hi Gopika – Thanks for your feedback! It’s funny how we all have different experiences! I experimented with just dumping the oil in all at once and for me, it never emulsified to my liking. The slow drizzle technique worked best for me. Anyone who has read Nourishing Traditions is familiar with the whey “way” of fermenting. But, after more research, I found that those types of ferments do not create the best environment and yield the most gut-nourishing probiotics. There is a very specific process to fermentation and certain steps are missed when you add the whey. Let me know if you want any links to posts that discuss this and I’d be happy to email them to you! 🙂
Been making mine like this for about 3 years, minus the lemon juice and subbing Dijon with stone ground brown mustard. YUM! I use 1 cup each of the oils, and 2 whole eggs and 4 yolks for a big batch, and season per taste.
Sounds delish! 🙂
Hi Jessica,
I know what you mean. I ended up with the dump idea from http://www.amateurgourmet.com/2012/05/60-second-aioli.html. My first attempt at making mayo was a failure because I didn’t drizzle in the oil slowly enough. Then I heard of Adam’s method. I had recently gotten a Breville immersion blender, the model with something like 15 speed adjustments, and I figured if Adam could do it then so could I. Only I forgot he still drizzled in the oil, and I didn’t. Uh oh.
The Breville has umph to it, unlike my experiences with the popular Cuisinart and KitchenAid models. I made a small batch in case I messed up. As I said, I put all of the ingredients in the vessel that came with the Breville, and I had mayo that looked like the mayo in the above Web site.
Anyway, yes I would very much appreciate your sending me the links to properly fermenting the mayo. I wish Pickl-It sold jars smaller than .75L. I don’t have the tools to make my own.
Thank you again for sharing!!
Sorry for the slow reply Gopika! I have one of the Cuisinart ones, but I have heard the Breville ones are awesome. When mine dies, I’ll look into that one. Mine definitely could have more ooomph! 🙂 Just so I don’t forget, here is a link to a recipe for fermenting mayo:
http://divinehealthfromtheinsideout.com/2012/10/probiotic-rich-purple-white-fingerling-potato-salad/
I thought I had another one bookmarked, but I realized that it’s actually a recipe in the Lisa’s Counter Culture book. Hope this helps! 🙂 🙂
Hi Jessica,
Thank you for the link. I’ll check out the instructions on how to ferment mayo a new way.
An update to my comment above: The outcome of dumping all of my oil into my latest batch of mayo was to have a final product that is thick to the point of being a mold. And it quickly separates at room temp.
I thought I was copying Adam’s version: www.amateurgourmet.com/2012/05/60-second-aioli.html
I spent all of my adult life without an immersion blender and got one only after hearing so many bloggers rave about them. I bought – and returned – the popular Cuisinart and KitchenAid models. I found they lacked power.
The Breville has a lot more power, and the model I have has I think it’s a 15-notch power dial. Very powerful at the 15 level.
To save your waiting, I’d be happy to gift you my unit. It comes with a covered carafe, a whisk, and a power chopper. I got it at Bed Bath & Beyond I think about six months ago, and it’s in mint condition.
You can e-mail me privately an address to send it to you.
If you prefer your own brand-new unit, BBB offers 20% in-store and on-line coupons and free shipping for purchases over $99 if you’re on their e-mailing list. I got an in-store coupon in my e-mail today. I’m happy to forward that to you if you can use it.
Gopika – You are too kind! Thank you for such a nice offer! You don’t have to do that though, but I am so flattered that you thought of me! 🙂 I actually get those BBB coupons in my mail. I will grab one and check the Breville one out next time I’m there! Thanks for the suggestion! Have a wonderful rest of your week and weekend! 🙂
Hi Jessica.
I’m not being nice. I have a piece of equipment I rarely use, and you are interested in the same model. It made sense to me to offer.
I just may return it. BBB has one of the best return policies ever.
Happy shopping!!
I think the Breville might be the answer. I tried to make mayo with my Cuisinart immersion blender and it was a disaster. I drizzled too – very tough for ME to handle with holding the blender and then drizzling with the other hand. Right now I just use my Kitchen Aid mixer and it works great. Mine ALWAYS takes longer than 5 minutes to make though. I tried it in the VM but it set up WAY before I had added all the oil and then when I tried to finish adding oil, it broke completely. I’d LOVE to just dump and blend. I hate making mayo b/c it takes (me) so long. This could be a solution!
Hi Susan – I’ve never had any issues with my Cuisinart immersion blender making this mayo, but I know some other folks love their Brevilles! Enjoy! 🙂
I would love to try this recipe but I’m not familiar with avocado oil and I was hoping you could give suggestions on sources, grades, and what not. I appreciate it!
Hi Rae – I honestly don’t know of many brands of avocado oil on the market. I get mine at my local health food store and the two brands they carry are: Spectrum Naturals and Ahuacatlán:
http://www.spectrumorganics.com/?id=6#j40
http://www.ahuacatlan.com.mx/english/aceite.htm
Amazon also has a few brands too, but I have never ordered any of those. Hope that helps! 🙂
Jessica!
I made your mayo tonight and it was AMAZING! I have tinkered with homemade mayo and never found the perfect consistency. It was always too runny and just not quite right. This recipe is PERFECT! Thank you. I am so excited that I finally have my go-to homemade mayo now in the fridge. Yippie!
Hi Lindy! YAY! I am soooooooooooo happy to hear that! Thank you for coming back to let me know your success! 🙂 🙂
Hi Jessica. Love the recipe! My mayo ended up tasting too much like coconut oil. Do you happen to know how I can tone it down a bit?
Hi Dana – So glad you liked it! I think it is SO yummy! In order to not have the coconut oil taste, you need to use a refined coconut oil, rather than virgin. In my recipe, I use the expeller-pressed coconut oil from Tropical Traditions, which is steam deodorized and has no coconut scent or taste. I agree, I don’t like the taste of coconut oil in my mayo, which is why I only use the expeller-pressed when making mayo. Hope that helps!
This looks so good! I would love to have you share this on The HomeAcre Hop!
http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com/2013/01/the-homeacre-hop-3.html
Hi Lisa – Thank you for the invite! I will check it out! 🙂
I’ve also had my first ever success with this recipe – attributing it to the coconut (to help thicken) and the avacado – that gives it that familiar store-bought soy-taste we’re used to. My concern, that was brought to my attention, is using raw eggs. Of course we only use quality pastured eggs, but even then sources say you should not eat raw egg whites, only raw yolks – healthy home economist says the raw whites have some anti-nutrient factors that prevent you from benefitting from entire egg. I’m tempted to keep using the whole egg raw b/c the mayo consistency is so great. I tried it with only the yolks and it didn’t turn out – wouldn’t thicken. Thoughts on the raw eggs?
Hi Jackie – Thanks for stopping by and I’m glad you had success with the recipe! In regards to the eggs, I have heard that too about not eating the raw egg whites. In my opinion, eggs come as a whole food (yolk and white together) and should therefore be eaten as a whole food. That is why I chose to use a whole egg for this recipe, rather than just the yolk like many other recipes call for. That, and I never have any use for a single egg white, so I always felt guilty wasting it! I am sure that some people may be sensitive to egg whites and in those cases, I would see why they may not eat the whites. But, this is just one egg in a batch of mayo that I may eat over the course of a week. I don’t think that it’s enough to really cause problems. That said, this is simply my own personal opinion and encourage everyone to do their own research and come to a decision that makes the most sense for them. Hope that helps! 🙂
My mom used to make her own mayo. The only thing I really remember (aside from slowly adding the oil) was that EVERYTHING had to be refrigerator cold, including the mixing bowl and beaters. Why do you have everything at room temperature?
Hi Claire – I’m sure there are many different techniques to making mayo. I was always taught that the ingredients need to be at room temperature for proper emulsion to happen, but if cold ingredients work for you, then by all means do it that way! Happy cooking! 🙂
I’ve always liked Kraft, also. Too bad about all the GMO’s. I have been making my own mayo for a few years and just purchased a liter of avocado oil ($13.99, Chosen Foods brand) and was wondering whether this oil would lend itself to making mayonnaise. That’s how I happened on your site.
I wanted to suggest that one may mix in some peanut oil with the olive or coconut oils and that will help get the taste just right. Some of that extra virgin olive oil mayo can taste alarmingly wild sometimes.
Hi Tom – Yes, the avocado oil is perfect for making mayo (as you can see here in this recipe). That may be the same kind I get at Costco. I can’t remember off the top of my head. I often do all avocado oil for my mayo, but do love the combo of avocado and a little sesame oil from time to time, though too much sesame oil alters the taste too much for my preferences. I don’t like the taste of olive oil in mayo at all, even if it’s just a little bit. Find a combo that works well for you and stick with it! I don’t recommend peanut oil though. It’s too high in polyunsaturated fats and like other nut oils goes rancid very, very fast.
The key to emulsifing mayonnaise is 1 tbsp of water try it with 3 egg yolks instead of a whole egg
Hi Mark! Great tip, though this recipe has no issues with emulsifying just the way it is! Works like a charm every time! Thanks for stopping by!! 🙂
I don’t much like mayo but need it for recipes now and then so make it in a Vitamix which is so easy. I think I might like it made with macadamia nut oil and am going to try that. Thanks for the recipe!
Hi Karen! Let me know if you like the macadamia nut oil version. It really does give it a very unique, buttery flavor. I hope you enjoy! 🙂