Homemade Mayo (aioli)

Did you know I take “requests”? Joanne was browsing throguh the Avocado Fritters recipe and asked for my recipe for homemade mayo. Well Joanne, here it is, just for you:).

Mayo is one of those items that you “need” to learn how to make if you are a foodie (foodie “police” may check up on you). It’s a very simple process and if you make it in a food processor it takes no time or effort at all. Making it by hand is easy but takes a little while, 20 minutes or so, because you blend the oil into the yolks a little at a time, whisking constantly.

Mayo is considered a sauce but is used more as a spread or a dip. It is made by incorporating oil into egg yolks, a process that makes them expand and hold the oil in a creamy textured thick sauce. You whisk the egg yolks with mustard, salt and vinegar and then add the oil by droplets at first, progressing to a slow intermittent fine drizzle and ending with a little more oil, 1 tablespoon or so, added at a time while whisking constantly.

The measurements are pretty standard: 3 egg yolks can incorporate about 1 1/2 cups oil. If you do it in a food processor you can reduce the yolk amount to 2. Julia Child suggests to add 2 tablespoons of boiling water at the end of the mixing process to prevent any curdling from happening. Other recipes add a couple of tablespoons cream at the end. Cream sounds good but I follow Julia’s suggestion of adding water, who am I to doubt her?  For the oil you can either use just olive oil or a mixture of olive oil and another oil (canola, grape seed etc.). For the vinegar I use white balsamic but if you don’t have it go ahead and use white wine vinegar instead. Homemade mayo can be flavoured in a variety of ways, from adding herbs, ketchup, curry, horseradish, mango syrup and more, creating a sauce that compliments your particular dish. Here is how I make it:

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Ingredients:

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3 egg yolks

1 teaspoon dry or dijon mustard

2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon coarse salt (not fine, it will be too much)

3/4 cup olive oil

3/4 cup canola oil

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Directions:

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Making mayo by hand:

Place egg yolks in a bowl and whisk with a small whisk until they look creamy and just begin to thicken.

Add mustard, salt and 1 tablespoon vinegar and continue to whisk until nice and creamy.

Place oil in a 2 cup glass measuring cup. Begin to drizzle the oil into the yolk mixture whisking constantly. In the beginning, until the sauce begins to thicken, just pour it into the yolk by the droplets.

Be patient, the sauce will eventually thicken to the consistency of whipping cream and then get thicker. Just continue to drizzle the oil in, whisking constantly. When the mayo is thick, after about half of the oil has been added, you can begin adding it  at a more steady pace but make sure it is completely absorbed by the eggs before adding more.

Half way through adding the oil add the second tablespoon of vinegar to thin it out a bit.

Continue until the oil is all added and the sauce is nice and thick. It gets hard to whisk after a while but stick with it, you’ll get a beautiful homemade mayo.

Add 2 tablespoons of boiling water and stir. It will smooth out the sauce beautifully.

There you have it, homemade mayonnaise, hand made.

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Food processor method:

Use the same ingredient list but use 2 yolks instead of 3.

Place yolks, salt, mustard and 2 tablespoons vinegar in the food processor and process until creamy.

Through the feeding tube begin adding the oil as the machine is running, by a slow drizzle. The mayo will come together quickly.

When you have added all of the oil and the mayo is nice and creamy remove to a bowl and cover with plastic right over the surface to prevent a skin from forming.

Keep refrigerated.

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Homemade mayo