Homemade Mayonnaise

There is nothing wrong with buying mayonnaise at the supermarket or at your corner store, but if you want to make your own mayonnaise, it is simple to do, but it does require a raw egg. If using raw eggs makes you worry about safety, you can pasteurize the egg or eggs yourself by heating water in a pan to 140 degrees F (and yes, you'll need a thermometer, see further). Add the egg or eggs in a single layer and leave them in the hot water for 3 to 3 1/2 minutes (only add the eggs to the water when it has reached 140 degrees F, and that begins the time keeping). Remove them immediately and put them into cool water. You will need a thermometer, because if the water gets much hotter than 140, the eggs will cook; so, you will need to monitor the temperature the entire time. There are pasteurized eggs sold in supermarkets, and while most of these are pasteurized egg whites, you can find pasteurized whole eggs, and you use them just as regular non-pasteurized eggs. Pasteurized eggs are more expensive, but likely most buyers of these pasteurized eggs aren't using them in large quantity, as you only really need them for things like mayonnaise, some salad dressings, eggnog, certain sauces and meringue; after all, we don't really need pasteurized eggs, since we much more typically fully cook eggs anyhow, either to be eaten in some cooked manner themselves (fried, sauteed, boiled), or as part of some recipe, like custard, or we bake them as part of recipes, like in some breads and cakes. In many parts of the world, eggs are NOT kept refrigerated, but in the U.S., we buy eggs from refrigerated cases in shops and supermarkets and then we put them into our refrigerators at home. When I was a kid, some small markets (like produce markets or what are now called 'farmers' markets') sold eggs that were not refrigerated, as did some truck-based businesses, where a guy traveled the streets and alleyways shouting what items he had for sale, often also shouting out the price or specials he was offering. Many, if not most, of these people were farmers selling their own goods, or they were directly connected with farmers for the items they sold; that is, the farmers directly supplied their products, like eggs, butter, milk or cheese.   

 

As for the oil, there are lots of choices: vegetable oil, corn oil and canola oil are all good, but you can also try avocado oil (I haven't tried this yet myself) or peanut oil. If you like more flavor, you can replace all or some of whatever oil you're using with extra virgin olive oil. 

I use a stick blender to make mayonnaise (also called an immersion blender). If you have a glass jar (like from a large jar of jelly or jam, with a wide enough opening for the stick blender), that should be ideal, or you can use the container that often comes with a stick blender, or a good, sturdy glass measuring cup is another good choice; as a matter of fact, that's what I used when I made the mayonnaise for this article, and I then covered it with plastic wrap. 

 

One other thing, you can add sugar if you'd like, but it is optional. The lemon juice, vinegar and mustard add tartness to the mayonnaise (the lemon juice and vinegar also help in preserving the mayo), but if you want to lessen the sourness, as I commonly do, use the sugar. 

 

For a long time I did what many people do in making mayonnaise; that is, I added the ingredients, BUT I added the oil a little at a time (I also used a small food processor/blender), literally drop by drop. I'm not sure what I thought would happen if I added all of the oil and if I used a stick blender ... maybe the mayonnaise police would get me and as punishment I'd be condemned to eat baloney sandwiches without ketchup for a period of time? (I'd REALLY scream loudly!)    

 

Ingredients (for 1 cup +):

 

1 whole egg, recommended to be room temperature

1 teaspoon lemon juice

2 teaspoons white vinegar

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard 

good pinch of salt

(optional) 1 teaspoon sugar

1 cup oil 

If you keep eggs in the refrigerator, remove the egg or eggs and let it/them sit out for just a few minutes to come to near room temperature. I sometimes rinse eggs from the refrigerator under some warm (not hot) water to help speed up the process. Add all of the ingredients to the container you are using, including all of the oil, and let everything sit for about 45 seconds. Put the stick blender into the container so that it goes clear to the bottom. Turn the blender on and keep it firmly at the bottom until the ingredients thicken up a great deal, then you can move the stick blender up and down to get all of the ingredients mixed in thoroughly. When the mayo thickens completely, it's done. Understand, blending the ingredients into mayonnaise won't take place in ten seconds, or likely not in 25 seconds, so be prepared to hold the stick blender until the mayo thickens up well. My experience is about 1 minute total, but admittedly, I have an older stick blender, which I bought with economy in mind. (So Randy, you mean it's a cheap stick blender?... Ah, you didn't have to be so blunt, but YES!)

Homemade mayonnaise on some sliced tomato ...

WORD HISTORY:

Prove -"Prove" is closely related to "probe," a Latin-derived word borrowed by English from Latin, and it is related to "probable," a Latin-derived word borrowed by English from French, to "probate" (both the noun and verb forms), both Latin words borrowed directly from Latin, and to "future," another Latin-derived word borrowed from Latin-based French, and it is distantly related to the verb "(to) be," a word from the Germanic roots of English. "Prove" is from a compound Indo European form "per-bhuho," which had the notion "to be to the fore, to be in front." Indo European "per" meant, "before, in front of, forward;" thus also figuratively, "first, main, chief;" thus also, "superior, excellent." The "bhuho" part is a form from Indo European "bheu," which had the notion, "to exist, to be;" thus also, "to grow." This gave Latin the adjective "probus," meaning "superior, worthy, upstanding," and this produced the Latin verb "probare," meaning, "to show (something) to be of value, or to be good;" thus also, "to demonstrate;" that is, "to test in order to show/demonstrate value or goodness in something"),  also, "to commend;" thus, "to approve." This was borrowed by some Germanic languages, including Old English, which had the verb "profian," meaning "to try, to test, to show goodness or benefit of something," but also, "to hold in high regard." Meanwhile, Latin "probare" (see above) passed to Latin-based Old French as "prover" (also as "pruver), meaning, "to prove, to show or demonstrate abilities or capabilities of something;" thus also, "to evaluate." "Apparently" the Old French form influenced changes in the Old English form to produce "proven/pruven," circa 1200, with the same general meanings, and as the conjugation of English verbs changed 250 to 300 years later, the form became "(to) prove."