Making your own mayonnaise isn’t that hard. And it’s a great way to control the ingredients you eat.
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I never in a million years thought that I would make my own mayonnaise. I had heard that it was difficult. And it sounded a little scary.
But then I did some food research and decided that soy was something I wanted to avoid in my kitchen. Unfortunately, my very favorite mayonnaise (Best Foods, aka Hellmann’s) in the whole wide world is made with soy. What’s a girl to do?
I could find a commercial, soy-free mayo that I liked or learn to make it myself. The first part is practically impossible. If it doesn’t have soy, it has extra sweeteners. So, I took the plunge.
I got lots of coaching from a couple friends. Both have been the lucky recipients of fevered texts and emails, some sent from the middle of Walmart, while I try to figure this mayonnaise thing out.
I tried four different recipes (whole egg, olive oil only, egg yolk, etc) and two different methods (immersion blender and food processor). What I landed on has become spot-on, tasty, and easy. In fact, I made two batches this past weekend!
There are so many great sauce recipes you can make yourself. This is one of the best!
Ingredients for this homemade mayonnaise
- Egg yolk
- Lemon juice
- White wine vinegar
- Sea salt
- Oil
How to make this homemade mayonnaise
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In a food processor bowl fitted with a metal blade, place the egg yolk, lemon juice, white wine vinegar, and sea salt. Turn the food processor on and blend well.
-
Combine the oils in a glass measuring cup.
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While the food processor is running, add the oils in a very thin stream until an emulsion is formed and the mixture thickens.
-
Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix this liquid in.
-
Spoon the mayonnaise into a glass jar. Store, covered, in the fridge for about 5 days.
I followed the proportions similar to those that Shaina suggests in her Sriracha-Lime Mayo, but I’ve settled on the food processor as my go-to gadget. The immersion blender experience was rife with user error. The food processor is in my wheel house for this.
Is homemade mayo safe?
I used pasteurized eggs for this. I found them on sale at Sprouts this week. This makes me feel “on the safe side”, but you can use regular eggs, too, just make sure they are very fresh.
What oil is best for homemade mayo?
I also found that using a blend of light olive oil and sunflower oil gave it a milder taste than straight olive which I’d tried a few times.
How long does homemade mayo last?
The best part about making your own homemade mayo is that it will last, covered in your fridge, for up to 2 weeks.
How can I use this homemade mayonnaise?
We’ve used this basic mayonnaise on sandwiches, in potato salad, in chicken salad, and in Yogurt-Dill Dressing. And you can bet I’ll be using it in caesar salad soon. So, so good!
Making homemade mayo doesn’t have to be tricky — and it can enable you to eat the way you want to!
If you prepare this recipe, be sure to share a picture on social media and hashtag it #GOODCHEAPEATS. I can't wait to see what you cook up!
Basic Homemade Mayonnaise
Ingredients
- 1 pasteurized egg yolk
- 2 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoon white wine vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup neutral oil such as avocado or sunflower
Instructions
- In a food processor bowl fitted with a metal blade, place the egg yolk, lemon juice, white wine vinegar, and sea salt. Turn the food processor on and blend well.
- Combine the oils in a glass measuring cup.
- While the food processor is running, add the oils in a very thin stream until an emulsion is formed and the mixture thickens.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix this liquid in.
- Spoon the mayonnaise into a glass jar. Store, covered, in the fridge for about 5 days.
Leslie
I do not own a food processor. Can I make this with a hand mixer?
Davinder palsingh
What can be the substitute for egg yolk because I am vegetarian kindly let me know
Jessica Fisher
I do not know. You might want to search for vegan mayonnaise recipe as most standard mayo has an egg in it.
Cheryl
Does the egg have to be hard boiled?
Jessica Fisher
No. It’s a raw egg.
Cheryl
When i made it it didn’t get thick. Still liquid after 5 minutes
Jessica Fisher
It can be tricky. You need to add the oil very slowly else the emulsion can break.
Lizzy Jahncke
Jessica, have you tried putting homemade mayo into a dish that gets heated, such as a hot dip? We have a couple favorites that I’d like to make over without the suspicious stuff from a jar, but I’m worried the homemade will separate. One dip I can make with sour cream just fine, but I think the other relies pretty heavily on the mayo and would NOT taste the same with sour cream. I’d be happy to hear if you’ve tried heating the homemade mayo, and with what results. Thanks!
Jessica Fisher
I seem to recall that I have done it, but with mixed results.
Lizzy
Ok. Thanks, Jessica.
TSandy
I finally made a batch using your recipe and it’s fabulous. Much better than the homemade mayo recipe I used last time. The only difference was I had a Costco size jar of grapeseed oil (that I forgot I bought just to make mayo) so I subbed the sunflower oil with grapeseed oil. I liked the combo flavor. Eventually I’ll get around to buying that bottle of sunflower oil and try your recipe exactly. Thanks for doing a great job. I’ll never buy mayonnaise again. (Oh and I emailed Best and told them why my 40 year buying history with their company came to an end. Lots of unhappy customers complaining on their website.)
Jessica Fisher
I’ve used grapeseed oil as well as avocado oil. It’s really just to balance the heavy oil flavor.
TSandy
I tried making mayonnaise once before and didn’t like the result. I’m willing to give yours a try though. I’m horrified to say that I’ve never looked at the ingredients in mayonnaise (I do buy Helman’s) and arrogantly thought I had long ago removed all soy from our diet. Sigh! Once again my arrogance got the better of me. Thanks for the gentle reminder that I need to check ingredient labels on the few things left I buy at the grocery store.
Jessica Fisher
I feel your pain. That’s my fave, too, only we call it Best Foods here. I now love the homemade variety, particularly when I use sunflower/olive oil combo.
Melissa
Hi! I was looking at the mayonnaise recipe and when you say pasteurized eggs, did you just use Egg Beaters or something similar to that?
Thanks!
Jessica
No, you need egg yolks. Pasteurized eggs come in the shell. They’ve been heated to a proper temp to kill any unsafe bacteria. Safe Eggs is the brand.
Amber
I buy my eggs from a local farmer. I’m guessing they are not pasturized. Is there a way to do this myself do you know?
Jessica Fisher
If you know the eggs are fresh and you trust the farmer’s handling of them, you should be fine. I have friends who do it. It’s not recommended that pregnant women, young children, or elderly people have unpasteurized eggs. So use caution and common sense.
Denise
See, I greatly prefer the immersion blender version, it’s so easy and then I don’t have to clean the whole food processor, just run the end of the immersion blender under some water with a little dishsoap. But that’s just me. I’ve been trying to eat less fat and sugar, so homemade mayonnaise seems like a no-no at the moment… I’ve been getting reduced fat at the grocery store, but it’s not cheap. I was so happy when I found some at Aldi recently. I’d like to make homemade reduced fat mayo, but I’m not sure where to start. And which do you think is better? Full fat mayo or the reduced fat stuff? I worry that with reduced fat items they’re adding all kinds of things you don’t need just to bump the flavor and texture because they removed the fat, but the full fat stuff has so many more calories, which isn’t helpful on a diet. Would love to hear what you think, especially after your Whole 30 experiment.
Jessica
@Denise, I don’t honestly think that fat is bad for you. I would much rather have butter than margarine. I’ll choose regular mayo over reduced fat. I think the things they add are much worse than the fat itself.
As for weight loss, I’ve found that over indulging in carbs is the bigger issue than the fat. Last summer I lost ten pounds by counting calories, drinking more water, and eating more vegetables. I still had cheese and butter and olive oil. But, I didn’t do any low-fat items. Blech. 😉
melanie
I make mayo but only because my 2 boys are violently allergic to egg and dairy, so I do an oil and rice milk version, I’ve only done it a few times but I was thinking this week I should give it another go, it doesn’t taste like our regular mayo but I just want them to have some of the “normal” foods we all enjoy every day, I kind of feel like a bad mum coz my youngest has never had potato salad, seriously, that’s one of my favourite foods!! I think I will whip out the blender tomorrow when the hubby is off fishing and get a making 🙂 thanks for the little nudge
Heidi
I make a double batch of mayo so I don’t have to make it every week. A tablespoon or 2 of whey will keep it fresh for weeks.
Carolyn
Hmmm… have tried homemade mayo and just didn’t care for it. Since you give a thumbs-up on this, I think I’ll try it. Why? Cause Hellman’s is the brand I use and it’s my very favorite also 🙂
Mayo is one of the very few things I don’t make from scratch – this recipe may change that fact.
Melinda P
I’ve tried so many times to make my own mayo, but it always turns out either too bitter or too tasteless or.. etc. That’s the only reason I still buy commercial mayo. I’ll have to try your recipe and see if I like that one. And perhaps I should stop trying to do the lazy person stick blender method and try it in the food processor instead. 😉
Cheri A
Oh, this is great! I was just thinking about how pricey mayo is and how little of it we actually use usually. It sits a long time in our frig. I think it would be oh so much better to make it fresh when I need it. I’m adding the sunflower oil to my shopping list! And I’m all about using a food processor since I – gasp- don’t have an immersion blender. LOL.
Thank you, Jessica!!
Ellen
It doesn’t have an opening in the top. But I may try it anyway. 🙂
Ellen
Ok, I’ve been making drop biscuits with mayo a lot lately, and I started noticing that all the mayo has soy in it. Do you think I could make this in my mini food processor? I have one that holds about 1 1/2 c., I’d guess.
Jessica
@Ellen, I don’t see why not. As long as it blends like a food processor. Can you add liquid in a thin stream? Does it have an opening in the top?
cherie
Yesterday I went to the ‘regular’ grocery store, which I rarely do, to get some more greek yogurt for the baking session I was doing . . . and passed ‘our’ mayo on sale – we were on our last jar
I bought several all the while thinking, “Gee, maybe this is another food I should start making from scratch”
And here you are – love that you’ve always got something going on that’s been on my mind!
Jessica
@cherie, Isn’t that fun how that works out?
Part of my reason for giving it a go is that Best Foods is so pricey now.
Victoria
My mom and grandma use to make their own mayo when I was growing up, I hadn’t even thought to try it myself. I inherited my mother’s recipe box after she passed away, I bet the recipe is in there. Reading your tips just might inspire me to get the family recipe out and give it a try.