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Once you try this tasty, creamy homemade mayonnaise (and see how easy it is to master how to make mayonnaise), you’ll never go back to buying a jar at the supermarket!
Mayonnaise is one condiment you’ll absolutely always find in my refrigerator door. As the star of so many of my favorite Midwestern recipes (see below!), a classic mayonnaise recipe is even better when you make it from scratch. Essentially an emulsion of egg, oil, and a few acidic ingredients, mayonnaise is as easy to make as it is to love.
So ditch the store-bought brands and try your hand at homemade mayonnaise. Once you try a spoonful of the luscious condiment recipe, you’ll never go back! Sorry, Duke’s and Hellmann’s.
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Egg: One large raw egg will do the trick. Or for an even richer, creamier homemade mayonnaise, replace the whole egg with 4 egg yolks and increase the vinegar to 1 ½ tablespoons vinegar.
- Vegetable oil: Any refined neutral-flavored oil like canola oil or avocado oil will work here. Steer clear of extra-virgin olive oil, which may change the flavor of the mayonnaise and cause it to break. You may not need all of the 1 ½ cups of vegetable oil called for in this easy mayonnaise recipe; just add enough to reach your desired consistency.
Step-by-step instructions
- In a food processor, blender, on a large bowl by hand, combine the egg, vinegar, fresh lemon juice, Dijon mustard, and salt until well incorporated.
- Slowly drizzle oil, keep pulsing or whisking vigorously, until the mayonnaise thickens up, about 5 to 7 minutes.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This homemade mayonnaise recipe makes 2 cups, or 32 tablespoons, enough for several sandwiches, sauce recipes, dressing recipes, and beyond.
- Storage: Keep extra homemade mayonnaise in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
Whisk together in a large bowl 1 teaspoon mustard with 1 tablespoon of the broken mayonnaise until creamy and well mixed. Slowly add the remaining broken mayonnaise, a teaspoon at a time, to the mixture whisking to incorporate.
Whisk in 1 tablespoon of water if the mayonnaise becomes oily on the surface.
Beyond as a spread on your favorite deli sandwich, try it in the special sauce for Cheeseburger Quesadillas, as part of my creamy Hot Corn Dip, in the sauce for Crab Cakes with Remoulade, atop party-worthy Cucumber Sandwiches, mixed with Homemade Ranch Dressing Mix, or as the “sauce” for Vegetable Pizza. My two personal favorite uses for this mayonnaise recipe? As a dipping sauce for French Fries or Curly Fries and as the key ingredient in a Tuna Salad Sandwich, Egg Salad, Chicken Salad, and Potato Salad.
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How to Make Mayonnaise
Ingredients
- 1 large egg (see note 1)
- 1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
- 1 teaspoon salt plus more, to taste
- 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil (see note 2)
Instructions
- In a food processor, blender, on a large bowl by hand, combine the egg, vinegar, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, and salt until well incorporated. Slowly drizzle oil, keep pulsing or whisking vigorously, until the mayonnaise thickens up, about 5-7 minutes.
Notes
- Egg: One large egg will do the trick. Or for an even richer, creamier homemade mayonnaise, replace the whole egg with 4 egg yolks and increase the vinegar to 1 ½ tablespoons vinegar.
- Vegetable oil: Any neutral refined oil will work here. Steer clear of olive oil, which may change the flavor of the mayonnaise and cause it to break. You may not need all of the 1 ½ cups of vegetable oil called for in this easy mayonnaise recipe; just add enough to reach your desired consistency.
- Yield: This homemade mayonnaise recipe makes 2 cups, or 32 tablespoons, enough for several sandwiches, sauce recipes, dressing recipes, and beyond.
- Storage: Keep extra homemade mayonnaise in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
If you’re only using the yokes, why is mayonnaise not yellow?
Hi Forrest, thank you for your question! My recipe calls for one whole egg. If only using egg yolks, the mayonnaise would naturally turn out to be more yellow. I hope you enjoy making this recipe! – Meggan