How to Make Paleo Mayo
Until I was 22, I couldn't eat eggs. It was like my tastebuds were allergic.
It's not like I didn't try to eat them, but something about eggs made me want to barf over and over again. Even things like mayo and very eggy baked goods were out, because I could taste the egg. The only way I could eat mayonnaise is if it were stocked with herbs and spices that masked the egginess.
Thankfully, I stopped being crazy when I was 22 and now I really like eggs and mayo. However (with some notable avocado oil mayo exceptions!), most of the stuff in the jars (even the ones that say "olive oil mayo") is full of corn oil, soybean oil and preservatives.
This is not full of weirdness. And it's way easier than you'd think.
I like to keep this paleo mayo as a plain canvas and then adapt it to a few different uses throughout the week. It's especially helpful during a Whole30, where you can transform it into dressings, sauces, aiolis and dips — same as you would use regular mayo.
How to Make Paleo Mayo with Olive Oil
gluten-free, paleo, whole30
- 1 egg (get the good eggs, don't skimp here)
- 2 T lemon juice (the juice of one small lemon will be about right)
- 1.25 cups of light-tasting olive oil (extra-virgin will taste very heavy)
- 1 T dry mustard
- pinch of salt
- optional: black pepper to taste
1. Bring the cold ingredients to room temperature.
Crack the egg into your food processor (you could also use a blender or an immersion blender or a whisk and bowl too — though your arm will get le tired). Add the lemon juice to the food processor and let those ingredients come to room temperature (about 30 minutes).
2. Season and get ready.
Add mustard, salt and 1/4 cup of the olive oil and process on medium until everything is mixed well.
3. Emulsifying magic begins!
Continuously drizzle oil (in a very thin stream) into the processor while it's running. It takes patience to keep your drizzle thin. At a certain point, you'll start to hear the consistency change and you'll know your emulsion is working. When it seems to be the right consistency and you've finished your slow drizzle, stop the processor.
4. Taste test.
Adjust salt and other seasonings as needed. Refrigerate in a sealed jar or container. This will keep about as long as your egg would've, so make note of the expiration dates on your egg carton!
Notes
- Many mayo recipes use only the yolks. Up to you.
- Add the dry ingredients for chimichurri, pesto or other herbs for a tasty aioli.
- Add Sriracha or hot sauce and dip sweet potato fries in it.
- Adapt into a creamy salad dressing.
- Make a Banh Mi Bowl. Guh.
- Make Curry Chicken Salad. Double-guh.
- If you don't have time for this and just want to buy some paleo-friendly mayo, I like Chosen Foods Avocado Oil Mayo.
Lemme know how you end up using your homemade mayonnaise!
