Sunday, March 13, 2011

Frugal Friday: Homemade Mayonnaise Recipe

Is it my imagination or have grocery prices jumped BIG TIME?   I went into a grocery store the other day to purchase a jar of mayonnaise and was shocked that the sticker price was over $5.00. 

It has been a huge challenge to stay within my $200.00 a month budget for groceries/toiletries/household expenses so I'm trying to find ways to substitute items that are rising in cost for something less expensive. So when I saw the $5.00 sticker on mayo I decided to try my hand at homemade mayo. I tried it once before but the olive oil I used had a strong flavor that transferred over to the taste of the mayo. I threw the batch out.. it was that bad. 

 

I used a recipe a friend suggested from Elton Brown. I read you could use a hand blender instead of a whisk so I started out placing the mixture into a cup and slowly began adding the oil. You're supposed to add the oil in a small steady stream. If you add the oil too fast then it will 'break' and separate. The mayo was coming together nicely but my hand blender started getting hot. I tried letting it cool down but then I got impatient and added the oil too fast. It ended up separating. I'll share below how I fixed it. 

 

Mayonnaise

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown from Food Network
  • 1 egg yolk*
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
  • 2 pinches sugar
  • 2 teaspoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
  • 1 cup oil, safflower or corn (I used extra virgin olive oil from Costco)

Directions

In a glass bowl, whisk together egg yolk and dry ingredients. Combine lemon juice and vinegar in a separate bowl then thoroughly whisk half into the yolk mixture. Start whisking briskly, then start adding the oil a few drops at a time until the liquid seems to thicken and lighten a bit, (which means you've got an emulsion on your hands). Once you reach that point you can relax your arm a little (but just a little) and increase the oil flow to a constant (albeit thin) stream. Once half of the oil is in add the rest of the lemon juice mixture.
Continue whisking until all of the oil is incorporated. Leave at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours then refrigerate for up to 1 week.

 *RAW EGG WARNING
Food Network Kitchens suggest caution in consuming raw and lightly cooked eggs due to the slight risk of salmonella or other food-borne illness. To reduce this risk, we recommend you use only fresh, properly refrigerated, clean grade A or AA eggs with intact shells, and avoid contact between the yolks or whites and the shell.


Fixing 'broken' mayo is very simple. Just take a single egg yolk and place it in a bowl. Briskly whisk the egg yolk while you add the 'broken' mayo slowly. Continue adding the entire batch of broken mayo into the egg yolk slowly. That's it. The mayo will turn out yellow but taste great. We normally only eat Best Food mayo and I've never liked 'off  brands'. This mayo passed the test.