Thanks everyone, for some new ways to use mayo. I would hate to think, though , that anyone would believe that making mayo, with or without an immersion blender is anything but "silly simple".
Over a year ago, The Kid and I found that we had each bought two 18 egg boxes because they were on sale, so one of the things that we did with them was try a number of ways for making mayo, using two eggs per batch, though we had to go out for an extra gallon of oil. the results were kinda boring, We found that you can make mayo equally well with an immersion blender, an electric beater (though you can get some amazing splats using this method, if you are not careful or if you are deliberately trying to splat yr partner)), a balloon whisk , which is really hard work and works best if you have a partner so that one (The Kid) can whisk while the older, lazier person pours. a food processor which works great but is a nuisance to clean, as always, or a stand mixer, which was probably our favorite.
One of the great things about this recipe is that you can get away with a wide variation of quantities.
Start with 2 eggs. Discard the whites for a thicker mayo, but it's OK if you toss them in, and if you find one lonely egg left in the box, toss it in too, for company.
Use 2 Tbs of white wine vinegar, though regular white or almost any kind is fine. You can reduce the amount to make the mayo thicker, but I wouldn't go below 1 Tbs.
2 Tbs or less of lemon or lime juice, and although the recipes always say "fresh", bottled is fine. I've used 4 Tbs, total, of liquid to 2 eggs; don't go below 2 Tbs, total,and more than 4 will make the mayo very runny.
Dry ingredients consist of 1/2 tsp each of salt, sugar and dry mustard, and again, you can use up to twice as much mustard and salt as that and just a pinch (my preference) of sugar. You can leave out the dry mustard if you are out of it, or substitute a little regular mustard.
I use 2 cups of whatever vegetable oil I have handy. Some folks use olive oil "because it's more healthy", but I make 2 cups of mayo per week (which is about its maximum refrigerator life) and corn oil is a lot cheaper. This two-egg mixture by the way, can incorporate a lot more than 2 cups of oil. Try it out some time!
Again, some folks worry about the danger of getting salmonella poisoning from the raw eggs. When I make mayo, I quote the lines "Salmonella stay away,/I do not want you here today." This appears to work since I have never contracted salmonella poisoning.
Once everything (liquids first, dry stuff second) is in the bowl, beat it until all of the ingredients are well mixed and start pouring the oil in very slowly. The idea of adding it drop by drop must go back to the days when folks beat their mayo with a very tiny whisk; the big thing to remember is to be sure that you are whisking whenever the oil is being added.
And that's it. You will find that your mayo is thinner than the store bought kind; you can thicken it if you like by adding an extra egg yolk to the finished mayo and beating it in.
I make mayo every Monday morning and throw out what is left in the fridge. The whole job takes about five minutes, including clean up. You may find that you normally don't eat that much mayo each week, but with the great recipes earlier in this thread, you might find that you have to double up.
Cheers.
