Mayonnaise - not liking the taste

[CookAMH]

I've made mayo a few times now and just made a batch. I am hoping I can do something to it to improve the flavor. I used half olive oil, half lard, and made the NT recipe. It tastes too mustardy. I added a little maple syrup for a hit of sweetness, and may add more. I noticed some with vinegar...is it too late to add that now that the oil has emulsified? Should I had more lemon juice?

I admit, I LOVE the taste of hellmans. What can I do to make the flavor more like that?

[Magelet]

I'm not sure there is much you can do to make the taste blander once you've made it. And honestly, it's really really unlikely that you can make homemade mayo that tastes like hellmans. I don't know anyone who does.

You can make it taste better to you though. Yes, you could try adding vinegar now, it should work ok. I don't think you can get rid of the mustard flavor, just add less mustard next time. Can you make this batch into aoili and use it for something else (because aoili is often strongly flavored?)

I admit, all of my mayo is "aoili", I always add garlic, because I don't want it bland. It's hard to make homemade mayo bland when you are using good ingrediants (Which are thusly flavorful), so I just try for really nice and flavorful instead.

[lil_earthmomma]

For blander "hellmans-ish" mayo use a neutral oil, like walnut oil. Olive oil and lard have too much of their own flavor. (I hate olive oil mayo, too bitter for me.)

I love to make mayo with bacon grease. Mmmmm mmmm mmmm!

Homemade mayo is always going to have a brighter flavor than hellmans, but you can probably come close with lots of tweaking.

[cristeen]

I've never tried the recipe in NT, but your mayo shouldn't taste mustardy. The amount of mustard in my recipe is about 1/4 tsp - it's just there for the emulsification power.

For a more neutral tasting mayo, use a neutral oil, like a pp said. I use sunflower. I also get a better balance by using half lemon juice half vinegar (I use white wine vinegar). All of one or the other brings too much of that flavor. You also need a fair bit of salt, IMO. A really good-sized pinch for lack of a better description.

Also, I've heard of adding a Tbs or two of boiling water at the very end to get a more white color (instead of pale yellow). It also can help cut the greasiness.

I've added a dollop of honey before, but it's a balancing act - just enough to neutralize the vinegar, but not so much to make it sweet. I add it at the very beginning with the mustard and egg yolk, it blends better.

[my_baby_love]

I've only made one batch so far, but I would definitely cut way back on the mustard next time I make it. It just didn't taste much like mayo. Mine got really thick, so I don't think I would even need it for emulsifying.

I used olive oil in mine, and didn't really like the flavor it gave it. It's good to know I can use something more neutral and maybe get it a bit closer to what I had in mind. Speaking of mayo, I should probably make some more today.

[Smokering]

I started using ghee! Well, not real ghee, but I melt the butter in a jug and just pour off the clear liquid, not the solids. I dunno how "real" it is according to mayo purists, but it's extremely nommy. I hated the olive oil or even canola (pre-TF) stuff too - it tasted cloggy and coated the mouth and was generally gross.

[kallyn]

I make mayo with half extra virgin olive oil and half cold-pressed macadamia oil and it always turns out with a really nice flavor. The macadamia reallllly tones down the EVOO, which is great because EVOO gets so bitter when its polyphenols get obliterated in a blender. I also like a lot of lemon, I feel like it really brightens up otherwise stodgy mayo. As for too mustardy, not sure if the NT recipe uses dry or prepared mustard, but I get better results with dry.

[Gale Force]

This is where my mom and I agree to disagree. I don't mind the olive oil flavor, but she does. She uses canola oil. :

[bagare]

I really like to use apple cider vinegar in mine. I like that much better then the lemon juice, at least my mayo seems to set up better with the ACV for some reason, although, if I am making aioli, say for salmon, I do like it with lemon and dill and capers, and I don't mind if it is more saucy (said with a saucy tone!)

[CookAMH]

That's good to know about the olive oil. I will try with walnut oil sometime, and also decrease the dijon mustard, as well as trying some vinegar for some of the lemon juice. My mayo is pretty yellow because of the FABULOUS eggs I get through my parents - such orangy yolks .

Thanks! This is all very helpful.

[junipermuse]

I made some with avocado oil and I thought it tasted really good. And I'm pretty picky about mayo and my favorite is bestfoods/hellman's

[wagamama]

Originally Posted by cristeen

I've never tried the recipe in NT, but your mayo shouldn't taste mustardy. The amount of mustard in my recipe is about 1/4 tsp - it's just there for the emulsification power.

For a more neutral tasting mayo, use a neutral oil, like a pp said. I use sunflower. I also get a better balance by using half lemon juice half vinegar (I use white wine vinegar). All of one or the other brings too much of that flavor. You also need a fair bit of salt, IMO. A really good-sized pinch for lack of a better description.

Also, I've heard of adding a Tbs or two of boiling water at the very end to get a more white color (instead of pale yellow). It also can help cut the greasiness.

I've added a dollop of honey before, but it's a balancing act - just enough to neutralize the vinegar, but not so much to make it sweet. I add it at the very beginning with the mustard and egg yolk, it blends better.

cristeen, would you mind sharing your recipe?

[~Boudicca~]

Originally Posted by lil_earthmomma

For blander "hellmans-ish" mayo use a neutral oil, like walnut oil. Olive oil and lard have too much of their own flavor. (I hate olive oil mayo, too bitter for me.)

I love to make mayo with bacon grease. Mmmmm mmmm mmmm!

Homemade mayo is always going to have a brighter flavor than hellmans, but you can probably come close with lots of tweaking.

Please tell me how you make your mayo. I think bacon makes everything taste amazing so I can only imagine that bacon grease in mayo would be heavenly.

[weliveintheforest]

Originally Posted by cristeen

For a more neutral tasting mayo, use a neutral oil, like a pp said. I use sunflower. I also get a better balance by using half lemon juice half vinegar (I use white wine vinegar). All of one or the other brings too much of that flavor. You also need a fair bit of salt, IMO. A really good-sized pinch for lack of a better description.

I have found the same things - half and half with vinegar and lemon juice, neutral oil (I use half sunflower and half coconut), and a really generous pinch of salt.

[AllieFaye]

I don't think the recipe in NT is all that traditional. I use the one from A Mediterranean Feast, and use mild French olive oil, no lard. Tuscan olive oil has too strong of a flavor. Granted, I only make it rarely. If you wanted mayo all the time, then that might not be budget-realistic (unless you live in Provence.) I don't even remember the taste of Hellman's, so I could be way off in helping here.

[BetsyPage]

Kelly the Kitchen Kop has a great post with lots of comments (including mine, I did make mayo with her recipe slightly tweaked) about her mayo recipe...

http://kellythekitchenkop.com/2009/0...t-finally.html

[Feb2003]

not lil-earthmomma, but this is the bacon mayo recipe I use.
HTH

[zoebird]

my recipe is pretty basic:

egg yolks
olive oil
vinegar (i typically use white wine vinegar, rather than apple cider vinegar, but might also use rice wine vinegar or while balsalmic vinegar as well)
touch of mustard (seeds crushed in apple cider vinegar)

sometimes, i'll add a bit of lemon zest, but that's about it.

and i do it by hand--with a whisk. i find it makes the best preparation.

also, i discovered that a copper bowl works best. but, i left my copper bowl in storage in the US, so i've had to make it in a regular stainless bowl, and it's not as "light and fluffy."

[SuburbanHippie]

Bacon mayo? That has to be the best idea ever!

[cristeen]

Originally Posted by wagamama

cristeen, would you mind sharing your recipe?

1/4 tsp prepared mustard (I use a dijon - and it's literally enough to just stick the tip of a butter knife in the jar and scoop out a small little glob)
1 egg yolk
pinch salt

In the food processor, with it running, drip in 1/4 c of sunflower seed oil. By the time it's gone, you should have a very thick paste. If you don't, scrape it out and start over (keep it though, it's fixable).

With the motor running, pour in 1 tsp each white wine vinegar and lemon juice. Then in a slow stream, add 1/2 c of sunflower seed oil (if you have a failed batch, this is when you add that back in, also - in a slow stream).

That's how I usually make it, but if I have duck fat on hand, I'll warm it up enough to be fluid (it's liquid at warm room temp), and use that instead - it's the most scrumptious ever.