Homemade Mayo
I have been experimenting with a high fat, low carb, moderate protein approach for over a month now, and I have come to find that high quality mayo is one of my new favorite fat sources! I don't tolerate nuts, seeds, and dairy very well, so I was forced to find another source of fat to eat! I bought Primal Kitchen mayo a few times and absolutely loved it; however, at $9+ a container (a small container too!), I just couldn't justify it anymore. So, I started making my own!
Most recipes call for an immersion blender. Since I don't have one and have NO desire to buy yet another kitchen appliance, I decided to use my food processor. It has worked so well that I wouldn't even dream of getting an immersion blender!
But before I share the recipe, let's talk a bit about why most conventional mayos (is that even a word?!) that are on the shelves are completely horrific when it comes to your health.
First, most of them have some form of vegetable oil (canola or soybean are the most common). We've discussed why vegetable oils are inflammatory in detail before, but I'll give a brief explanation again. Vegetable oils come from grains, not vegetables, and are highly refined in order to extract an oil. Once that oil is extracted, it must be put through more heat, chemicals, and processing to become a usable oil that appealing to look at as well (i.e. not brown, sluggish, and mushy). This processing method harms the already unstable polyunsaturated fats found in vegetable oils. So, while they're on the shelf or in the pan heating up, those vegetable oils become more rancid and inflammatory. Once eaten, they cause harm to your gut and entire body. Remember my post on inflammation a few weeks back?! It's at the root of most chronic diseases.
Second, most vegetable oils have sugar or artificial sweeteners added to them (think Miracle Whip). We are a sugar-addicted society, so food manufacturers put it in literally everything to ensure we become addicted to those foods!
Third, in order to make the mayo shelf stable, most conventional mayos have either hydrogenated fats (also known as trans fats) or other forms of shelf stabilizing chemicals added to them to ensure that they can last forever. Do you really want to eat something that lasts forever??
Lastly, the conventional mayo's ingredient list is usually quite long and full of unpronounceable ingredients. Do you really want to put those into your body?
Hopefully its obvious why I'm not a fan of conventional mayo. However, when made at home using real food ingredients, it becomes a wonderful source of healthy fat to add to your PFC balanced plates!
Homemade Mayo
Ingredients:
1 cup Avocado Oil
1 Pasture Raised Egg, at room temperature
1/2 tsp Sea Salt
1 tsp Water
1/2 tsp Dijon Mustard (sugar free), also at room temperature
1-2 Tbsp Lemon Juice (fresh, to taste)
Directions:
Place the egg, 1/4 cup of the oil, sea salt, water, and mustard in a food processor.
Blend together until everything is well combined (5-10 seconds).
Slowly stream in the rest of the oil while the food processor is still running. The mixture will start to solidify.
Once all the oil is added, you can add in the lemon juice a bit at a time to your taste while the food processor is running. (I like a little more lemon to give it a bit of tang!)
That's it! Your mayo is complete. Try not to eat it all in one serving!
Yield: about 1 cup (the recipe doubles or triples quite well too)
This mayo will last in the fridge about a week. Since you are consuming a raw egg in this recipe, I always make sure to use a high quality, pasture raised or farm egg (not the $0.50 eggs at the grocery store...). I love it on just about everything, including raw veggies, cooked meats, olives, and so much more! You can also add other flavors in (like garlic) to create different flavored mayo. Enjoy!
xoxo Olivia
