How to Make Mayonnaise

Store-bought mayo is fine. But homemade mayo takes 60 seconds, tastes better, and makes you feel like you have your life together. All you need is an immersion blender.

Ingredients

• 1 large egg (room temperature)
• 1 cup neutral oil (sunflower or canola)
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice or white vinegar or half of each
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• ½ teaspoon salt

On the oil: Don't use extra virgin olive oil — it goes bitter when blended. Light olive oil or sunflower oil works best.

Instructions

1. Crack the egg into a tall, narrow container — the kind that came with your immersion blender, or a wide-mouth mason jar
2. Add the mustard, lemon juice, and salt
3. Pour the oil on top. Don't stir. Just let it sit in layers
4. Place the immersion blender at the bottom of the container, pressing it flat against the base
5. Turn it on and don't move it — hold it at the bottom for about 10 seconds. You'll see the mayo form from the bottom up
6. Once the bottom half is emulsified, slowly tilt and raise the blender to incorporate the remaining oil on top
7. Done. That's it. You have mayo

The whole thing takes under a minute.

Tips

• It's not emulsifying? Your egg was probably too cold. Let it sit out for 15 minutes before starting
• Too thick? Blend in a teaspoon of water
• Too thin? You moved the blender up too fast. Start over — there's no fixing a broken emulsion
• Flavor variations: Add a clove of raw garlic for aioli. Add sriracha for spicy mayo. Add herbs for herb mayo. The base recipe is a blank canvas

Storage

Keep it in the fridge in a sealed container. Good for about a week. It won't last that long.