Preview: Find out how to make homemade mayonnaise last longer by adding a small amount of yogurt whey to extend the window of freshness from a week to a month.
You may have a new reason to save the whey you get from draining yogurt. Keep reading to find out how this magical ingredient will help you make homemade fermented mayonnaise that can extend the shelf-life (in your fridge) for up to a month.
Don’t worry. Adding a small amount of whey won’t affect the taste of your mayo.
Does making mayonnaise seem crazy?
In reality, I don’t do it all that often myself. But once in a while, it’s a magical and gratifying experience.
Why make mayonnaise at home?
#1
The convenience factor
In the event you run out of your usual mayonnaise, the option to make it yourself could save you a last-minute trip to the grocery store. All of the ingredients are likely already in your kitchen.
#2
Customizable
Not only will you get mayonnaise with an incredibly smooth and velvety texture, but you can customize it for your taste or a specific recipe. Add herbs, garlic, and lemon, among other things.
How long does homemade mayonnaise stay fresh?
If you’ve never made mayonnaise before, you may not know that ordinarily, homemade mayonnaise recipes are supposedly only good for a week in the fridge. Of course, commercially-made mayonnaise has preservatives added so it keeps much longer.
So why make it myself? I don’t know about you, but our mayonnaise usage can be sporadic. I’m afraid I wouldn’t be able to use an entire recipe in a week.
How whey extends the freshness of mayo:
As it turns out, adding whey (that yellowish liquid you see collected on top when you first open a container of yogurt) to homemade mayo seems to extend the freshness window up to a month. It’s called lacto-fermented mayonnaise or fermented mayonnaise for s
If you make Greek yogurt at home, save a little bit of the whey you strained from your yogurt.
Not into homemade yogurt? No worries! Pour off the liquid you see on top of commercial yogurt when you first open it. You only need a tablespoon. Of course, the yogurt should be unflavored.
Tips for making homemade mayo:
Most recipes call for using a blender to mix up mayonnaise, but a food processor will also work. And guess what? A whisk and a bowl will do the job if you are in the mood for a little exercise.
In reality, what’s most important about making mayonnaise is that your eggs be at room temperature before you start. A bowl of warm water out of the faucet will warm your unshelled eggs in just a few minutes if you haven’t planned ahead.
How to make homemade mayonnaise with whey that makes it stay fresh longer:
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Hope to see you again soon!
Paula
p.s. Questions? Email me: paula at saladinajar.com.
Homemade Mayonnaise that Lasts Longer
A standard mayonnaise recipe with 1 tablespoon of whey added--instead of a week in the refrigerator, your homemade mayonnaise will keep for a month.
Ingredients
- 1 egg + 1 egg yolk (room temperature)
- 2 teaspoons apple cider or white vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon whey (drained from plain yogurt)
- Pinch of sea salt
- 1 cup avocado oil
- Dash of cayenne (red pepper)
Instructions
- Combine first five ingredients in a food processor bowl, a blender, or a medium mixing bowl. Blend well.
- Drip or barely trickle 1 cup of avocado oil into egg mixture with machine on or while you whisk vigorously by hand.
- Add a dash of cayenne.
- Pour finished mayonnaise into a glass jar and cover. Allow to sit on the kitchen cabinet at room temperature for 8 hours, then refrigerate.
Notes
This mayonnaise will stay fresh for about a month when refrigerated.
One of the reasons I like to make my own mayonnaise is so I can use one of my favorite foods, avocado oil. You can substitute vegetable oil or grapeseed oil. I don't personally care for olive oil in my mayonnaise. Namely, because the flavor is too strong.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
20Serving Size:
1 tablespoonAmount Per Serving: Calories: 105Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 19mgSodium: 18mgCarbohydrates: 0gFiber: 0gSugar: 0gProtein: 1g
Hannah
Tuesday 8th of December 2020
Thanks for the recipe, but I want to ask some say we should use lime juice instead of vinegar. Is it right? But if you don't have whey can you still make the mayonnaise.
Paula
Tuesday 8th of December 2020
Hi Hannah, Good to hear from you. You need something acid. Lime juice, lemon juice, vinegar...they all work. Each will taste slightly different so use whatever tastes good to you. You do not have to have whey to make this mayonnaise. Whey just makes it stay fresh a little longer.
Alex
Sunday 8th of November 2020
And another question what if I put yogurt in my mayo garlic sauce(not the whey only),do I still need to wait for 8hrs (in room temperature)for fermentation? Sorry for my bad english 😓,I hope you can help me
Alex
Sunday 8th of November 2020
Hello I just want to ask,what if I make a lot of homemade mayo garlic sauce(for shawarma)how many tbsp of whey should I add in it?I hope I can get a reply from you ....
Paula
Sunday 8th of November 2020
Add 1 tablespoon to 1-1/4 cups of mayo. Your sauce sounds delicious. Yes, you could add yogurt. And yes, you should let it sit for 8 hrs at room temperature. Little yogurt bodies go to sleep when they get cold. Since you actually want some fermentation, you will have to give it some warmth to activate the process. Glad you wrote.
Pat
Monday 28th of September 2020
I always make mayo with "extra light" olive oil, which has NO taste--so it can be used for baking as well. Also, pure olive oil is non-GMO. When I do mayo in a blender, I add 1/4 cup of the oil with the other ingredients, blend for 30 seconds, and then blend while adding the rest of the oil in a steady stream (takes about 25 seconds to empty the other 3/4 cup of oil). Works perfectly every time! I'm so glad to know that whey will extend the life of my mayo, because I don't use it all that fast.
Paula
Monday 28th of September 2020
Hi Pat,
I love hearing about your method and I'm sure others will, too. I like the extra light olive oil for salad dressing. Avocado oil works good for the mayonnaise, too. So grateful for all the choices we have. Right?
Barb
Sunday 2nd of August 2020
I made mayo first time last week. Similar recipie except no whey. It's on its 10th day and looks and tastes fine. I'm wondering if I could use whey powder instead of the liquid from yogurt. Any thoughts on that?
Paula
Monday 3rd of August 2020
Hi Barb,
Good question. From what I've read, whey powder is made from the whey produced by cheese. This is a sweet whey compared to yogurt whey which is an acid whey. I don't think it would work, but I haven't actually tried it so can't say with 100% certainty.