Classic French Mayonnaise

Recipe's preparation

Mayonnaise

This is an adaptation of the mayonnaise recipe in August Escoffier's Larousse Gastronomique.  Mayonnaise is a beautiful sauce, made even more wonderful by the knowledge of a couple of simple tricks and techniques.

First, place the butterfly in the TM bowl.  Next, add your room temperature egg yolk and pinch of salt and white pepper in the bowl.  Mix at speed four for approximately two minutes.  The egg yolk should have gone pale and slightly increased in volume.  If unsure of this, simply whisk for another minute on speed four.  Next place the MC upside down in its hole.  Without setting the timer, bring the TM to speed four.  Very slowly at first, drizzle your oil of choice over the upturned MC, ensuring a drip-by-drip addition to the mix.  After the first 50ml or so, you will hear the sound of the mixture start to change as the mayonnaise thickens.  Now you can start adding the oil a little faster, but not too much.

Once you have added all the oil, remove the lid and check the texture.  The mayonnaise should be quite thick and light in colour.  If your mayonnaise has split and looks like curdled custard, DO NOT PANIC!  Simply remove it from the TM, start again with another egg yolk, salt and pepper and add in the curdled mix a few drops at a time.

Once you have reached the desired consistency, return the TM to speed four and incorporate the vinegar/lemon juice.  Have a quick taste, if you desire more of the acidulating agent, the please add more.  Now your mayonnaise is ready!  Store in a clean jar in the fridge and it will last longer than you may expect!

Note on choice of oil:  Classical French and Spanish recipes of this sublime sauce call for olive oil.  But which type to use?  Using purely Extra Virgin olive oil is expensive and unneccesary.  Buy yourself a bulk container of Virgin olive oil at a much cheaper price.  Use 200ml of Virgin olive oil for the bulk, and then experiment with your favourite extra virgin olive oils for the final 50ml to improve the flavour.  Should you desire a more neutral flavour, groundnut (peanut), sunflower or grapeseed oil are wonderful alternatives.

Note on acidulating agent:  Traditionally, either fresh lemon juice or tarragon vinegar is used.  However, white wine vinegar and apple cider vinegar make excellent and tasty alternatives.  Start with just one teaspoon of the acidulating agent, more can always be added depending upon your tastebuds.

Finally, one or more cloves of garlic may be chopped in the TM before starting with the egg yolk for flavour.  Mayonnaise with garlic is known as Aioli in the French lexicon.  For a truly devilish aioli, use 2 cloves of garlic per 250ml oil.  Then add a whole head, yes a whole head, of garlic that has been previously wrapped in foil and baked at 210 degrees celcius for 45 minutes.  Simply squeeze the sweet, nutty roast garlic out of its skins and blend into the aioli.

I hope you enjoy this recipe and welcome your feedback!