I've had homemade mayonnaise and it's wonderful, and all the cookbooks rave about how good it is and how easy it is.

Well.

I've tried mixing by hand, with a whisk, a food processor and a handbeld mixer. I know you add the oil to the egg etc very very slowly, drop by drop....but mine will never thicken. It just stays at a liquid consistency. Any tips?

It should be a thick and creamy.  It could be the oil to egg ratio.  Too much oil will make it thin, and you should be able to adjust that by whisking in another egg yolk and a dab more oil as needed, or better yet, just hold back on some oil the next time you make it, adding only as much as you need for the right consistency. 

Also, if you overstir, it might separate.  I found that using a whisk works best for me, but an electric mixter on medium for a short time also gets good results.   

Good luck. 

First of all, are you using egg yolks or whole eggs? It should just be the yolks. And to make the yolks safe, you should beat it with salt & lemon juice (at least 1 teaspoon fresh squeezed to 2 yolks) and put it in the fridge for at least 2 hours. Then beat in the oil. Also make sure you're using real oil, not one of those "lite" blends.

-- Mimi
READ & LEARN THE SYMPTOMS OF STROKES. There is a miracle drug that quickly reverses the damage done by stroke, but ONLY if you get it within 3 hours of the first symptom. It saved my life!

Hellman's Mayonnaise

1 egg (room temp)

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cup vegetable oil

dash cayenne pepper

3 tablespoons lemon juice or vinegar

Place egg, mustard, salt, cayenne pepper and 1/4 cup oil

in blender and blend on low. While the machine is blending,

SLOWLY pour in another 1/2 cup oil. You may have to stop

and scrape down the mayo. Add the lemon juice/vinegar and the

remaining 1/2 cup oil. Blend until well combined.

Store in refrigerator.

Hi, Betty!

I am by no means an excellent cook or any kind of food expert, but my sister and I have been making homemade mayonnaise for over 30 years, as my mother and both grandmothers did, ever since Wesson Oil published their recipe -- maybe before, but I'm not sure so I won't make that claim since my mother has passed and cannot verify -- I seem to recall her talking about her using a fork, though!! :D

My grandmother's both used the Wesson Mayonnaise Maker and I used to have one of them, but somewhere in moves it has disappeared. As long as I can remember my mother used a plain old blender -- you need a pulsing action, not a continuous running -- and that's what I've always used, too. 

According to my mother, who had more than her share of 'batches' that did not 'make,' the eggs must be fresh, and everything should be cold (that is, the eggs, the oil, the lemon juice). Here is my recipe and method:

3 (whole) eggs

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon vinegar (white)

1 teaspoon mustard -- just plain old yellow mustard, though we like our mayonnaise tangy so I use more like a tablespoon

3  Tablespoons Real Lemon juice -- be sure to SHAKE the bottle before measuring!!

1 & 3/4 cups Wesson oil (approximately... I stop when it is good and thick)

Put all ingredients EXCEPT the oil into the blender.  Pour in about half the oil, and use short pulses to begin blending. Even at this point, it should begin to thicken, maybe to a syrupy consistency.  Add a little more oil, and use short pulses again to blend. Repeat until it is as thick as you like. You will need a long thin spatula to scrape the sides of the blender when the mayonnaise gets thicker, to bring the oil on the sides and top down to the blades.

Hope it works for you -- there is NOTHING as good as homemade mayonnaise. If it doesn't 'make' (thicken), what we do is to pour the thin mixture into a jar and put it in the frig to get cold again. Then when it is cold, begin again with the eggs, seasonings and lemon juice (everything but the oil). Then use smaller amount of oil to get started, and blend in the thin mixture instead of more oil. Usually, I would end up making two new batches using about half the thin mixture in each. At this point, I'm sharing the batches with mom and sis! LOL  Fortunately, this didn't happen to often.

Also,  here's an article I saw online with some interesting information about making mayonnaise: How to Make Mayonnaise, King of Sauces, by Francis Lam. I enjoy his blog, though I disagree that Best brand mayo is as good as homemade. :D

Cynthia

I buy Dukes! 

Ha! I   When I moved, I had relatives and visitors bring me Dukes mayo because it was not available. Now, thankfully, we have it in the grocery stores! That's the only kind I like.

Thanks to all who provided recipes; my recipe was the same---it just never "made," or thickened after I dripped the oil---usually safflower or corn-- into the egg mix.

BUT, my ingredients were room temp.---at least the oil---maybe that was it......I'm going to try again; I just hate to waste all that stuff.