RECIPE:Seed-oil-FREE Mayonnaise made with Butter or Ghee

When we gave up seed oils last year, one of the first things I did was change the way I made mayonnaise.  Mayonnaise is where most seed oils entered our diet.  (OUR diet, not necessarily your diet.  You may be getting them from other sources.)  Having used this method for a year now, I've tweaked it a little so I'm creating a new post.  

The biggest change is that I now use duck egg yolks because they have more nutrition than chicken egg yolks.  Duck eggs seem to be more readily available here, but if they aren't available where you live then chicken yolks are perfectly fine.  NOTE: if you're sensitive to chicken eggs, it might be the white that's the problem.  My husband can have duck yolks, but he can't have duck whites.  If you can't tolerate either, you can use aquafaba.  I'll post a recipe using aquafaba the next time I make it.

The other change I made is to use a 3-cup wide mouth Ball jar instead of a pint jar.  Ball calls these 1.5 pint or 24 ounce jars.  I prefer them for this recipe because they're the same width as the pint jars, but they're taller so I can add seasonings without risking an overflow.  They're just tall enough that I can use 3 sticks of butter instead of 2 (12 ounces of ghee instead of 8oz) if I'm making a flavor we use a lot of, like the two shown below. 

I will usually make two of these jars - one plain and one seasoned.  

Here's my original recipe: spreadable hollandaise to use as mayonnaise

SEED-OIL-FREE MAYONNAISE Made with Butter or Ghee

Makes 3 cups

EQUIPMENT

• 1 24oz wide mouth ball jar
• Immersion blender
• Small sauce pan
• Small heat-proof pitcher, at least 12oz
  

INGREDIENTS

• 3 duck egg YOLKS or 4 chicken egg YOLKS from WASHED eggs.
  
• 3/4 t. himalayan pink salt
• 5 T. water
• 3 T. lemon juice
• 12 ounces butter or ghee (3 sticks of butter)  
• OPTIONAL SEASONINGS (choose ONE)
  
• 1/4 cup roasted red bell peppers plus 1.5 t. berbere spice
• 4 T. curry powder sauteed in 2 T. ghee or butter
  
• 1 minced garlic clove, 1 T. each chopped dill, parsley, and chives
• 2 T. Dijon mustard (or 2 T mustard powder mixed with 1 t. vinegar)
  
• 1/4 cup grated horseradish
• 1/4 cup harissa or to taste
  

INSTRUCTIONS

WASH THE EGG SHELLS with soap and hot water and dry them BEFORE REMOVING THE YOLKS!!  You must do this even if the shells look clean.

Separate the yolks into your jar, discarding the whites and the shells*.

Add the water, salt and optional seasonings.

Heat the butter or ghee in a small sauce pan until it's totally melted and small bubbles appear.

Pour the butter/ghee into the small pitcher.

Add the lemon juice to the yolks (they will start to cook the yolks so I add them at the last minute), DON'T add it to the hot fat, as it will foam up out of your pitcher!  Insert the immersion blender into the jar and turn it on.

With the immersion blender running, S_L_O_W_L_Y pour the melted fat into jar.  Raise the blender to the top of the liquid occasionally and then push it back to the bottom.  

When all the fat has been added, the mixture will still be very runny.  This is how it should be!  When it cools, it will be the consistency of mayonnaise.

Put the lid on the jar and transfer it to the fridge for 1-2 hours until cold.  

If it's still too thick, you can stir in warm water, 1 T. at a time, until it's the consistency you prefer.

 

*I throw out the whites, because my husband can't eat them, but I keep the shells because they're a good soil amendment for tomato plants.