Julia Child’s Famous Mayonnaise

Julia Child’s Famous Mayonnaise

Julia Child’s Famous Mayonnaise

The incomparable Julia Child is kind of a BIG DEAL around our store, and she adored olive oil and ultra-premium ingredients. And after trying her famous homemade mayonnaise recipe, we’ll never be buying store-bought mayo again!

INGREDIENTS:

DIRECTIONS:

Take a 2.5 – 3-quart stainless-steel mixing bowl and run it under hot water to warm the bowl. Then dry the bowl well and set it in a square casserole dish so it won’t slide around (we’re going to be doing lots of mixing).

Add the egg yolks into the bowl and beat with a whisk for1-2 minutes until they are thick and sticky.

Add 1 Tablespoon of the Champagne Vinegar, all the salt and mustard. Beat the mixture for 30 seconds more.

The egg yolks are now ready to receive the oil, which must be added slowly, and while it goes in, drop by drop, you must not stop beating until the sauce has thickened. As the oil and egg mixture are slowly combined, they emulsify and transform into the creamy yummy mayonnaise.

While constantly mixing the mixture, add a teaspoon of oil at a time. Watch the oil rather than the sauce to make sure you are only adding a little bit of oil at a time. When the egg yolks have absorbed the oil, you can add another teaspoon of oil – but not before it’s been absorbed.

Keep doing this until ½ cup of oil has been combined. At this point you are past the “crisis” point and can add a bit more oil at a time(1-2 Tablespoons), whisking in the oil thoroughly after each addition.

If the mayo becomes too thick and stiff while your adding in the oil, you can add a few additional drop of vinegar to thin it out a bit, then continue to add in the oil.

After all the oil is added, beat in the 2 Tablespoons of boiling water into the mayo. As Julia says “this is anti-curdling insurance”.Season to taste (adding more salt and Champagne vinegar if needed). A bit of freshly ground black pepper is also a good addition.

If you aren’t going to use all the mayo immediately, scrap it into a small bowl and cover closely so a skin won’t form on the surface.