Bacon Mayo

Mayonnaise is the glue that holds our world together. Without it, we would have no tuna salad, no chicken salad, no potato salad, no cole slaw, no nothing.

But store-bought mayo is not perfect.

Yes, Hellman's and Duke's are delicious. They taste like tangy heaven. But they are made with soybean oil. This is very much less than ideal for our health. If you love mayo, and want to enjoy it on a regular basis, you absolutely must make your own. This way, you can use high quality ingredients that taste great and are also great for you.

Don't start whining about how you have no time! Making your own mayo is super quick and easy. You only need one gadget to get the job done: a handheld immersion blender. I have written a blog about exactly how to make mayo. There's even a video link so you can watch someone make mayo. You can access it here.

For bacon mayo, you will start by rendering the fat from a bunch of bacon. You can use a lot of bacon fat or a little. The more you use, the stronger the bacon flavor will be. If you want just a subtle hint of bacon, use about 4 strips. For a lot of bacony goodness, use at least 6-8 strips. (The exact number of strips depends on how fatty your bacon is.) The ratio of bacon fat to avocado oil is not crucial. You can vary it, as I do, every time you make this mayo.

Once you've cooked your bacon, remove the crispy strips and set aside. Let your bacon fat cool until it is just about room temperature, but still runny. (If you store your bacon fat in the fridge, let it warm to room temperature before using.) Then gather the rest of your ingredients.

 

About 1/4-1/2 cup bacon fat (at room temperature)
1 whole large egg
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon white vinegar
salt and pepper, to taste
About 1/2 cup avocado oil

Start with bacon fat in the bottom of a pint-sized wide mouth jar. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the avocado oil. Place the blades of the immersion blender all the way down on the bottom of the jar. Holding the blades there, begin to blend. While blending, pour some of the avocado oil into the emulsion. (You might use all of the oil, or you might not. Add enough oil so the mixture thickens.) The mayo should quickly turn very thick. Move the blades up and down a couple of times to be sure to incorporate all the oil you added. The entire process should take under one minute. Do not overblend or your emulsion will turn runny. Place the mayo in the fridge where it will thicken even more. Bacon mayo will last one week in the fridge.

Enjoy bacon mayo in chicken salad, potato salad, on a sandwich, on a burger, on eggs benedict, anywhere you like!