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Mayonnaise, Cooked II (P)
Source: "Assuring Safety Of Egg Yolk-Based Sauces And Salad Dressings," by O. Peter Snyder, Jr., Ph.D.
Yield: 1 quart

3 egg yolks
2 tbsp. white wine vinegar
2 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. water
2 teaspoons mustard, dry
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 cups vegetable oil*

Pre-preparation
Measure or carefully weigh all ingredients.

Preparation:
Combine egg yolks, white wine vinegar, lemon juice, and water in small, stainless steel bowl. The container must be large enough so that it can allow the egg yolk/acid mixture to be stirred or whisked as it is heated.

Place the container containing the egg yolk/acid mixture in a pan or container of water (such as a small double boiler) that is at a simmering temperature of 180°F to 190°F (82.2°C to 87.8°C). Heat the yolk/acid mixture to a temperature of 150°F (65.6°C). This will take about 1 minute.

The mixture must be stirred or whisked constantly and the temperature measured frequently by using a tip-sensitive thermocouple thermometer (such as the Atkins 33040 or Polder). The thermocouple can be taped to the wire whip to give continuous temperature as the mixture is stirred. When a temperature of 150°F (65.6°C) is reached, immediately remove the pan containing the yolk/acid mixture from the hot-water heat source.

Cool the egg mixture to room temperature [<80°F (<27°C)]. [The pasteurized egg yolks are very stable at this point and can be stored for 7 days at 41°F (5°C) if you want to make the batch larger and then store it. The pH of this mixture is 3.5.]

Place the pasteurized, acidified yolk mixture in a stainless steel mixer bowl. Add dry mustard, salt, and cayenne pepper.

Either an electric mixer or a wire whip can be used to create the mayonnaise emulsion. Begin beating with French whip, or if a mixer is used, turn it to high speed and very slowly, almost teaspoon by teaspoon, begin adding oil. When the emulsions forms, oil can be added more rapidly.

Continue beating until all the oil has been added. The mayonnaise emulsion will become quite thick. (It can be thinned, if desired, by adding a small amount of wine vinegar or lemon juice.)

Adjust seasoning. If necessary, adjust viscosity with the addition of a small amount of vinegar or lemon juice.

Storage:
Place mayonnaise in clean, sanitized storage container. Label and date product. By government standard, this product does not require refrigeration for safety. [Archivist's Note: we'd refrigerate it anyway] For quality, store in refrigeration unit at 41°F (5°C) or less. The shelf life will depend on mold contamination during mixing, but should be at least 4 weeks.

Leftovers:
For quality, do not add fresh product to old.

*Note: If olive oil is used, the mayonnaise should be used at once. It cannot be stored under refrigeration because olive oil will crystallize or solidify at refrigeration temperatures and the mayonnaise emulsion will "break" and separate.

Ingredients that could produce possible allergic reactions: Egg yolk. Sulfites, if bottled lemon juice is added.

Poster's Notes:
This showed up on another of my recipe lists. It is a real recipe for homemade mayo. In fact, it seems to me this would make excellent mayo. Of course, there's a lot more detail in this recipe than most of us are accustomed to. Usually, this kind of recipe is almost impossible for a layman to read. This one is a useable recipe (if esoterically written) and amusing at the same time. (But I have to wonder how many of us have a thermocouple sitting around for use in this process....)

Maxine Wolfson says: The thermocouple that is suggested in the recipe is nothing more than an instant-read thermometer. You can pick a simple one for $1-10 at most discount or kitchen stores, or if you're really into roasting, the Polder thermometer/timer is the ultimate (IMHO) but will run you $22-30.

My only concern is the time and temperature for pasteurizing the egg yolk. The recommendation I'd heard was to bring the egg yolk to 140°F, and hold it there for 1 minute, stirring constantly.

And considering the number of times I've had egg-oil "soup" as a result of mayo recipes, I'll take all the instructions I can get!

Brian Mailman, Z'L says: "Thermocouple" is fancy talk for "continuous-read thermometer." Note this isn't "instant read" but is the kind that you stick into a roast and has a little wire that goes through the oven door up to the reader part. You see all the time what the temperature is of the thing you're cooking--you set it to whatever temp (either F or C) and it buzzes when the item reaches that temperature

Mine is "Polder" brand, was about $25US 4 years ago and I recommend it highly. I _never_ cook by time anymore (like "8 minutes a pound") but to temperature. I can't see why one wouldn't work for a item like this...

140°F takes care of salmonella (137°) but I think that's still a little low... and I would think that at that temp, one minute, unless stirring yourself into a stupor would begin to curdle the proteins and make them less accepting of the oil. I think this higher temp of 150° for a shorter period is more like flash-pasteurizing of milk. I'd also take the precaution of acidifying the eggs by adding the lemon juice/vinegar/acid and letting them sit overnight in the fridge (no longer, they gel if left longer).

One way to "save" the mayo (SAVE THE MAYO! SAVE THE MAYO!! SAVE THE MAYO!! oops, wrong demo), as well as hollandaise that's broken is to start all over again, with a new egg yolk... instead of adding the oil/butter at once, drizzle the broken sauce (and mayo is technically a sauce) slowly slowly slowly as you would the oil into the egg... it _will_ go back together again and you're only out one egg yolk and not a whole batch.

Posted by Gypsy/Phyllis Wilson

Nutritional Info Per Serving: N/A