Vegan mayo is tasty, versatile, and so easy to make that you can do it in literally 1 minute with simple ingredients.
In this post, we show you how to make a classic vegan mayo, and also how to turn it into a tangy and zesty spicy mayo, or into a garlicky vegan aioli (garlic mayo).
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How to make vegan mayo video
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What is vegan mayo
Vegan mayo is a thick cold sauce that can be used just like regular mayo, but that does not contain eggs.
Our recipe for vegan mayo is very similar in taste and texture to real mayonnaise.
It's thick, creamy, spreadable, and it can be used in sandwiches, hamburgers, french fries, or as a dressing in salads.
It can also be used as the base for other delicious vegan sauces, like spicy mayo or vegan aioli.
In this blog post, we should you how to make the best, easiest, and fastest vegan mayo you'll ever make.
We will also show you how to turn it into an irresistible spicy mayo or into a finger-licking aioli (garlic mayo).
Watch a quick video story on how to make vegan mayo.
Ingredients & Substitutions
For vegan mayo
- Soy milk: must be unsweetened. We think soy milk is the best plant-based milk to make a real-tasting vegan mayonnaise due to its nutritional profile and neutral flavor.
You can replace soy milk with aquafaba (the water from a can of chickpeas). With aquafaba, the mayo will be less thick. - Oils: we mix two oils together for our vegan mayo. We find that this way the mayo has a better, more neutral flavor, as the two oils balance each other out.
As a rule of thumb, we use ¾ of a light, neutral vegetable oil, ideally refined so that it has little flavor, and ¼ olive oil to give the mayo a richer flavor and balance out the other oil.
I know you are thinking if it's really necessary to add two oils. We think it really makes a big difference in flavor and so we strongly recommend it. Adding only one type of oil will make the mayo taste too much like that oil.
Do not use coconut oil because it's saturated (solid at room temperature) and you'll make butter, not mayo.
Sunflower oil: this is our favorite oil to make vegan mayo because it has a very light flavor and because you can find it everywhere at an affordable price.
For best taste, we recommend refined sunflower oil so that you can't taste its flavor in the mayo.
You can replace sunflower oil with other light refined vegetable oils, like canola oil, avocado oil, or peanut oil. But make sure they don't have a strong taste.
Olive oil: it adds richness, depth of flavor, and it reduces the flavor of the other oil so that the mayo tastes better. - Lemon juice, mustard, and salt: to give the mayo flavor. Mustard is optional but highly recommended. You can replace the lemon juice with plain vinegar if you like.
For spicy mayo
- Maple syrup: for a touch of sweetness, you can replace it with agave syrup or any other syrup.
- Tabasco: for spiciness. You can replace tabasco with any other hot sauce. You can even replace it with a couple of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce for an even smokier, richer flavor.
- Garlic: it complements perfectly the hotness of the mayo.
For vegan aioli (garlic mayo)
- Garlic and maple syrup: you just need to add some garlic and maple syrup (optional) to the basic vegan mayo.
To have the smoothest vegan aioli, the trick is to either thinly slice or mash the garlic before adding it in and blending it.
Equipment
You will only need an immersion blender and a tall container that can fit the blender. We like to use a tall mason jar with a wide opening.
It's important to use an immersion blender and a tall container to facilitate the emulsion of the oil with the liquid.
We did not get good results using a food processor, or a standard blender, or a hand mixer. With an immersion blender, it comes out perfect every time.
How to make vegan mayo?
I promise you that this is the easiest recipe that you will ever make. The same instructions work for the spicy mayo and the vegan garlic mayo.
STEP 1: Put all ingredients in a tall container that can fit your immersion blender (like a mason jar with a wide opening).
NOTE: for this vegan mayo recipe you do NOT need to add the oil a little at a time. You can just put it in all at once with the other ingredients and blend it with an immersion blender.
STEP 2: Blend for 30 seconds or until you reach a mayonnaise consistency. Move the blender up and down into the jar to facilitate the emulsion of all the ingredients.
STEP 3: taste and adjust for salt, lemon, chili, and garlic. Their quantities really depend on your taste.
NOTE: if you want to have thicker mayonnaise, then add 3 more tablespoons of sunflower oil. If you want a thinner mayonnaise, then add 3 more tablespoons of soy milk.
How do I scale this recipe up or down?
For the best vegan mayo, that ratio is 1 part of soy milk and 2 parts of oils.
The most important thing when making vegan mayo is to keep the ratio of oils to milk constant, and then to split the oil part into 3 parts of light vegetable oil, and 1 part of olive oil.
So for example, if you want to make a double batch, you could use 1 cup of soy milk, and 2 cups of oil in total. Of those 2 cups of oil, use 1.5 cups of light vegetable oil (like sunflower oil) and 0.5 cups of olive oil.
Tips
- Use refined oils: especially if you are serving this recipe to non-vegans make sure to use a refined vegetable oil so that they won't be able to taste its flavor, and to mix it with a good quality olive oil following our measurements.
A mix of sunflower oil and olive oil is by far the best combination of oils we have tested to make vegan mayo for both texture and taste.
- Thicker mayo: if you want a thicker mayonnaise, just add 3 more tablespoons of sunflower oil.
- Thinner mayo: if you want a thinner mayonnaise, just add 1 to 3 more tablespoons of soy milk.
Frequently asked questions
No. The mayo won't emulsify.
I would recommend not to. We had mixed results with it. The best is if you use an immersion blender and a tall container.
No. The mayo won't emulsify
It doesn't matter. Just put everything in a tall container and blend with an immersion blender.
You can add less oil, or more soy milk, to make the mayo more like a salad dressing.
The best soy milk replacement for vegan mayo is aquafaba, but in this case, the mayo won't be as thick as with soy milk.
Storage
Store the vegan mayo in an airtight container (like a mason jar) in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
We do not recommend freezing it.
Variations
You can use this basic recipe for vegan mayo to make a lot of different variations. For example:
Vegan chipotle sauce: the same recipe as for our vegan chili mayo, but reduce the amount of oil to ¾ cups (2/4 sunflower oil and ¼ olive oil). This is by far our favorite dressing and we use it in our flatbread pizza with avo mash.
Vegan salad dressing: to turn the mayo into a salad dressing just increase the amount of soy milk and you'll get a thinner sauce. Just add an extra ¼ of a cup of soy milk to our recipe.
Kind of a ranch dressing: just add a couple of tablespoons of plant-based yogurt and some fresh herbs (like dill, parsley, chives) and you get a delicious dressing similar to ranch dressing.
Recipe
FAIL-PROOF VEGAN MAYO RECIPE | THICK AND CREAMY
Equipment
- Immersion blender
- Tall container that can fit the blender (like a mason jar with wide opening)
Ingredients
FOR VEGAN MAYO
- ½ cup (120 grams) soy milk unsweetened
- ¾ cup (160 grams) sunflower oil (+ 3 tbsp if you want an extra thick mayo)
- ¼ cup (80 grams) olive oil
- 2 tablespoons (30 grams) lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon (15 grams) mustard
- ¾ teaspoon (4 grams) salt
FOR SPICY MAYO add these to Vegan Mayo
- ½ tablespoon (10 grams) maple syrup or agave syrup
- 1 - 2 tablespoons (15 - 30 grams) tabasco hot sauce
FOR VEGAN AIOLI (Garlic Mayo) add these to Vegan Mayo
- ½ - 2 cloves garlic based on your taste
- ½ tablespoon (10 grams) maple syrup or agave syrup (optional)
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a tall container that can fit your immersion blender. Make sure there are no lemon seeds.
- Blend with an immersion blender for 30 seconds, or until the ingredients get to a mayonnaise consistency.TIP: move the blender up and down in the jar to facilitate the process.
- Taste and adjust for salt, lemon or garlic to your liking. When you are happy with the flavour, store in a jar in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.NOTE: if you want to have thicker mayonnaise, then add 3 more tablespoons of sunflower oil. If you want a thinner mayonnaise, then add 3 more tablespoons of soy milk.
Nutritional Values
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Did you try this recipe at home? Let us know in the comments below 🙂
Buon appetito!
Nico
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