Make Your Own Mayo

Cinco de Mayo is a great holiday—unless you're a chicken. There's no bar in your backyard where they can eat salsa, drink tequila and celebrate the Mexican army's victory over the French, now is there? So they're left to hunt, peck and generally feel sorry for themselves. 

But now they can stop sulking and start celebrating Cinco de Mayo-nnaise, a beautifully bogus holiday devoted to the condiment made from their farm-fresh loins. 

Every day is Cinco de Mayo-nnaise at the Pink Pig restaurant in Fredericksburg, Texas, where chef/owner Rebecca Rather makes Black Currant Mayonnaise, one of many flavored mayos she uses in everything from chicken salad to hollandaise sauce. 

Black Currant Mayonnaise

3 large egg yolks, at room temperature 30 minutes

1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

2 1/4 cups olive or vegetable oil (or a combination), divided

3 teaspoons white-wine vinegar or cider vinegar

4 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

3/4 teaspoons white pepper

1/2 cup ginger preserves

1/2 cup black currant jelly or preserves 


Process the eggs, egg yolk, salt, pepper, mustard, preserves and lemon juice in a blender on medium speed until thoroughly mixed. Switch the blender to low speed and add the vegetable oil in a slow, steady stream. The mayonnaise will thicken as  you pour. The mayonnaise is ready when it takes on a thick, creamy consistency, just after all of the oil has been added. Pour it into a clean container, cover and refrigerate immediately.

Chef Fabio Viviani, one of the most beloved contestants ever to compete on Top Chef, raises chickens at his home in Moorpark, California and uses the eggs for Spicy Lime Mayo. Even his pet rooster, Rocky, thinks it's fantastic. 

Spicy Lime Mayo

4 garlic cloves, crushed

2 egg yolks

2 limes juiced and zested, separated

1 jalapeño, deseeded

Olive oil

Place first 4 ingredients in a food processor. Once fully incorporated, drizzle in olive oil until thick. Season with salt and pepper, and chill.

Anne Quatrano, the chef/owner of Bacchanalia and a food icon in Atlanta, Georgia picks up her chicks every spring at the Cartersville Post Office and takes them home to Summerland Farm outside Atlanta. 

When those chicks grow up, their eggs will be incorporated into everything from fresh pastas and meringues to this silky homemade mayonnaise, which is a staple component of the classic tomato sandwich. 

Summerland Farm Mayonnaise

2 eggs

4 egg yolks

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Juice of 1 lemon

4 cups peanut oil

Kosher salt

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade, combine the whole eggs, yolks, mustard and lemon juice. While the processor is running, slowly add the oil through the feed tube until the desired consistency is reached: It should be a glossy, creamy white color and thick enough to form peaks. Transfer to a bowl and season with salt. Cover and refrigerate for up to 1 week.