Japanese Mayonnaise (Kewpie Mayo)

Steps

1. Before You Start: This recipe calls for pasteurized egg yolks. If you cannot find them, use the best, freshest eggs you can find. You can also pasteurize them yourself with an immersion circulator; see my tutorial How to Pasteurize Eggs at Home to learn how.

2. Gather all the ingredients. Tip: If you reduce the ingredient amounts, there won’t be enough volume for the food processor or blender to do its work, so use an immersion blender instead.

3. Make sure the egg yolks are at room temperature. Put 2 pasteurized egg yolks and 2 tsp Dijon mustard into the bowl of a small food processor or a blender; I used a 3-cup food processor for one batch (yields 2 cups) of this recipe. Process for 20 seconds. Tip: Mustard adds flavor and helps to emulsify the mixture, reducing the risk of the mayonnaise breaking.

4. With the food processor running, SLOWLY drizzle about one-third of the 1½ cups neutral oil in a thin, steady stream—about ½ cup oil for one batch of this recipe. The mixture will begin to thicken and come together. Tip: If you add the oil too fast, it won’t emulsify.

5. Add 1 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt, 2 tsp sugar, and ½ tsp dashi powder and give everything a whirl again.

6. Continue to slowly drizzle in another one-third of the oil in a thin, steady stream. I use the Stir setting while adding the oil.

7. Finally, add 2 Tbsp rice vinegar (unseasoned) and 4 tsp fresh lemon juice, and slowly drizzle in the remaining one-third of the oil and process for an extra 10 seconds, just until the ingredients are combined and emulsified. Tip: Don’t blend it for too long, as homemade mayonnaise comes together pretty quickly in the food processor or blender. When blended too long, the emulsion that brought the spread together is more likely to break, either from overprocessing or overheating.

8. Taste the mayonnaise and adjust with salt, sugar, or lemon juice to your liking. I personally added 2 more teaspoons of sugar for a total of 4 teaspoons for one batch. Transfer the mayonnaise to an airtight container.

9. Store the airtight container in the refrigerator for about 4 days.