There are several reasons that chefs, and seemingly every person in Japan, are obsessed with Kewpie mayonnaise and its brethren.
It comes is a soft squeeze bottle with a fine tip for zigzagging artfully across okonomiyaki, a bowl of rice, or an oversized fine-dining plate.
It’s tangy, rich and salty-sweet.
And it’s packed with umami (not to mention fat).
That irresistible umami flavor is due to a lot of M.S.G., and gums and fillers help with the perfectly creamy texture. A homemade version will never be exactly like one off the shelf, but just like Hellman’s has its roots in a humble homemade sauce, so does Kewpie.
So what differentiates Japanese mayo, even in its humbler homemade incarnation?
It uses only yolks as opposed to whole eggs (which commercial American mayo uses).
The oil is a neutral-flavored one, such as canola—never olive oil like you might use for aioli.
And instead of lemon juice for tang, it relies on vinegar.
It’s a little sweet, too, but never as cloying as Miracle Whip.
I wanted to give you a recipe that won't require a trip to a specialty market or mail-ordering obscure ingredients. I do suggest using dashi to add umami without M.S.G. (which, though not necessarily harmful, I consider cheating)—but you can omit it and still have a great mayonnaise. (Nancy Singleton Hachisu—whose books you should buy if you want to learn Japanese home-cooking—has a recipe for a version that’s as simple as egg yolk, oil, rice vinegar, and a touch of salt and sugar.)
To concentrate the tang and umami in my recipe without thinning out the mayonnaise too much, I cook down the vinegar and dashi. It only takes a few minutes and makes all the difference between ordinary and fantastic mayo! You might instinctively reach for rice wine vinegar when making Japanese food, but cider vinegar gets you closer to the taste of Kewpie.
Here’s a recipe that gets damn close to Kewpie, using simple home-cooking ingredients. Put this in a squeeze bottle and you’re ready to go!
Homemade Kewpie Mayonnaise
Hannah Kirshner
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Makes about 1 cup
2
tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon cider vinegar
2
tablespoons dashi, homemade or instant (optional)
1
teaspoon Dijon mustard
1
egg yolk
3/4
cup canola oil
1/2
teaspoon sugar
1
teaspoon kosher salt
In a small saucepan, bring the the cider vinegar and dashi to a simmer over high heat. (if you aren't using dashi, just simmer the vinegar). Adjust the heat to keep it simmering, not boiling, until reduced to about 1 tablespoon, 3 to 5 minutes.
Transfer the vinegar-dashi concentrate to a small mixing bowl. Form a ring with a damp dish towel to rest your bowl on—this will keep it stable. Add the Dijon and egg yolk and whisk to combine.
While constantly whisking, very gradually drip in the oil down the side of the bowl into the yolk mixture. The mixture should emulsify and thicken. (If at any point you mixture breaks and separates instead of getting thick and creamy, don’t despair. Put a fresh egg yolk in a bowl, and slowly whisk the broken mixture into it, as if it were the oil.) You can drizzle a bit more quickly once the mixture is very thick.
When all the oil has been incorporated, mix in the sugar and salt. You can add a little dashi or water to thin the mayonnaise so it will easily flow from a squeeze bottle but still hold its shape. It will thicken slightly once refrigerated.
Transfer the mixture to a squeeze bottle. Refrigerate and use within 1 week.
Do you have an affection for Kewpie mayo? Tell us in the comments!