Macadamia Mayonnaise

Jump straight to the Vegan Macadamia Mayonnaise recipe

One of the more challenging things about going dairy-free is finding good replacements for old favourites.

But with this recipe for raw macadamia mayonnaise, you don’t have to go without any more.

It’s creamy, it’s delicious and it’s also super simple to make:

Packed with the goodness of whole, raw macadamias, plus lemons, avocado, mustard and salt, and enough water to make it super smooth.

And once again, it’s another recipe that you can just chuck in the blender, so it’s ready in less than 5 minutes.

Put it on salads, veggie burgers or steamed veggies, or use it in sandwiches, wraps, sushi or soups.

It’s an incredibly versatile condiment to add to your recipe collection.

Rediscover the decadence of dairy-free, creamy mayonnaise.

So simple, so tasty, and so wholesome.

Mmmm, I can taste that creamy, tangy flavour already.

So, what are you waiting for?

It’s time to whip up a batch!

Macadamia Mayonnaise recipe

Make sure to read the tips below the recipe to get the most out of this decadent macadamia mayonnaise recipe.

Macadamia Mayonnaise

Going dairy-free usually means giving up old favourites. But not any more! This recipe for raw vegan macadamia mayonnaise is creamy, delicious and easy.

5 from 1 vote

Print Pin Rate

Category: Sauce, Spread

Cuisine: Paleo, Raw, Vegan, Wholefoods

Tags: dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, oil-free, soy-free, sugar-free

Cook time: 5 minutes minutes

Total time: 5 minutes minutes

Makes: 310 g (10 serves)

Calories per serve: 115kcal

Author: Nikki, Eating Vibrantly

Ingredients

• 1 cup macadamias (155g)
• 6 tsp lemon juice (30g)
• 1 tbsp avocado (15g)
• 1/2 tsp yellow mustard powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup water (60g)
• 1/4 cup ice (50g)

Method

• Put all ingredients into blender jug.
• Blend on high speed until smooth.
• Store in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days.

Preparation

• Before: -
• During: 5 mins
• After: -
• Need: Blender

Nutrition Information

Serving: 30g; Calories: 115kcal; Carbohydrates: 2.6g; Protein: 1.3g; Fat: 12g; Saturated Fat: 1.9g; Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g; Monounsaturated Fat: 9.3g; Sodium: 118mg; Potassium: 69.2mg; Fiber: 1.5g; Sugar: 0.8g; Vitamin C: 2.5mg; Calcium: 10mg; Iron: 0.5mg

Tips

• I used whole, raw macadamias for this recipe because that’s what I had on hand. You could use macadmaia pieces just as easily, and you could probably also use roasted macadamias as well, although I’ve never tried this.
• If your macadamias already have salt on them, then just leave the added salt out of this recipe, otherwise you’ll overdo the salt and it won’t taste nearly as nice!
• I prefer to use fresh lemons for my lemon juice (also because I’m blessed to have access to a massive tree of lemons right over my side fence), but bottled lemon juice should work well too.
• I use the avocado to help bring the mayonnaise together, as a kind of emulsifier. It helps the ingredients stay blended after you make the mayonnaise. If you don’t have avocado, you could also try using some irish moss, flax seeds, chia seeds or coconut oil.
• Another reason that I decided to use avocado to help bind this recipe, was so that it only uses whole foods, which means this recipe is also suitable for the paleo diet.
• I love adding mustard powder to my mayonnaise. It just doesn’t taste right without it! And you can use any kind of mustard you have on hand – powder, paste, whole seeds. Just adjust the quantities to taste.
• These days I used pink himalayan salt in all of my recipes.  It contains lots of trace minerals that are good for you, and apparently it tastes better too. So if you’re going to use salt at all, the pink stuff is the best! Of course, if you don’t have pink salt, then regular salt is just fine.
• I use a blend of water and ice in this recipe – roughly half water and half ice. This gives the mayonnaise enough liquid to start blending easily, but also keeps it cool as my high-speed blender whips it around like crazy, so by the time it’s done, the temperature is not too hot, not too cold.
• You might find that you need to adjust the amount of water to get the mayonnaise to run smoothly through your blender. It’s a pretty forgiving recipe, so just tweak until you get your mayo running easily through your blender blades, so it comes out super smooth.
• You can store this mayonnaise in a jar or container in your fridge for 4 to 5 days, although I’m pretty sure I’ve stored it for longer and it was fine (shhh). Just don’t eat it if tastes funny or goes furry!

Variations

• If you don’t want to use macadamias for any reason, just choose another soft, mildly-flavoured nut, like cashews, Brazil nuts or almonds as the base for this recipe. You might have to tweak quantities a little to get the flavour balance just right, but fortunately this recipe is pretty forgiving.
• If you leave the mustard out, halve the salt and double the lemon juice, you can make an amazing macadamia sour cream instead, which is great for salads, roast potatoes and soups.
• You can also throw in 1 or 2 whole garlic cloves before you start blending to make a beautiful dairy-free macadamia aioli. Yum!
• If you like your vegan mayonnaise with a little more “bling”, you could stir in some chopped dill pickles, whole mustard seeds, minced chili peppers or chopped herbs (basil, bill, chives, parsley) to the finished result. You can also stir in some pesto, harissa, kimchi, or even some wasabi. The possibilities are endless!

Budget

Here’s roughly how much this macadamia mayonnaise cost me to make:

Reducing the recipe cost

• As you can see, the macadamias make up the main cost of this recipe. If you want to reduce the cost, use a cheaper nut as the base, such as cashews, almonds or Brazil nuts. I haven’t tried Brazil nuts or almonds, but I can say from experience that cashews do work well.
• Technically the lemon juice didn’t cost me anything because I’m blessed to have a neighbour with a tree that’s overflowing with lemons, so I used an estimate, based on how much lemons cost at my local organic greengrocer.

My inspiration

I have a confession to make.

Some of these recipes have been part of my collection for so long now that I’m starting to forget where they came from!

I have a suspicion that this recipe was a blend of Jennifer Cornbleet’s cheese and chive dip recipe, plus Angela Liddon’s macadamia sour cream recipe and my traditional mayonnaise recipe, which was based on eggs and olive oil.

It’s certainly a recipe that I’ve made many times over the years, and I love how rich and creamy the macadamias make this mayonnaise.

It goes so well in handmade sushi rolls, that I simply have to make it when we do these.

And I’m so glad that being dairy-free doesn’t mean I have to go without!

Resources

Here’s some ideas for raw emulsifiers that you can use in recipes, if you need an alternative to avocado:

• Vegan thickeners, binders, and emulsifiers @ Monoceros Coquinans
• 5 Thickeners Raw Food Chefs Use @ Raw Food Recipes

And if you want to learn a bit more about macadamias (including the fact that they originated right here in Australia), then check this out:

• About Macadamias @ the Australian Macadamia Society

And have a rich and creamy day!