Mayonnaise is a delicious cold creamy cream sauce that can perfectly soak any dish, making its taste even more intense and vibrant. That is why it is one of the most popular sauces in the world, and that is why there is a huge number of all kinds of mayonnaise, which you need to learn to understand in order not to get into trouble.
The story of the creation of mayonnaise
For the first time the famous sauce was created in the 18th century, in the English-besieged city of Mahon, previously captured by the French. The former invaders did not want to surrender to the mercy of the winner, so they steadfastly held the defenses, but their food was inexorably reduced, and as a result, the French had nothing left but eggs, olive oil and lemons. And then the chef, at his own peril and risk, combined these ingredients into a homogeneous mass, added some spices to them and served them on the table. The result was amazing, even the meager, boring dishes without any frills, combined with this sauce, later called mayonnaise, of which there are now more than a hundred species, seemed to the army commander the real food of the gods.
GOST mayonnaise indicators
Before proceeding to the analysis of the varieties of sauce, let's figure out what a real mayonnaise should be, according to the state quality standard of this product.
- By consistency, it should be a creamy homogeneous product with single air bubbles. The presence in the mass of particles of added spices is allowed.
- The taste of mayonnaise should be slightly sharp and slightly sour, the flavor of the introduced flavorings is allowed.
- The smell should be pleasant, not very pronounced.
- The color of the sauce can vary from white to yellowish or cream.
Varieties of mayonnaise by calorie content
Focusing on the photo of mayonnaise types given below, first of all, you can divide this sauce according to its fat content, which determines the class and calorie content of the sauce.
- Grade I is a high-calorie, real mayonnaise containing more than 55% fat and 35% water. It is the highest quality product in which there will be a minimum amount of chemical additives.
- Class II - medium-calorie mayonnaise, the fat content of which is 40-55%, and the amount of water is 35-50%.
- Grade III - a low-calorie, light mayonnaise, which will more correctly be called mayonnaise sauce, it includes more than 55% water and up to 40% fat.
We classify mayonnaise by composition
You should also distinguish between types of mayonnaise, focusing on their composition, which everyone can read on the product label. Since one of the main components of this sauce is vegetable oil, mayonnaises are divided into those based on sunflower oil, olive oil, as well as sesame, corn, soy and peanut butter, however, these types of sauces can often only be bought abroad.
The second important component in mayonnaise is eggs, or rather egg yolks. However, producing sauce on a similar basis is too costly. Therefore, in most cases, mayonnaise will contain egg powder, or, worse, chemical additives that replace it.
Other grades of sauce
If you carefully analyze the detailed overview and types of mayonnaise, you can see a couple more classifications of this famous sauce.
So, depending on the destination, they distinguish appetizer sauce, children's and for diet food. Snack mayonnaise is a regular grade 1-2 mayonnaise, as well as hot sauce and sauce with spices and other flavors. Children's mayonnaise is a sweet sauce, creamy and with delicate flavors that will delight children. Well, diet sauce is all kinds of third-class mayonnaise sauces with a minimum amount of fat in the composition.
Depending on the consistency, mayonnaise is creamy, creamy, liquid and pasty.
In addition, abroad, it is customary to classify the sauce by mass fraction of fat: if it contains more than 75% fat, then this is real mayonnaise, and if less, then it is only an emulsified mayonnaise sauce.
Types of packaging for mayonnaise
But that's not all about this gas station. Now that we have figured out the types of mayonnaise and their classification, we can proceed to analyze the variety of packaging of this product.
- Glass jars with screw caps allow you to store the sauce in the refrigerator for the longest time.
- Doy-pack without a cap, in which you need to cut a corner to fill the dish with mayonnaise, is least suitable for long-term storage of the sauce. Mayonnaise in such packaging can only be bought if you plan to fully use it on the same day.
- Doy-pack with a twisting cap makes it possible to slightly extend the shelf life of the sauce, in contrast to a simple doy-pack.
- Boxes, cups, cans and buckets made of polymeric materials with tight-fitting lids are good enough as packagings, but still cannot give the necessary tightness after they are opened.
The benefits of sauce
Now let's see what kind of mayonnaise will benefit our body and which one. After all, all you need to buy a quality mayonnaise that will be good for your health is to carefully look at its label. If it is said that there is egg white in the sauce - albumin, then you should take it, because such a protein is extremely necessary for the body. And mayonnaise based on egg yolks will be very useful, as they contain vitamin B, which is also needed for health.
It is very good if apple vinegar is included in the sauce, as it can destroy harmful bacteria in the body and whitens teeth well. And finally, it is very important that the mayonnaise was created on the basis of sunflower, rapeseed or olive oils, as they help improve metabolism, prevent the development of cardiovascular diseases, slow down the aging process and relieve blood clots in blood vessels.
Sauce harm
However, our famous sauce can bring the body not only benefits. Therefore, now we will try to figure out which type of mayonnaise does more harm to your body, which is why it would be better to refuse to purchase it.
In no case can you buy mayonnaise, which contains not ordinary vegetable oil, but trans fats, because they are not absorbed by the human body, are not broken down, accumulate in the vessels, liver, stomach and lead to the development of obesity, atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease .
Mayonnaise is also harmful, as part of which there are preservatives that increase its shelf life, which do not decompose in the stomach, but enter the cells of the body and kill all living things.
It is even better to avoid sauces, which contain flavor enhancers, as they negatively affect the stomach and other organs of the digestive tract. Yes, and mayonnaise, which contains an emulsifier in the form of soya lecithin, will also not benefit the body, because it is made from genetically modified soy, and its effect on our health is still very poorly understood.
Mayonnaise selection
Now, when we know what types of mayonnaise are, which sauces are healthy, and which only cause harm to the body, you can easily choose the highest quality product. The main thing is that at first you still have to take a chance and buy several mayonnaises of different brands at once, but then, after they are examined and analyzed, everyone will be able to find a suitable sauce. So, let's figure out how to choose the right mayonnaise:
- The shelf life of this mayonnaise in a closed jar is 2-3 months, so if it is longer on the package, it means that there are chemical additives and it is better not to take it.
- In the composition of products in the first place should be vegetable oil, and should also be present eggs or egg powder, milk powder, salt and sugar, vinegar and mustard.
- When buying mayonnaise, you can arrange for him a quality check by squeezing a drop of sauce on a plate. If after 5 minutes it still lies, then this mayonnaise can be bought in the future, and if it spreads on a plate, then it is of poor quality.
- For another test of mayonnaise, you can drop iodine on it, if it then turns blue, it means that it contains a lot of starch, which is not the most useful substance for the body.
- It is very important that the sauce be a homogeneous creamy, creamy consistency. If you see that the mayonnaise is stratified or lumps are present in it, it is better to immediately throw it in the trash, as it has already deteriorated, or its production system has been violated.
Cooking mayonnaise yourself
And in order not to think about the types of mayonnaise that benefit and harm our health, it is better to prepare the sauce at home ourselves, because you will be sure of its quality, which means you will not have to worry that there may be undesirable consequences from its use. And to create such a sauce you will need:
- 200 ml of vegetable oil;
- 2 egg yolks;
- a teaspoon of juice squeezed from lemon;
- a teaspoon of mustard;
- half a teaspoon of salt.
And all you need to do to make mayonnaise is to add yolks, mustard and salt to the mixer bowl, beat them well, and then with a thin stream you should start pouring vegetable oil into the kitchen appliance without stopping whipping. When the mayonnaise reaches the desired density, add lemon juice to it, whisk a little more and send the sauce to the refrigerator.
Types of salads with mayonnaise
Well, in the finale, let's talk about the most important thing - varieties of salads with our favorite sauce. So, using the most famous and beloved sauce, you can cook:
- the simplest salads, where it is used as a dressing: to do this, simply cut the necessary products that do not require additional processing, add salt, spices and mayonnaise, mix everything, and the dish is ready;
- medium-sized salads, where mayonnaise is used as a dressing: here products are usually pre-processed, most often boiled until cooked, and then they are sliced and seasoned with mayonnaise;
- puff salads, where the sauce is needed as a bonding material and is applied to each layer of a particular type of product with a thin mesh;
- holiday salads are often puff, but their difference from ordinary salads of this type is that the top layer of the dish is completely covered with mayonnaise, and an unusual pattern is laid out on the food, or, conversely, mayonnaise is written on top of the dish for a festive greeting as they write cream on top of the cake.