Everyone says, not to eat raw eggs because they’re bad for you, but mayonnaise consists of oil, and raw eggs. What’s the difference?
Nothing. Eating homemade mayo has all the same health risks as eating raw eggs. As does eating cookie dough, eggs over easy, and homemade Caesar dressing.
'course, if you’re talking that mayo you buy in a jar, ain’t nothing in that going to hurt you.
http://www.metrokc.gov/health/foodsfty/eggs.htm
Pasteurizing means heating stuff only long enough to kill the germs. For homemade mayonnaise, cake batter, ice cream and such you should buy pasteurized whole eggs because of the salmonella risk of raw eggs.
“Everyone says, not to eat raw eggs because they’re bad for you”
Raw eggs are no more “bad for you” than is riding a motorcycle. Both can be pleasurable and harmless. Both are associated with a bit more risk than eating cooked foods and riding in 4-wheeled vehicles.
Actually the risk of getting egg-associated salmonellosis (Salmonella eneriditis) from making your own salad dressing or mayo is not all that high, according to the CDC:
“In affected parts of the United States, we estimate that one in 50 average consumers could be exposed to a contaminated egg each year.” “Many dishes made in restaurants or commercial or institutional kitchens, however, are made from pooled eggs. If 500 eggs are pooled, one batch in 20 will be contaminated and everyone who eats eggs from that batch is at risk.” From:
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/salment_g.htm#What%20is%20the%20Risk
Salmonella enteriditis infection causes diarrhea which can be serious in the very old, very young, and in people with underlying health problems.
Oooh, ooh, I just read in Alton Brown’s new book, I’m Just Here For the Food that the acid in the vinegar will kill all the bacteria, but only if the raw egg mayonaise is allowed to sit for several hours at room temperature, and then refrigerated thereafter. Apparently, the cold of the 'fridge slows down the chemical reactions so the acid can’t denature the bacterial proteins as fast.
THIS IS NOT HEALTH ADVICE. I MIGHT NOT HAVE REMEMBERED THIS EXACTLY RIGHT. BUY ALTON’S BOOK TO BE SURE, AND ALSO BECAUSE IT’S A VERY COOL BOOK.
The problem with most foods is letting them sit there for too long before you eat them so the germs have time to multiply. Make your mayo at home and eat it right away and you’re pretty safe. Let it sit around and it will grow stuff, like many other foods.
BTW, mayonnaise was invented by some British officer stationed in the town of Mahon in the (then) British island of Menorca and named after that town (Mahonesa).
(God, I am so sick of having to log in continually because the sodding server cannot remember me. Can someone buy some memory or remind the server who I am?)
Both Yeah and Pod are correct.
Well, Alton Brown is one of my favorite TV cooks, and I’m sure his mayo is to die for. But I still would rather just make the mayo, stick it in the fridge, and use it promptly than hold it at “salmonella incubating temperature” and hope the acid kills it; pH 3.6 may seem like a lot to Mr. Brown, but it looks like a slim reed to me.
Now, if you want a rapid kill, why not just mix the egg with the vinegar and leave it for awhile? Even in the fridge, that’s gotta be more reliable than whole mayonnaise (although I can’t speak for what that will do to the egg…)
Microbiologist here.
The thing with mayonnaise is that all the water is tied up in the emulsion with the oil. There is almost no free water for bacteria, such as Salmonella, to use to multiply. Most bacteria require a water activity of around .8-.9 to grow. So, even if the eggs you use are infected with Salmonella, the vinegar will kill most of it, and the rest won’t be able to grow. That’s why you can leave it at room temperature. However, if you add free water to the mixture - say by sticking in a dirty knife covered with some other food, or by adding the mayo to your potato salad - the bacteria still present in the mayo could use that to start growing. So don’t leave your potato salad out in the sun all day.