Abtract
A combination of oil, water, egg yolk, and stabilizers was combined in an effort to produce mayonnaise. The final emulsion was a result of a trial and error process to perfect the timing and order of the addition of ingredients. The procedure was only attempted once. It was concluded that adding the oil slowly to the egg yolk and adding the stabilizers at the end would produce a mayonnaise similar to manufactured mayonnaise.
Introduction
The purpose of this experiment is to determine the methods and techniques required to produce mayonnaise. Mayonnaise is an emulsion, which means that it is a stable combination of two liquids that are immiscible. They key to this concept is that the combination must be stable. Water and oil, for example, do not combine to form an emulsion because of hydrogen bonds that form between each other in water molecules. These bonds prevent oil molecules from getting in.
In order to create an emulsion, an emulsifier must be added to the combination. An emulsifier is a compound that stabilizes emulsions. These emulsifiers, which are also often added to soap, have long chains of carbon and hydrogen atoms with a hydrophilic (water loving) and hydrophobic (water fearing) ends. This allows them to form a stable bridge between the hydrophilic water and the hydrophobic oil. Lecithin, a phospholipid with a hydrophobic head and two hydrophobic tails found in egg yolks, is one example of how emulsifiers can take shape.
This is relevant to the production of mayonnaise because mayonnaise is an emulsion legally defined as including “65% oil and egg yolk”. The emulsifying agent in mayonnaise is the egg yolk, which is an emulsion of it’s own with ~48% water, ~16% proteins, ~10% lecithin and ~13% fats and cholesterol. Low-density lipoproteins (LDL), high-density lipoproteins (HDL) and various other proteins can be found in the yolk. HDL particles require an extra boost to improve their ability to act as an emulsifier