Traditional mayonnaise is full of egg yolks, thus full of saturated fat and cholesterol. This creamy homemade vegan mayo is perfect for sandwiches or potato salad. To make it even lower in fat, use light silken tofu instead of regular.
By Del Sroufe, Last Updated:
Join our best-selling cooking course at the lowest price ever!
Save $200 Now
Forks Meal Planner takes the hard work out of making nutritious meals the whole family will enjoy.
Try it for free today
Chef Del Sroufe is co-owner and executive chef of Wellness Forum Foods, a whole-food, plant-based meal delivery and catering service in Columbus, Ohio. He is the author of Forks Over Knives – The Cookbook and Better Than Vegan. Del teaches cooking classes and helps people transition to a healthy plant-based diet.
see more from this author
Get a taste for healthy, fuss-free meal planning with this free five-day meal plan from Forks Meal Planner!
Get delicious recipes, expert health advice, culinary tips and
special offers from Forks Over Knives and our curated partners.
Comments (67)
Do I understand your “5 days” comment to mean that this mayo won’t be usable after 5 days? One of the comments below also asked how long this mayo recipe would last. I’d love an answer. Thanks.
Hi Adrienne,
Yes, the mayo should be used within five days (and stored in the refrigerator).
Thank you!
Courtney
Editor, Forks Over Knives
I made this when we first started WFPB, and I didn’t like it. Now that we’re two years in, I thought I would try it again, hoping that our palates have changed, and it’s okay. It’s something moist to put on your bread anyway. I haven’t tried it in a salad but it works on bread. I used rice vinegar and thought it tasted really good on the knife. It’s a little bland on the bread; maybe I’ll add more vinegar or lemon juice next time. I did find silken firm tofu on the shelf in my grocery store, maybe they had extra-firm and I picked up firm accidentally.
Im gonna try it, but how long does it last in the fridgerator or freezer
I try to eat WFPB no oil low sodium whenever possible. Finally, a mayo sub I can live with! I double the spices, use salt substitute & change it up sometimes by adding a little ripe avocado and/or sriracha. THANKS SO MUCH!!
I love this! It’s especially good over broccoli slaw! Just ordered black salt. Used rice wine vinegar. Thanks!
Can this recipe be made with white beans and a potato or some other combo? if so, will it becreamy like the tofu recipe? I can’t eat soy products. Thank you.
Well drained cannellini beans make a good mayo base, with similar additional ingredients, especially if you have a high speed blender and add a few cashews. I also prefer apple cider vinegar to the red wine vinegar.
I recommend black salt (Kala Namak) which tastes like egg and smells like egg!
I have tried several different plant based “mayo” recipes, and this one comes the closest. One tip is to add 1/4 tsp kala namak (black salt, aka “fart salt”), which has a sulphur flavor like eggs do. It really helps to give it more of a mayo flavor. I make a mean deviled potato salad with it, and we make a version of deviled “eggs” using baby potatoes (1 1/2″ in size), where we boil the potatoes, let them cool, slice them in half, and scoop out about 2/3 of the insides with a melon baller. The potato balls are blended with vegan mayo, mustard, a little vinegar, a little sweetener (I use Truvia), lactic acid, kala namak, smoked paprika, and some very thinly sliced scallions. Instead of adding salt, I will dust the top lightly with a finishing salt to taste, such as Himalayan sea salt, if needed. When using tofu in place of dairy, adding 1/2 tsp of (vegan) lactic acid also helps to give that dairy “tang” to a dish or sauce. You might want to slightly reduce vinegars, lemon juice, etc if you use it. Kala namak and lactic acid are both available on Amazon and in some natural grocery stores.
I think there is an error in this recipe to make vegan mayonnaise, the type of tofu is listed as “extra-firm silken tofu” . I believe this is an error as “extra-firm” tofu and “silken” tofu are opposites in firmness, I believe the correct type of tofu is SILKEN TOFU.
There is no error. The best tasting tofu for this type of recipe is “extra-firm silken tofu”. The top brand available in mainstream and Asian grocers as well as Amazon, Whole Foods, and Walmart is Morinaga Mori-Nu extra-firm silken tofu. It comes in a shelf stable aseptic package that can be found on the shelf as well as in the refrigerated section.
If you find self stable tofu in the Asian aisle, it’s usually silken style. And it does come in firm and sometimes extra firm!!!
There really is extra firm silken tofu.
Just made it — with rice vinegar.
It is way better than another vegan mayo recipe I had tried.
Thank you Del and thank you FOK!
Great Easy Convenient
Glad I came to visit the site, and recipes. Mayo is the biggest problem for me, to reduce it or not use it. Many years ago I had some of that soft tofu and used it in some egg salad I was making, just to try it out. It was really a great substitute for me. I forgot about that until I got here. Cashew mayo sounds good but it is so expensive for me. I like seeing the spices you use to make it into a mayo recipe… it gives me an idea of what to use if I try the soft tofu again.
How long does this last in the fridge?
hi, you can use one boiled potato instead …. u will be pleasantly surprised
I made this, and while it was good, and the consistency is super, I think I will try next time with cider vinegar or lemon juice or a mixture of the 2. The red wine vinegar is a bit overpowering and gives it a strange (to me) flavor.
*I just read some of the other reviews, and see that many people have substituted other vinegars for the red wine.
What am I doing wrong??!!!
I made it exactly as the recipe says and it tastes nothing like mayo. Help please
Thank you! I was wondering the same thing bc I don’t care for red wine vinegar either. I substituted ACV and it worked great.
Did the taste test between this recipe and Mary Macdougal’s. Consensus is this Beats out Mary, but very close. Both made yummy tomato sandwiches. I have found the answer for mayo in my vegan potato salad and coleslaw. Defintely thumbs up for both will will use the recipe hence forth.
Made is w 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar, rather than 3 red wine. Perfect!!!
Just made this. Based on previous comments I used 2 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar rather than three red wine. It’s perfect !!!!
This is amazingly simple and great. I can’t believe how much it tasted like mayo. I didn’t have red wine vinegar and used distilled white vinegar. I can’t eat garlic or onion, so I left that out, too. It was still great. Thank you for this!!
If you use Indian – Black Himalayan Sea Salt it will give it a more authentic egg taste. Works really well in Vegan Egg Salad also.
Yes, I would second that – adding half of this as kala namak Indian salt would give it the eggy taste we know from regular mayos.
I made this today with silken tofu for our lunch.
We have been on this diet now for over a year. My husband is off all meds and we both have attained our weight goals.
Tomato sandwiches with gobs of Hellman’s mao used to be a favorite. Well this oozed down my hands just like the real thing! Not quite as exciting without the oily flavor but it was great to be able to enjoy this delicacy again!
We used Ezekiel pita sprayed with aminos, sprinkled with herbs and lightly broiled.
Thanks for the recipe- it’s a keeper!
Yum! Just made! I followed recipe, but only used 2 Tbsp of red wine vinegar. So good! Making pasta salad with this mayo and chickpea pasta next!
Am about to make this and wondering if I should add a sweetener?
Nope, definitely no sweetner for me. I tried Mary Macdougal recipe with th he sweetner and I don’t think it is needed, especially calling for only 1 tablespoon of vinegar. Was too sweet for me. So this will be the vegan recipe I will recommend.
Not exactly the same but pretty darn close! Thank You FOK!
You might try rice wine vinegar (not seasoned) for a bit of sweeter taste. Worked for me.
Adding Miso Paste adds a special tang.
Adding white Chia Seeds gives it a very spreadable consistency.
Thanks for the miso paste tip, I might try adding a bit of white miso paste instead of adding any sugar (I know sugar is not in this recipe, but most store bought mayos have it as an ingredient).
We have never tried a Forks Over Knives recipe that we didn’t like! Has been 4 years now and I am so grateful to F over K! Have saved the health of me and my husband.
Mayo recipe is excellent!!
Love this.
It would be helpful to me if nutritional values could be shown for all your recipes. I am a diabetic vegan and could really appreciate this. Thank you
Agree. Diabetics like me need the nutritional info please. I realize this will require serving sizes but it sure would be helpful.
Very bland and no taste.
I used this recipe, found it too bland too and added a little lemon juice. A winner!!!! Play with the ingredients until it suits your palate.
Hove not tried this yet but just wondered if it’s possible to get the nutritional information for this recipe (and for that matter all FOK recipes)? For someone who tracks calories and fat it would be really helpful.
Thanks
Silken tofu is available in an extra firm version from Mori-Nu. Just Google it. It should only be a couple of dollars.
I cannot find it for less that $7 for 12.3 ounces. Very expense mayo substitute, and I would have to order the extra-firm silken tofu online. Mayo just is not worth that.
Hello
I believe that there is an error in the tofu specification. Tofu can be either silken or extra-firm but not both. Since there is no water added in this recipe, I assume that the correct ingredient is silken tofu.
Please update if appropriate.
Hi. For boxed silken tofu I have seen three different types – soft, firm, and extra firm. All are silken. I can usually only find two sizes and pretty much always purchase the extra firm silken since that’s what most pie and sauce recipes seem to call for.
I made this from the magazine and did not like it. It was too “sharp.” I may try it again with less dry mustard. But it needs something.
I wondered if it will be too bitter with a teaspoon of dried mustard. I might try the original and see and then try it with a tsp of normal mustard instead.
Maybe reduce the red wine vinegar as well? I used to make this all the time and my husband had the same issue, so I reduced the vinegar and it was fine.
Yummy and my husband loved it who is a big Mayo eater.
Question: either soy allergies whst could be use in place of the tofu?
Char,
Did you use the same amount of white beans as tofu–12 oz? Was it creamy like the tofu version?
Elizabeth
I would suggest using either soaked cashews or burmese tofu made from chickpeas.
White beans work pretty well with a little plant milk to thin it.
Indian black salt (kala namak) in place of regular salt adds an authentic “eggy” flavor like real mayo.
I’m finding it difficult to buy extra firm organic tofu .. can I substitute organic firm tofu with water pressed out ? Or water not pressed out ?
Thank you !!
You need to use silken tofu for this recipe, so if all you have is firm tofu, you might need to add some plant milk for consistency.
I find that when I make the sauces I don’t Consume them prior to half of the product spoiling. Would they freeze well?
I have the same problem. Maybe halving the recipe is easier than trying to freeze it.
Can this be frozen?
I doubt it. Tofu gets a chewy texture when frozen. Good luck!
The only comment ik would like to give in respect to all recipes is a suggestion to always include the measures also in grams for example, because the website and app can be used all over the world and not everybody is used to Oz. It makes life easier when cooking 😉
As a European I would love if I could press a button and all measurements in the recipes was given in grams and liters instead!
And thank you FOK for all your wonderful inspiration <3
Seconding this!
Thamk you for receipe. Was just telling grandson about this kind of receipe. He disagrees it will wirk without oil & eggs. You just prived him wrong. Cant wait to make it , serve it & say nothing. God bless you from grandma Katie in Oregon
The recipe I have tells you to cube and boil the tofu for 5 minutes. Does boiling it help the mayo last longer? It hardly matters because at my house, tofu mayo doesn’t last 5 days! This recipe looks easier than the one I have been using. Thanks.
I’m not from FOK just another reader but I wanted to answer your question. Boiling the tofu a few helps take out the strong bean taste. It doesn’t help it to keep any longer than it would if you didn’t boil it.