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Bacon and blue cheese mayo! 5 ways to upgrade your mayonnaise

Boosting mayonnaise is one of the quickest ways to add easy creativity to a variety of meals. Here are five creative, tasty ways to do it.
/ Source: TODAY
5 ways to flavor your mayonnaise
Andrea Lynn

Boosting mayonnaise is one of the quickest ways to add easy creativity to a variety of meals. The options for use are endless— from spreading onto sandwiches and drizzling onto hot dogs to dolloping onto burgers. Whether it’s the restaurant-taste of the garlic aioli or the Asian flair of sriracha-sesame mayonnaise, these flavored mayonnaises can jazz up chicken salad, or be served as a dip with roasted potatoes or vegetables. Pair grilled fish with the Mediterranean-style mayonnaiseor use the blue cheese and bacon one as a base for potato salad. Use your favorite brand of mayonnaise, whether it’s reduced-fat, olive oil-based or other. Either way, your summer meals will be infused with a wallop of flavor courtesy of these upgrades.

Garlic Aioli

For a more subtle garlic flavor, 4 to 5 cloves of finely chopped roasted garlic can replace fresh garlic. Look for roasted garlic in the salad bar section of some grocery stores. Also, a microplane grater is an easy way to mince garlic.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Yield: 1/2 cup

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest + 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice
  • Pinch of salt and pepper

In a small bowl, add all the ingredients, stirring until combined. Taste, adding more garlic or lemon juice, if desired.

Sriracha-Sesame Mayonnaise

Jazz up those hot dogs with a squirt of this spicy Asian mayonnaise. Feel free to experiment with the amounts, using more hot sauce if desired.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Yield: 1/2 cup

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 3/4 tablespoon Sriracha (or another hot sauce)
  • 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
  • 1 teaspoon soy sauce

In a small bowl, add all the ingredients, stirring until combined. Taste, adding more hot sauce, if desired.

Mediterranean Sun-Dried Tomato & Olive Mayonnaise

Serve with grilled or baked fish, or spread onto a ham or turkey sandwich.

Prep time: 10 minutes

Yield: 3/4 cup

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 1/4 cup chopped oil packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained
  • 8 whole, pitted black olives
  • 1 tablespoon water
  • 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried basil

In a small bowl, add all the ingredients. Use an immersion blender to combine until smooth, around 30 seconds to 1 minute. (Alternatively, add the ingredients into a food processor and puree until smooth.)

All-American Blue Cheese and Bacon Mayonnaise

This is the ideal mayonnaise to spoon on top of burgers—while also solving the slide factor that comes when blue cheese alone is placed atop a burger. Also, for ease, consider using microwaveable cooked bacon slices. If using raw bacon, chop the bacon first and cook in a nonstick pan over medium-high heat until crispy, about 5 minutes. If you are making ahead, go easy on the blue cheese, as the flavor intensifies over time.

Prep time: 15 minutes

Yield: 1 cup

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 5 chopped, cooked bacon slices, patted with a paper towel to remove grease
  • 2 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese
  • 2 tablespoon chopped scallions (green part only)
  • Pinch of black pepper

In a small bowl, add all the ingredients. Use an immersion blender to combine until smooth, around 30 seconds to 1 minute. (Alternatively, add the ingredients into a food processor and puree until smooth.)

Cilantro-Chili Mayonnaise

This mayo can be made smooth in food processor or stay on the chunky side by just stirring together—the preference is yours. Spread onto corn on the cob and then top with Parmesan cheese for a play on Mexican street corn.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Yield: 3/4 cup

  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice (about half a lime)
  • 1/4 teaspoon chili powder

In a small bowl, add all the ingredients. Stir together for a chunky mayonnaise or, for a smoother consistency, use an immersion blender to puree, around 30 seconds to 1 minute.