Spicy Duckonnaise Recipe

A spoonful of Thai red curry paste takes this subtle duck-flavored mayo from intriguing to fabulous.

By
J. Kenji López-Alt
Kenji Lopez Alt
J. Kenji López-Alt
Culinary Consultant
Kenji is the former culinary director for Serious Eats and a current culinary consultant for the site. He is also a New York Times food columnist and the author of The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science.
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Updated March 27, 2024
Spicy duckonnaise in a pint-sized deli container, flanked by other "meatonnaise" experiments.

Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

Why It Works

  • Diluting rendered saturated fat with vegetable oil makes forming an emulsion for mayonnaise possible.
  • Starting off with a spoonful of jarred mayonnaise ensures the emulsion is off to a good start and remains stable.

In a bid to utilize several animal fats I had squirreled away in my freezer, I created several mayo recipes, or as I like to call it, meatonnaise. Some, like lambonnaise, were a bust. The duck fat meato, on the other hand, was fabulous. Light and creamy, with just a hint of duck flavor—not so much that it overwhelms the palate, but enough that it makes you sit up and realize: this ain't no Hellman's. Like a regular mayonnaise, the duck fat meatonnaise is great for taking on and delivering other flavors. For instance, a bit of Thai curry paste sitting in my fridge transformed it into a lickably good fragrant, spicy spread. I'd imagine some canned chipotles or Korean chile-bean paste would work equally good wonders.

For more about the science of making animal-fat mayonnaise, see my recipe for baconnaise.

October 2009

Recipe Details

Spicy Duckonnaise Recipe

Prep 10 mins
Total 10 mins

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup rendered duck fat, melted (see note)
  • 3/4 cup canola oil
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise (optional, see note)
  • 1 to 2 cloves garlic, grated on microplane grater or pressed through garlic press
  • 1 teaspoon red Thai curry paste
  • 1 tablespoon water, plus more to correct consistency
  • lime juice to taste
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Directions

  1. Combine duck fat and canola oil in 2-cup liquid measuring cup. Whisk to combine.

  2. Add egg yolks, Dijon mustard, mayonnaise garlic, curry paste, and water to bowl of food processor (see note). Run processor for 5 seconds to combine. Scrape down sides of processor bowl with rubber spatula. With processor running, slowly drizzle fat into bowl in a thin, steady stream, stopping and scraping down sides as necessary. Add lime juice, salt, and pepper to taste, and adjust consistency with water until thick, smooth, and creamy, but not mouth-coatingly waxy. Stir in cilantro. Store in refrigerator in air-tight container for up to two weeks.

Special Equipment

Food processor

Notes

This mayonnaise can be made with vegetable oil in place of the rendered animal fat - though flavor will suffer.

For insurance, I add jarred mayonnaise to the food processor at the start, which makes it easier to create a stable emulsion. If you are an experienced mayonnaise-maker who has no problems with mayonnaise breaking on you, you may omit the jarred mayonnaise.

The mayonnaise can also be made in a bowl with a whisk.

Make-Ahead and Storage

Store in refrigerator in an air-tight container for up to two weeks.

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