Pumpkin Mayo
The perfect sauce for this fall season. How I surprise my friends for Halloween every year!
It’s Pumpkin Season!
Hello Readers,
I hope you all had a spooktacular Halloween just a few days back! 🎃
There is something truly enchanting about this time of year, isn't there? The crisp autumn air, the leaves falling, the costumes and candies, and, of course… Pumpkins!
With no shame, being inspired by the season, in today’s newsletter only, I am jumping a little bit out of Asian-inspired cuisine (not too much though, you’ll see later!).
There is a pumpkin mayo-like sauce that I’ve been doing in the past two years that still never fails to surprise people, whether they are tasting it for the first time or craving it since the last Halloween.
If you know me, especially in the kitchen, you know I don’t like keeping secrets. In many contexts, including scientific communities, sharing and replicating ideas, achievements, and procedures, is what enables us to lean toward progress. We do not want a different bunch of people to get the same problems over and over again if they have been solved already. The same applies in the kitchen: I like to help people get started and not repeat the same trial-and-error I had to go through (though sometimes it is useful, but that’s another story for another time!).
For this reason, I kept sharing this recipe over the past years with friends and family, and now I am sharing it with you.
What does it taste like? This mayo is super creamy and aromatic. The pumpkin taste is not dominant, instead, all flavors come together smoothly. Vinegar and mustard help with some subtle acidity and the rosemary, paprika, and garlic help bring out a slightly aromatic and spicy aftertaste.
Recipe
Ingredients
I usually use a local and renowned type called Mantua Pumpkin (or Zucca Mantovana, in Italian) for my pumpkin recipes. I particularly like using the Delica subset, which has a slightly sweeter taste and mellow consistency; think about cooked potato texture, though it is not really the same.
Anyway, for this recipe, you can use any pumpkin of your liking that is available to you.
200g of Baked Pumpkin
Olive Oil
Aromatics: salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, rosemary
120g Vegetable Oil (I use Sunflower Oil)
1 egg yolk
18g apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice)
4g salt
2g MSG (optional)
Preparation
Cut the pumpkin into slices and lay them down over a baking sheet.
Generously sprinkle with olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, and rosemary.
Bake the pumpkin at 180 degrees Celsius for 40-45 minutes.
When it is done, wait for some minutes until it cools down to room temperature, then separate the pulp from the skin with a spoon.
Add all the ingredients from the list together in a high container (baked pumpkin, vegetable oil, egg yolk, vinegar, mustard, salt, and MSG).
Blend everything together with an immersion blender for 1-2 minutes, going up and down and around trying to incorporate air until obtaining a creamy and homogeneous emulsion.
Optionally adjust salt, MSG, pepper, and rosemary to your taste.
Serve the mayonnaise or transfer it to a sealable container in the refrigerator.
Notes & Storage
You will notice that the final sauce is a little bit creamier, more fluid, and less thick than the actual mayo you would expect. This is especially true right after blending the sauce cause most ingredients will be at room temperature.
If you would like to serve the sauce with a thicker density, transfer it to the fridge for around an hour or so before serving.
On a last note, this mayo could last for up to 5 days in the fridge, though it is prone to get rancid, so I suggest consuming it in the first 2-3 days.
How to use it
There is a super simple recipe that goes hand-in-hand with mayo: Tamago Sando. It is a Japanese egg salad sandwich that can be found in every Conbini and is now pretty popular all around the globe. If you didn’t read my post about them, check out how to make Tamago Sandos.
Apart from Sandos of any type, this sauce can be used in many other ways. I use it for burgers, chips, and anywhere else you would use mayo.
My very last idea is to use it as the base for a new pumpkin mazesoba, a broth-less ramen. Junky, but delicious.
What? Skins are edible?
Oh yes. You read that correctly.
You should know that for most of the varieties out there, pumpkin skin is totally edible (and rich in fiber and vitamins). So don’t waste them!
When I feel extra pumpkin-needy, this is what I do: dip the skins directly into the pumpkin mayo and eat it.
Luscious.
Blame me?
— The Ramen Bowl - ◡ -
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I’m sending this to my husband to make! (He’s our resident chef.) Is there an easy way to make it vegan?
mmm sounds incredibly yummy 🤩🎃😋