I love making mayonnaise. I love the colour, I love the texture, and I especially love the flavour of homemade mayonnaise. Aioli, the rich garlicky mayonnaise from southern France, is particularly delectable. Serve it with fried fish, cold cooked shrimp or crab, or put some on the table when serving roast chicken.

The trick to making good mayonnaise that doesn’t split is to take your time. Drizzle the olive oil into your egg yolks verrrrry slowly, beating vigorously. (You can also use a food processor, but where’s the fun in that?) If you do not rush and incorporate the olive oil gradually, your mayonnaise will be perfect. For flavour (and because the idea of eating supermarket eggs raw creeps me out), it’s best to use fresh farm eggs, if you can find them. For your olive oil, choose something mild and fruity, like a Spanish Arbequina olive oil.

Ingredients:

2 egg yolks from the freshest, nicest eggs you can find

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 to one and a half teaspoons salt

Juice of ½ lemon

Two large or four small cloves garlic, finely minced or crushed to a paste in a mortar and pestle

Method:

Beat the egg yolks in a medium bowl until pale yellow, about three to five minutes. Add the mustard, and beat for another minute. Working slowly, drizzle in all of the olive oil, beating all the while. Allow yourself at least ten minutes for this stage. You should end up with a lovely golden emulsion. Gradually add the lemon juice. This will turn your aioli a paler shade of yellow.

Stir in salt and garlic. Makes about one and a half cups of aioli. If you are not using it all at once, you can store it in your fridge, covered, for up to three days.