The Technological Wonder That Is Mayonnaise

Mayonnaise is a wondrous thing. It consists of eggs, vegetable oil and an acidic liquid, usually vinegar or lemon juice, but in its finished form is nothing like any of those three. This is true of lots of cooked foods, of course, but mayonnaise isn’t heated,1500565606391 just mixed. In its mass-produced form -- a big half-full jar of which sits on my refrigerator shelf as I write this -- it is a durable source of creamy goodness compiled of a gratifyingly short list (for a mass-produced food) of reasonably wholesome ingredients.1500578051953

So when the Washington Post’s Catherine Rampell expressed some surprise earlier this week at seeing Olivia Zaleski’s bombshell story on the board exodus at eggless-mayonnaise maker Hampton Creek classified under "Technology" on the Bloomberg News website, it got me thinking: Mayonnaise must have been a huge technological breakthrough in its day.