Why You Should Consider Using Mayo In Your Next Batch Of Muffins

Every home baker crafting muffins in their kitchen strives for those ideal moist and tender, fluffy, and delicious goodies everyone salivates over on bakery shelves. These muffins make the perfect breakfast, dessert, or anytime snack, but keeping your muffins from drying out is one struggle bakers must overcome when cooking up these confections.

Nobody wants dry muffins, and according to Kitchn, two baking mistakes that can lead to less-than-ideal pastries include over-baking them in the oven and leaving them in the pan to cool, which also results in your muffins cooking for too long. Additionally, Kitchn says over-mixing your batter wrecks that tender consistency we all crave.

But how can you combat these issues without running the risk of equally disappointing under-baked muffins? The easy answer might already be sitting in your fridge. Whether you're making banana muffins, cardamom blueberry muffins, or anything in between, this surprising ingredient could be the key to transforming your muffins from "meh" to mind-blowing.

Mayonnaise is a popular condiment when it comes to making sandwiches. It even secured the top spot in 2021 for the most popular condiment in the United States (via Statista). But did you know that mayo can be a helpful addition to the batter of your baked goods?

It might sound a little gross initially, but when baking perfect muffins, you may want to include mayo as your secret ingredient. According to How Stuff Works, mayonnaise is the key to super moist and extra tender bakes. Mayo is simply made by combining eggs, oil, and vinegar or lemon juice (via WebMD), ingredients that typically belong in baked goods anyway. Southern Living says you can swap the eggs and oil in a muffin recipe for mayonnaise. All you need to do is add three tablespoons for each egg the recipe calls for.