01
Tartar Sauce
10.0best for sauce1 tbsp : 1 tbsp
Base ingredient, add relish and lemon
10.0
mayonnaise substitute
for sauce.
As a sauce base mayo is a stable cold emulsion — half a cup of oil suspended in roughly two tablespoons of water-plus-yolk, viscosity around 30,000 cP, pH 4.1. That's why aioli coats a spoon for 30 seconds while vinaigrette runs off in 3. Heating it past 165°F breaks the emulsion (yolk coagulates, oil weeps), so this page evaluates substitutes on cold viscosity, coating ability on a back-of-spoon test, and acid balance — not reduction or simmer behavior, which mayo can't do anyway.
top substitutes
adjustment for sauce
1:1 by tablespoon. Same cold viscosity as mayo (around 30,000 cP) since it's mayo-based, with chopped relish bits suspended in the emulsion. Coats a back-of-spoon for 30 seconds — identical to mayo. Don't reduce or simmer; the egg-yolk emulsion breaks at 165°F, identical limit. Use as a finishing sauce for fried fish straight from the jar.
02
Sour Cream
7.5best for sauce1:1
Tangy and thick; works 1:1 in dips and baked potatoes, less rich than mayo
7.5
adjustment for sauce
1:1 by unit. Sour cream's cold viscosity (about 75,000 cP) is more than double mayo's, which means it coats a spoon longer but doesn't drape as smoothly. Heat tolerance up to 180°F — temper first with hot liquid. Add a teaspoon of lemon juice per cup to push the pH closer to mayo's 4.1 acid floor.
03
Cream Cheese
7.5best for sauce1 cup : 1 cup
Soften to room temperature; richer and tangier, works in dips and chicken salads
7.5
adjustment for sauce
Soften to 70°F and whisk in slowly, 1:1 by cup. Cream cheese has a cold viscosity around 250,000 cP — almost ten times mayo's — so the resulting sauce is far thicker. Thin with 2 tablespoons of milk per cup to match mayo's pour-from-spoon body. Heat tolerance up to 200°F before casein curdling.
show 7 more substitutes
04
Plain Yogurt
5.01 cup : 1 cup
Thin with milk if needed; tangy and mild, lower fat swap in dressings and dips
5.0
adjustment for this dish
1:1 by cup. Yogurt's cold viscosity is around 5,000 cP — a sixth of mayo's — so sauces run rather than coat. Strain the yogurt overnight or whisk in a teaspoon of cornstarch slurry per cup to thicken and stabilize against curdling above 160°F. The pH 4.4 acid floor sits one-tenth above mayo's 4.1.
05
Greek Yogurt
5.01:1
Qualitative substitution — adjust to taste
5.0
adjustment for this dish
1:1 by unit. Greek yogurt's strained body gives a cold viscosity around 50,000 cP — close to mayo's 30,000 cP and far thicker than regular yogurt. Heat tolerance up to 180°F with tempering. Add a tablespoon of olive oil per cup to bring the fat content from 10% closer to mayo's 70% for that emulsified body.
06
Dijon Mustard
10.01 tsp : 1 tsp
Adds creaminess in dressings; milder flavor
10.0
adjustment for this dish
1:1 by teaspoon as a flavor-and-emulsifier base, not a full mayo replacement. Dijon's mustard-seed mucilage helps stabilize vinaigrettes and pan sauces — a teaspoon per quarter-cup of oil emulsifies for 4-6 hours at room temp. Mustard at pH 3.6 brings sharper acid than mayo's 4.1 and a horseradish-like heat from sinigrin.
07
Mayonnaise Dressing
10.01 cup : 1 cup
Lighter commercial mayo-style dressing; 1:1 swap in sandwiches and salads, slightly sweeter
10.0
adjustment for this dish
1:1 by cup. The lighter dressing's 35-50% oil versus mayo's 70% means cold viscosity drops to around 15,000 cP — half of mayo's body. Sauces run faster off the spoon. Add a tablespoon of oil per cup to thicken; the added sugar (about 5%) carries through, so cut any other sweetener in the recipe.
08
Creamy Dressing
10.01 cup : 1 cup
Ranch-style creamy dressing; 1:1 swap in sandwiches and chicken salad, adds herb flavor
10.0
adjustment for this dish
1:1 by cup. Ranch-style dressing has cold viscosity around 12,000 cP — under half of mayo's 30,000 cP — because buttermilk dilutes the oil phase. Sauces drape thinner; thicken with a teaspoon of cornstarch slurry per cup. The herb load (dill, parsley, garlic) flavors the sauce strongly, so build seasoning around it.
09
Avocado
5.01 cup : 1 cup
Mash ripe avocado; creamy healthy swap in sandwiches and tuna salad, less tangy
5.0
10
Hummus
6.71 tbsp : 1 tbsp
Creamy spread, very different flavor
6.7