An Everlasting Meal: Cooking with Economy and Grace

by Tamar Adler

I start with room-temperature eggs. There are scientific disagreements about whether this is good sense or superstition. I do not care what anyone says, my mayonnaise stays together better that way. Serve this in a bowl, with its accompaniments and a lot of warm bread. In Provence, an aioli without rosé is a nameless thing, and I’m not sure anyone would begin eating if there were none to pour. Mayonnaise and aioli 2 egg yolks 3/4 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon Dijon mustard 2 cups best olive oil around, plus more if the mayonnaise is not too wobbly when you’re done 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon room-temperature water 3/4 teaspoon (a squeeze) fresh lemon juice 1 drop red wine vinegar For aioli: 2 cloves garlic, pounded to a paste with salt in a mortar with a pestle or on a cutting board Dampen a dish towel, form it into a ring on the kitchen table, then set a bowl in the ring. This will steady it while you whisk. Whisk the egg yolks, salt, and mustard. When the yolks are a uniform yellow, about 5 seconds into whisking, begin to add the oil in a very slow stream, only drop by drop to start. This matters, and there’s no voodoo or trick or way of getting around it. Once the mayonnaise thickens, start adding the oil more quickly. When it becomes hard to whisk, add the water and lemon juice. Then whisk in the remaining oil. Taste for salt. Salt will take time to disperse throughout the mayonnaise because it’s not dissolved by heat or vinegar. If you’re not serving it for hours, keep the seaso...