Step Up Your Boxed Brownies With One Creamy Addition

I'm a big mayo fan. Specifically Kewpie mayo, the Japanese brand that's taken the internet by storm; creating fans out of mayo haters and lovers alike. It's a poorly-kept secret that bakers have been using mayo in everything from cakes to cupcakes for ages. It's a pretty good replacement for popular baking ingredients considering it's mostly oil and egg. But if you've never subbed in mayo before, I'll walk you through the do's and don'ts so you can have a good first mayo brownie experience, despite how funky that sounds.

The first thing to know? The type of mayo you use matters. In general, mayonnaise tends to skew more savory than sweet since it's designed for use with dishes like veggie roasts, sandwiches, and pasta salads. This is why I had to leave my beloved Kewpie behind, even though it pained me greatly. Kewpie really leans into the salty, vinegar-y realm of mayos, which is tasty when added to instant ramen, fried rice, or hamburger patties — less ideal when mixing it into chocolate, though. You're going to want classic Western-style mayo for this, like Kraft, Hellmann's, Best Foods, or Duke's. Hellmann's is my choice, but it's basically down to personal preferences.

When it comes to subbing mayo into your baked goods, you want a 1:1 ratio of mayo to oil. Add in the other ingredients like egg and water according to your box mix instructions and just leave the oil out. This is just a personal tip, but I suggest going with Dolly Parton's Duncan Hines collaboration brownie mix. The Fabulously Double Fudge will give you a dense, rich, delightfully chocolate-y experience, and the bold chocolate flavor helps knock down any traces of savoriness that might have transferred over with the mayo.

You don't have to change any other parts of the baking experience, either. Just mix your batter as normal, pour it into whatever container you'd usually use and bake it in accordance with the box instructions. Just pull a toothpick out clean after inserting it into the center of the brownies before chowing down. You'll notice a crispness to the outer edges and top of the batter, but for me at least, the mayo doesn't change the flavor at all.