Mayonnaise is a common kitchen staple. It’s creamy, delicious, and has a tangy taste. It’s made from egg yolks, oil, and vinegar or lemon juice.
Adding it to sandwiches, wraps, salads, dressings, dips, and more can add a creamy and tangy taste, but it can also add a lot of unwanted calories and fat. Plus, it’s not the healthiest option out there, due to lots of oil that is used to make it.
However, there are plenty of alternatives to mayonnaise that taste just as good as mayo, but minus the calories. Many of those alternatives also add a lot more nutritional value than mayo has, which is another reason to try them out, even if you’re not trying to lose weight, but just want to eat a healthier diet in general.
In this post, I’m sharing a round-up of healthier ingredients you can use as a substitute for mayonnaise.
7 Healthy Mayonnaise Substitutes
Greek Yogurt
Greek yogurt is a great healthy substitute for mayonnaise.
First of all, it’s healthy and good for you. It has healthy fats and other nutrients. It has a similar creamy texture, and while the flavor isn’t that similar on its own, it does work in so many recipes.
For example, if you’re making a tuna salad sandwich, you could use Greek yogurt instead of mayonnaise (you could also maybe add some mustard to it), and when you add salt and pepper and other ingredients, you’d barely be able to taste the difference. You can also use it in a potato salad or an egg salad instead of mayo!
Greek yogurt is also great for any dressings or dips – you can use it to make a healthier ranch, or any other dip or salad dressing you’d normally use mayo for.
When replacing mayo with Greek yogurt in recipes, you can use the same amount of Greek yogurt as you would mayo.
There are about 60-80 calories per 100 grams of Greek yogurt.
Avocado
Avocados obviously don’t have the same flavor as mayo, but the creaminess can replicate mayo in lots of dishes. Avocados are full of healthy fats (unlike mayo which is full of unhealthy fats), so besides being delicious, they’ll also have lots of nutritional value.
They can be used in sandwiches, wraps, or as a spread.
Of course, to use them as a mayo substitute you have to blend or mash them.
One medium-sized avocado has 160-200 calories.
Hummus
Hummus is an amazing substitute for mayonnaise. It’s made from chickpeas (which are full of protein and fiber), tahini (sesame seed paste), olive oil (full of healthy fats), lemon juice, and spices. You can get it pre-made from any grocery store, or you can make it yourself (for a healthier and even more delicious version).
It’s smooth, nutty, slightly tangy, and has a similar creamy consistency to mayo.
You can use it in swaps, as a sandwich spread (it works great in a turkey sandwich, for example, but also most other sandwiches), or as a dip for veggies and chips.
It has about 150-200 calories per 100 grams.
Sour Cream
Sour cream isn’t the healthiest mayonnaise substitute, but it it’s definitely lower in calories, and has a really similar feel to it – it can be used in almost every single dish as a mayo substitute. Whether you’re making a chicken salad, a tuna or potato salad, a sandwich, homemade ranch, a wrap, etc. – you can use sour cream instead of mayo.
It’s delicious, creamy, tangy, and slightly thicker than mayo.
It has about 200-230 calories per 100 grams.
Tahini
Tahini is a paste made with ground sesame seeds (which you get after blending them). It’s not low in calories, but as the taste is strong, you won’t use a lot of it. However, while it’s not low in calories, it’s definitely healthier than mayonnaise. It’s delicious, nutty, slightly bitter, and creamy.
You can use it in sauces, dressings, or marinades. It has 500-600 calories per 100 grams.
Mashed Tofu
Mashed silken tofu is an amazing replacement for mayo as it can have a really similar texture. It’s much higher in nutrients and lower in calories, plus, since the taste is very mild, you can fit it into so many different dishes by adding desired seasonings. It’s also a very popular vegan substitute for mayo.
You can use it in salads, sandwiches, or dips. It has about 80-100 calories per 100 grams.
It’s very simple to make – all you need to do is grab some soft or silken tofu (it’s important that it’s silken tofu and not firm tofu if you want to get the mayo consistency), and use a food processor or a blender to blend it up. Then from there, you can add your desired seasonings (or keep it as is).
Cashew Cream
Cashew cream is made from soaked and blended cashews with water. It’s nutritious and much healthier than mayo. The creamy and nutty texture and flavor make it a great addition to sauces, dips, dressings, and more. It’s rich in flavor, so it’s a great substitute for mayonnaise.
There are about 150-200 calories per 100 grams.
It’s also very popular as a vegan substitute for white pasta sauces.
If you’re looking for rice substitutes, I got you.
