Hellmann's Mayonnaise & the duc de Richelieu's chef

So how did mayonnaise come to be? Allegedly, the origins of mayonnaise go back to the wars in 1756 in Minorca. In the kitchens of the French 3rd Duc de Richelieu, his chef was preparing a feast after the Duke had defeated the Royal Navy at Port Mahon. 

One of his dishes was meant to have included a special egg based dressing. To his horror, he realised that he had 'run out of' cream that was an essential ingredient of the dish he was preparing... He decided to use olive oil in place of the cream and beat it into a rich sauce together with the eggs. He named his new concoction 'Mahonnaise' in honour of the Duke's victory at Mahon.... 

The Hellmann's brand of mayonnaise was a product of a German born Richard Hellmann who emigrated to the USA in 1903. In 1905 he opened up a delicatessen in New York. The delicatessen was renowned for the delicious salads that contained a mayonnaise which had been prepared by his wife. Her mayonnaise proved so popular that Hellmann began selling it in jars in 1913. 

Over the years mayonnaise has become extremely popular and Hellmanns is the leading brand capturing over half of the market. Hellmann's have since introduced light variety with less fat and fewer calories.

INGREDIENTS: soyabean oil, water, whole eggs, vinegar, salt, sugar, lemon juice, natural flavours.