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What is Vegenaise®?

Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen

Vegenaise®, pronounced either Vegan-naise or with a soft g sound like vegetable, is a vegan spread similar in taste to mayonnaise. Mayonnaise requires eggs, so the company Follow Your Heart® created a new name for this mayonnaise substitute. With four different types available, Vegenaise® isn’t just for vegans. Folks allergic to eggs or or who want to cut their cholesterol intake slightly may also enjoy it.

Follow Your Heart® is the company that produces the product, and it’s also the name of a vegan restaurant in Los Angeles which opened in 1971. The restaurant is located at the back of the Follow Your Heart® store, which has plenty of the vegan foods the company makes and other products that would appeal to vegetarians, vegans, and flexitarians alike. When possible, the Follow Your Heart® restaurant uses their own products like Vegenaise®. You might order Vegenaise® on a sandwich, but you’ll also find it used in many of the Follow Your Heart® salad dressings.

Vegenaise® can be found at health and natural food stores.
Vegenaise® can be found at health and natural food stores.

The basic ingredients of Vegenaise® are oil, apple cider vinegar, brown rice syrup, soy protein, salt, lemon juice, and mustard. The four varieties of the product differ in the type of oil used. Original Vegenaise® uses canola oil, but you can also get an expeller pressed canola oil version, one made with grapeseed oil, and an organic version made with soybean oil. All recipes are vegan, and most versions have 90 calories per tablespoon (14 grams). All versions are also low in saturated fat because of the oils used.

Vegenaise® is similar to mayonnaise, but does not contain eggs.
Vegenaise® is similar to mayonnaise, but does not contain eggs.

The claim that Vegenaise® is healthier for you must be weighed carefully. A comparison with Hellmann’s® or Best Foods® Mayonnaise show that both spreads contain the same amount of calories and approximately the same amount of saturated fat. The original version of the vegan spread contains slightly less saturated fat. Best Foods® does contain eggs, however, which people may need to avoid because of allergies, or based on principle. In taste, Vegenaise&reg is often considered similar to, or as good as, low-fat mayonnaise types and spreads like Miracle Whip®.

Vegenaise spread can be used on sandwiches in lieu of mayonnaise or Miracle Whip.
Vegenaise spread can be used on sandwiches in lieu of mayonnaise or Miracle Whip.

It may be difficult to find vegan spreads if you don’t live in a large urban area. Even at natural foods or health food stores, you may not find the company’s products. If you live in the US or Canada, you can order Follow Your Heart® products directly from the company website.

Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen

Tricia has a Literature degree from Sonoma State University and has been a frequent DelightedCooking contributor for many years. She is especially passionate about reading and writing, although her other interests include medicine, art, film, history, politics, ethics, and religion. Tricia lives in Northern California and is currently working on her first novel.

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Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen

Tricia has a Literature degree from Sonoma State University and has been a frequent DelightedCooking contributor for many years. She is especially passionate about reading and writing, although her other interests include medicine, art, film, history, politics, ethics, and religion. Tricia lives in Northern California and is currently working on her first novel.

Learn more...

Discussion Comments

anon1002181

I found and liked Vegenaise better than mayonnaise. However it has Canola oil in it which is receiving bad press. Apparently the process used causes heart disease and dementia. Having read the articles I won't be opening the new jar I have in the fridge

anon995823

It is made with soy oil and 95 percent of that market has been genetically modified. So pick your poison.

anon994420

Is Vegenaise healthier? Well some studies seem to indicate that the more compassionate you are the longer and healthier your life will be. So if you switch to Vegenaise out of compassion for the brutally abused chickens in the egg industry, it just might be healthier for you.

anon994419

I love it. Tastes just like the homemade mayonnaise my grandma used to make. Vegenaise does not have that metallic aftertaste that commercial brands seem to have (which I hate but some people seem to like - guess we're all different).

anon340376

I like it and consider it similar to Helmann's. It was not as healthy as I expected.

anon336177

I bought some veganaise. It was almost $8, tasted like elmers glue and was disgusting. What a waste of money. Yuck.

anon306966

I looked up outpost store australia and they did not sell Vegenaise. Could you be more specific?

anon180575

Incredibly delicious, tastes better and somehow fresher than the "real" stuff.

anon177640

Where can I buy vegenaise in Australia?

anon107737

At the Outpost Store in our area I bought Follow Your Heart (High Omega-3 Vegenaise) it is the best I ever tasted. You could put this against any brand of mayo and it would win the prize.

I am very particular about the taste and texture of the mayo I eat. I consider myself a very good cook and know good tasting foods. Also a head chef at a fine restaurant and also he makes dishes at the outpost and only uses this brand of mayo, because of its excellence.

anon106093

I agree with post #5. I think this tastes better than the "real" mayo made with eggs. I love this stuff.

anon91762

Veganaise tastes the same (or better) as regular mayonnaise but has no animal protein or cholesterol.

Animal protein reacts with your liver (and also diet cholesterol but not as much as animal protein actually) and creates a surge of cholesterol in your blood stream. My total cholesterol fell to 104mg/dL after 14 months of avoiding animal protein and diet cholesterol (HDL and LDL always great too).

This is our normal cholesterol level, according to all the fundamental research out there (get a hint by looking up Baylor University's research, William Roberts, Executive Director over there, or plain fundamental research articles like David Kritchesky, Funch and all the others, or even better, read "The China Study" by Colin Campbell.)

anon85264

I'm no vegan, but this is the first vegan product, in my opinion, that outdoes the meat/dairy product that it is striving to emulate! Kudos to the folks at Follow Your Heart! I just ate several spoonfuls as a savory dessert.

anon71805

I love veganaise. It is much smoother and tastier than mayonnaise. I like to make a veggie dip out of it, using pickle juice and vegenaise.

anon42261

Of course it's still good to eat. Even mayonnaise with eggs is often put in the cabinet before opening.

anon21814

I like to use Vegenaiase. A friend picks it up for me at her favorite health store in Toledo, OH. I have always kept unopened jars in the refrigerator. Unfortunately, the last jar was put into the cabinet, like regular mayo. Is it still safe to eat?

anon18871

Actually, our local Wild Oats just made the change over to Whole Foods, and I've seen (and purchased) Vegenaise there in both incarnations.

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    • Vegenaise® can be found at health and natural food stores.
      By: aquariagirl1970
      Vegenaise® can be found at health and natural food stores.
    • Vegenaise® is similar to mayonnaise, but does not contain eggs.
      By: Alexandra
      Vegenaise® is similar to mayonnaise, but does not contain eggs.
    • Vegenaise spread can be used on sandwiches in lieu of mayonnaise or Miracle Whip.
      By: sumnersgraphicsinc
      Vegenaise spread can be used on sandwiches in lieu of mayonnaise or Miracle Whip.
    • Soy protein is a key ingredient in Vegenaise®.
      By: gitusik
      Soy protein is a key ingredient in Vegenaise®.