the poverty luxe kitchen vol. 2: chipotle lime aioli.

homemade chipotle lime aioli. 

now doesnt that just sound fancy? like the kind of condiment youd find at a snobby gastropub accompanying nine dollar fried asparagus kind of fancy? 

well what if i told you that its the easiest thing ever and costs literally less than a dollar to make. thats right, for less than a dollar and like 30 seconds of stirring, you can impress the pants off your dinner guests, no matter what the occasion. 

let me tell you a secret: aioli sounds super fancy and exotic. but do you know what aioli means? mayonnaise. all those hipster food trucks with there fancy artisan aiolis are literally just stirring things into mayonnaise. 

and wouldnt you know it, chipotle lime aioli is exceptionally versatile. i was originally introduced to it because my mom would make it to go with fish tacos (fun fact for people who dont live next to mexico: fish tacos, particularly the street variety, are typically topped with a mexican-style mayonnaise, its delicious). i later found out that its not just a condiment for mexican food, but its also great on sandwiches, garlic fries (or these), and one time i even doctored it a bit to make salad dressing. its truly, truly wonderful stuff. 

ready to give it a shot? lets go: 

heres what you need: 

(yields approximately one cup of aioli)

3/4 cup mayonnaise (the real stuff, please)

1/3 of a small can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (found in the mexican aisle of the grocery store, put the rest in the freezer)

the juice of 1/2 of a fresh lime (or about 1 tablespoon of lime juice)

heres what you do: 

in an 8 ounce or larger glass jar or resealable food storage container (i mean, you could use a bowl, but that just gets a lot of things dirty), combine the mayonnaise with the chipotle peppers and sauce. 

i typically use about 1/3 of the can but i recommend starting with the plain mayonnaise and gradually adding the peppers one at a time until you get the right level of spicy-ness (i really like spicy, and i often forget that what i find to be pleasantly spicy is painfully hot to other people). 

thoroughly mix to make sure you have the right blend of flavors, adding more mayonnaise or chipotle if necessary, add the lime juice and stir again. 

and thats it, youve just made your own aioli. arent you fancy. 

(unless youre feeding a whole lot of people you probably wont use all of it in one go, which is why i recommend making it in a jar or other container so that you can save whats left in the fridge, it should stay fresh for a week or so, but ours never lasts that long)

what are your favorite condiments? have you ever dabbled in making your own? 

(p.s. dont forget that EVERYTHING in the shop is 30% off with code JAN15)