Chia Gel to Extend and Replace Mayonnaise

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Adding chia gel to mayonnaise in a 1:1 ratio works well to cut down on fat and calories in a recipe.

Say your recipe calls for 1/2 cup of mayonnaise. Taking the mayonnaise I have on hand (Spectrum Naturals Organic Mayonnaise) as an example, 1/2 cup has 800 calories and 88 grams of fat.

It only takes about 1 tablespoon of chia to make a quarter cup of chia gel if using a 1:4 ratio for a thicker gel. (1 part chia to 4 parts water). 1 tablespoon of chia has about 50 calories and 3 grams of fat.

So cut your 1/2 cup of mayo down to 1/4 cup and mix it with 1/4 cup of chia gel.

The total calories and fat ends up being 450 calories and 47 grams of fat instead of 800 calories and 88 grams of fat.

You just saved 350 calories and 41 grams of fat. This is great news when making anything that calls for a lot of mayo, such as egg salad, tuna salad, or pasta salad. Plus, chia seeds are good for you so you're doing something healthy for your body.

Note: using white chia seeds such as Salba instead of black chia seeds will make the mayo/chia mix more aesthetically pleasing but it doesn't affect the flavor at all if you use black seeds. It might be a good idea to have both black and white seeds on hand in the kitchen for different uses.