The short answer is that one group of people have good taste while the other group of people are absurd. There's a little more to whether you're more likely to dollop mayo or Miracle Whip on that toasted hamburger bun, like where you were raised.
Usually when the topic of mayo versus Miracle Whip comes up in polite conversation, I do my best to sneak out of the room before it becomes impolite conversation filled with expletives, hair pulling and flying sandwiches. If escaping isn't an option I bring up a less volatile topic - like religion, the death penalty or Chinese labour laws.
I'm in the hate it camp. For Miracle Whip that is. I don't like it, I've never liked it and other than the basic look of it, it isn't at all like mayonnaise.
Mayonnaise is a creamy, rich, delicate concoction that enhances food. Miracle Whip is stronger tasting, sweet, filled with spices and not so subtle. So when people ask what the difference between Mayonnaise and Miracle Whip is, I can only assume they've only tried one of them. Because if you've tried them both you KNOW there's a difference.
Beyond taste there are a few more things that set them and their fans apart.
Table of Contents
What's the difference between Mayonnaise and Miracle Whip?
- Tangy, creamy
- 90 calories per tablespoon
- More oil
- No sweeteners
- Originated in Europe 200 years ago
- Tangy/Sweet
- 60 calorie per tablespoon
- Less oil
- Has high fructose corn syrup
- Invented in 1933 by some asshole
What YOU prefer probably has as much to do with where you live.
You probably like Miracle Whip if you live in ...
Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Pennsylvania or Maryland.
You probably like Mayo if you live in ...
Canada, the other American states or Europe.
You're showing your age if you prefer this one
Just for fun I asked ChatGPT who it thought would prefer mayo over Miracle Whip.
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What ChatGPT had to say
- Older generations (around 50 years old and above) grew up before the advent of the Internet and may have experienced the prevalence of traditional dishes and culinary practices. They will prefer mayonnaise.
- Younger generations (below the age of 40) particularly those belonging to Generation X, Millennials (Generation Y), and Generation Z have grown up in the digital age & have been exposed to a wide range of global cuisines and culinary innovations. ChatGPT theorizes that this makes anyone under 40 more likely to be adventurous with multicultural cuisines and culinary experimentation. They will prefer Miracle Whip.
That's right. If you're part of Generation X (between 43 and 58 years old), like I am, ChatGPT apparently thinks you are both old AND young.
It also has chosen to ignore anyone between the age of 40 and 50, presumably because these people only eat avocado toast.
ChatGPT considers Miracle Whip to be a culinary adventure.
If Miracle Whip is considered a bold culinary risk it's possible that ChatGPT is actually a 5 year old in Wisconsin.
In this favourite foods you've eaten post I confess to eating barnacles and a lot of you confess to eating even weirder things - like cod tongue. And loving it.
Many times what you were raised on dictates what you lean towards. My mother used Miracle Whip but only if the store was out of a little something called "Sandwich Spread", a mixture of mayonnaise-like goo and relish. In the 80's she branched out into the hoity toity world of Mayonnaise but now generally just buys whichever she can get the biggest bucket of at Costco.
I'm not sure how I escaped the lure of Miracle Whip, having been raised on it, but I did. One of the reasons I prefer Mayonnaise (other than the taste) is you can make mayonnaise at home with 4 ingredients and a few minutes and it tastes as good or even better than the stuff you buy in the store. That isn't always the case with homemade goods.
Like people say they prefer homemade ketchup. As if. There's no way anyone could duplicate the perfect combination of sweet and tart that comes oozing out of a Heinz bottle. Anyone who says they prefer homemade ketchup is a hippie hipster liar who wears shoes made out of braided cat hair.
You knew this was coming. I'd like to do an informal poll. Let's keep it polite people.
What do you prefer? Mayonnaise or Miracle Whip?
Your answer won't affect how I feel about you. Chances are I already thought you were absurd.
Mark
I grew up on Miracle Whip and we actually referred to it as mayonnaise in our house. At the age of 20 I worked with a New Yorker who shamed me on this. At first I thought he was just some east coast a-hole but after trying real mayo I realized I was just a midwest rube. I have preferred real mayo ever since but also have MW in the house cuz my wife just doesn't get it. At any rate I have just discovered Kewpie mayo and it's another animal altogether. No more Hellman's for me.
Karen
Kewpie is my sister's favourite brand. I've never tried it but now I feel like I have to buy some. ~ karen!
Meredith
I grew up eating my mother's home-made mayo so when I ventured out on my own finding a mayo I could stand was tough. I could never master my mother's recipe. It never mixed right, always separating. I gave up and started buying Hellman's. Much to my surprise I started dated and later marrying a Miracle Whip guy. We later divorced.
Lydia
Gen Z here, if Miracle Whip has a million haters I am one of them, if Miracle Whip has 10 haters I am one of them, if Miracle Whip has no haters I am dead. How anyone can actually like a substance that tastes like the Platonic ideal of a 1950's suburban housewife's barbituate-fueled, jello-molded culinary science nightmares is beyond me. Crème de preservatives.
Hellman's, on the other hand... Frankly, no mayonnaise can compare. I've tried many, and none of them have that bright, tangy acidity. Even fancy/artisinal or homemade mayonnaise have a bit of a strange, heavy, oleic taste that I don't love. Or maybe it's something to do with the eggs and how they are processed. Regardless, Hellman's is the only one for me. Hilarious article by the way. Very glad Minnesota escaped the Miracle Whip-lover states list lol
Karen
I fully agree. Obviously. ~ karen!
Wanda Moore
Actually, I did grow up eating Miracle Whip cuz mom hated Mayo with a passion. She's 79 and I'm 59.
I used to love it (had never had mayo) so much I ate Miracle Whip sandwiches! OMG!
NOW, being a grownup with real tastebuds, whenever I visit her I always forget to go to Culver's first and bring a hoard of Real Mayo packets so I can eat a decent sandwich.
Out of curiousity (you know what happened to the cat), last month I actually tried a nostalgic spoonful of Miracle Whip just for funzies....ugh!
Thank goodness I never let it touch my food! Yuck!
I would like to know if there are preferences of one brand of mayo over another.....I've only tried Duke's and Hellmans and I prefer Hellmans. Actually, I think the formula has changed (or is it me?) used to be a lot better than it is now. The consistency is too similar to Miracle Whip now.....my last 3 family-sized squeeze bottles were liquidy. Gross!
I need to try making Your recipe and get off the store bought crap anyway so Wish me luck!
And thanks for all you do for us Superwoman!
Karen
It really is good! But even I don't make my own mayo the time. Otherwise I use Hellmans. ~ karen!
Richard
Grew up thinking Miracle Whip was mayonnaise. When I got old enough to start buying my own food I realized why I couldn't stand it. Trying Hellmans Mayonnaise for the first time, I think in my early teens, may have started my path towards becoming a foodie. Hellmans or home made mayonnaise all the way.