I understand that Hellman's and Best are the same product, just given different names on opposite coasts. Someone correct me if I'm wrong. Dukes is news to me!

From Wiki:

North America

Commercial mayonnaise sold in jars originated in New York City, in Manhattan's Upper West Side. In 1905, the first ready-made mayonnaise was sold by a family from Vetschau, Germany, at Richard Hellmann's delicatessen on Columbus Avenue, between 83rd and 84th Streets. In 1912, Mrs. Hellmann's mayonnaise was mass marketed and called Hellmann's Blue Ribbon Mayonnaise.

At about the same time that Hellmann's Mayonnaise was thriving on the East Coast of the United States, a California company, Best Foods, introduced their own mayonnaise, which turned out to be very popular in the western United States. In 1932, Best Foods bought the Hellmann's brand. By then, both mayonnaises had such commanding market shares in their own half of the country that it was decided that both brands be preserved. The company is now owned by Unilever.

In the Southeastern part of the United States, Mrs. Eugenia Duke of Greenville, South Carolina, founded the Duke Sandwich Company in 1917 to sell sandwiches to soldiers training at nearby Fort Sevier. Her homemade mayonnaise became so popular that her company began to focus exclusively on producing and selling the mayonnaise, eventually selling out to the C.F. Sauer Company of Richmond, Virginia, in 1929. Duke's Mayonnaise, still made to the original recipe, remains a popular brand of mayonnaise in the Southeast, although it is not generally available in other markets.

The recipes are not the same, just close.

Here is a link that might be useful: More on Best and Hellman's

Hellmans is the hands down favourite in this part of Canada.

I prefer Miracle Whip to mayo in salads and on sammies but for cooked foods I prefer mayo, becasue I don;t use mayo much I usually make my own.

It's very interesting to learn how partial we are to brands. I never heard of Duke's until the cooking magazines and shows, I think, maybe Paula's, kept mentioning it. I think it's more a Carolina/Georgia thing. Me...I'll take Hellman's and never Miracle Whip, but that's just me! Oh yeah, there is absolutely nothing wrong wtih homemade, Chase! I'm just lazy a lot of the time.

jude

I'm a Dukes gal for sure and probably will be unless I ever move to another part of the country. Hellman's tastes o.k. as does probably Best's and Miracle Whip is not for me *shudder*. I try a small jar of MW about every 7 years just to see what I am missing and still I am not a fan. Dukes has NO sugar in it, never has, never will.

All this said, I am not much of a mayo person except for certain foods: pimento cheese, potato salad, BLT and tomato sandwiches, turkey sandwiches, egg salad and tuna salad. I can't abide mayo on a burger.

Teresa, in Dukes country!

I use Trader Joe's, but my favorite is the full-fat refrigerated stuff from France. Yes, it's expensive, but it tastes like homemade. Best on BLTs.

Here is a link that might be useful: DeLouis mayonnaise

I can't offhand say that I've ever made the effort to notice the difference between mayo brands. Is the difference really noticable by the time it's on a sandwich or in a salad? But for some reason I can't bring myself to buy anything other than Hellman's. Don't know if it's regional or good advertising.

A half hour ago I started making Mudlady's tuna salad (with pineapple) and didn't hear my wife repeatedly warning me, "You didn't buy mayo!" and didn't remember that I specifically didn't buy it yesterday because Dale Jr's face was on it and I'm NOT having that in my house ;-)

So I brought out Cook's Illustrated and made their mayo recipe. They recommended corn oil, saying olive oil is fine (not EV) but not the extra cost. Well I had olive oil but not corn oil. I was surprised how quick it was to make - and it was fun - but the taste didn't leave me thinking it was worth having a quickly perishable product versus a jar of commercial.

Sorry... went off topic there!

Now I'm curious about Miracle Whip. Don't think I've ever had it.

Hellmans is the only commercial mayo I buy. I've never heard of Duke's though, I guess we don't get it this far north. MW - well.... I can eat it on mac or potato salad or cole slaw, but I still prefer mayo. Homemade is also excellent, but like FOAS mentioned, not worth the effort most of the time when I only need a tbsp and it is so perishable.

Love my Hellman's though!

Alexa

Speaking of mayo and Teresa's refererence to BLT's and tomato sandwiches (groan)....reminded me ...going down to the garden after a few days in Charleston...our tomato plants are loaded! I realize it will be weeks before they're ripe but I can't wait to stand over the sink, juice running down my arm eating that first glorious tomato sandwich....about the only time I prefer white or salt-risen bread for a sandwich.

jude

Hmm.... "here in the South we are diehard Dukes lovers"

NOT so in this part of the South. My entire family uses Hellman's and wouldn't dream of using Dukes. Dukes wishes they were the South's mayo!

Love Miracle Whip too - certain things call for mayo, others for MW.

Beth

We can get both Best Foods and Hellman here..and Kraft.

I like to use the Olive Oil mayo. And hubby is from NC and it's Miracle Whip all the way for him.

Mayo person, Hellman's, only!

And I'm from Alabama.

My father loved a slice with fruitcake spread with mayo. Me, too!

Peanut butter and mayo sandwiches.

Mayo and good sliced cheese on a cracker.

Hellman's and Best Foods are close enough for me. But when I was a kid growing up in Memphis, I recall Mother using Durkee's sauce for a lot of things. And I haven't seen it here on the west coast in the last 45 years. It was a mustardy sauce, but not mustard. Does that ring a bell with anyone?

Miracle whip has a sweet taste to it. I'd only use it for slaw type dressings and omit some of the sugar that those recipes usually call for. Hellman's is the preferred brand in NW PA, but honestly, I've used Kraft and really could'nt tell you the difference.

Hellman's, and Best Foods are both sold in Boulder. I don't think I have a preference but I also make my own using the very quick stick blender in a clear beaker method.

Lee

I grew up on Miracle Whip in the midwest but can't stand the sweetness of it anymore. I've never had Dukes or Best Brand mayo - have not seen those brands for sale in New England. When I want to indulge myself (a sinful potato salad, for instance) I buy full fat Hellman's and the rest of the time use reduced-calorie Hellman's - which I actually like.

seagrass

Helene, I lived with a family as a teen that used Durkee sauce. I have seen it and purchased here in Modesto where I live but don't recall where right now. Safeway might be a good bet, they seem to carry a lot of things that are particular to other places like Vegemite and Bird's Custard Powder. If I can get here you should be able to get in your part of CA, too.

Nothing wrong with Hellman's but I do think I can tell the difference from Best Foods in some sandwiches. Best Foods has a bit more acid, so more tang. I also like it better than homemade for the same reason. Otherwise, I'm just trying to make the homemade taste like Best Foods, so why not just use Best Foods and not worry about it going off.

I like the egginess of Best Foods light, and the fewer calories. Hain's safflower mayonnaise is also very good. It's lighter (feeling) and thinner, more delicate than Best Foods.

The best mayonnaise I ever had, fresh or commercial, was Osem. It doesn't taste the same here, which might be age due to shipping or stabilizers or something.

For national brands in Southern California, though, it's Best Foods all the way, with Kraft being the also ran that kids whine about not getting the good stuff about.

In some parts of the world they put butter on sandwiches and think mayonnaise is very weird, and others think we're weird in So.Cal. because we put salad (lettuce, tomato, pickles, onion at a minimum) on hamburgers with mayonnaise. In Australia they put fried eggs on hamburgers. We're not so weird just because we like ours whisked with oil instead. :)

Blue Plate at our house, and Hellman's if for some reason we can't get Blue Plate. NO Miracle Whip or Duke's.

It's Hellman's or Kraft or Miracle Whip in my part of the south. No Duke's around here. We do have Blue Plate, but I don't like it. I use Hellman's.

Hellmann's only, there has NEVER been Miracle Whip in my house, I won't eat anything that has it.

I've never seen Duke's or Best here, only Hellman's and Kraft.

I make my own mayo for some things, and I like Miracle Whip for just a couple of things, like fresh tomato sandwiches and in tuna salad.

I use mayo in potato salad and chicken salad, but I like mustard on sandwiches other than tomato sandwiches. I don't eat pasta salad because I don't care for the pasta.

Annie

I was born and raised in West Central Florida. All we ever ate was Hellmans. I now live in the Northeast and still eat Hellmans but notice Cains is popular up here too.

Durkees is still available here and is very good with crab in a casserole. I'm sure I've got a few other family recipes that call for Durkees. If I have it, I like it on ham and turkey sandwiches. The mustard adds a nice twang to the mayo, but I can approximate the taste of Durkees by mixing the two myself.

Teresa

We make alot of mayo ourselves, it's easy to do. But when we buy we only use Cains all natural mayo on sandwiches and in dips,etc. Third choice is Hellmans. Don't like the taste of Miracle Whip nor does the rest of the family. Have never heard of Dukes or Best brand. NancyLouise

I only use Hellman's and can't stand the taste or "texture" of the Kra(f)p. Now that yall have been mentioning MW you have me wondering if I still like it. Ate a lot of it as a kid. I'll have to go buy a jar and see. I remember it being very good on BLTs.

Here in SC a lot of folks swear by Duke's; I prefer Hellman's. Can't stand Miracle Whip; tastes too sweet and artificial to me. Chacun a son gout.

Like Nancylouise, I make my own mayo, and it's extremely simple. The only thing I do not like is cleaning the blender. I use only olive oil in my mayo, which gives it a different flavor from commercial mayo, but I've come to prefer it. My brother in Texas significantly lowered his cholesterol simply by switching to olive oil mayo, but then he must have been eating a lot of it, and I don't.

When I bought mayo, I only bought Best Foods, which was Hellman's in Texas. I also can't stand MW, but then it's not mayo. It is way too sweet for me and has an off flavor as well. I learned from the beauty forum here that you can make a facial using MW and Philips MOM, but I don't have the recipe for that. One of the instructions was to "step away from the fumes" and so I never tried it.

Lars

I grew up with Miracle Whip only, remember the first time I had Hellman's at a friends house, I told my mom I couldn't eat my sandwich because I thought the Miracle Whip was spoiled or something, lol...I converted to Hellman's after I started cooking and many recipe's called for it...but my husband soon complained he missed Miracle Whip on his roast beef sandwiches and blt's, so I keep a small jar of it on hand.

Forgot to say I grew up in Michigan...

In New England, it has to be Cains. Until I was 12, I never knew there were other brands of mayo.

I've lived in SC practically my whole life and Dukes is definitely the most popular. I hate it though and only like Hellmans. I can tell immediately if a sandwich has Dukes on it.

ItÂs only HellmanÂs or Dukes for me, whichever is on sale. Love mayo and either will do the job.
Loved MW when I was a child until the day I was traumatized by "the smell", we lived on a "city" farm, city was across the street. LOL Went to feed and water the dogs and chickens, and collect the eggs (my morning chores), it was spring, damp and rainy and the smell of chicken doo and dog doo and god knows whatever else was wafting in the air. Well to a nine or ten year old child for some reason it smelled exactly like MW to me, I can recall that odor to this day! Sooooo MW is not my friend!
This probably comes under the heading of TMI and if anyone is offended I apologize, but all these years later I just canÂt remove this memory.

Red

I'm in Richmond & grew up with Dukes. I eat it if served to me but DH & I both prefer Miracle Whip.

I grew up on Best Foods and never buy anything else. I've always heard that Hellmans was the same thing but nobody I know of sells it here in WA. I don't care for MW but will eat it on a tuna sandwich. My Dad wouldn't eat anything but Best Foods.

Marcy

Oh geez, glenda, I forgot my favorite sandwich, Peanut butter and Miracle Whip on white bread, love it. I don't eat it often because it's definitely junk food, but I love it. I think it's far preferable to anything I can get at the fast food joints, although most wouldn't agree. (grin)

Annie

Um, no....I definitely would not agree. (gag and grin)

Teresa, who rarely does peanut butter and who nevah! does MW.