Salads · American
Egg Salad
Diced, never mushy: a creamy, tangy egg salad for sandwiches and lunch boxes.
- Hands-on
- 15 min
- Hands-off
- 15 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Makes
- 2.5 cups (enough for 4 sandwiches)
- Serves
- 4
Passive time is 10 minutes of the eggs sitting in the hot water plus 5 minutes in ice water. The few minutes for the water to boil, then peeling, chopping and mixing are hands-on.
- easy
- vegetarian
- lunch-box
- picnic
- make-ahead
- kid-friendly
Verified against at least two trusted test kitchens or food-safety guides · Last checked · What this means
Scaling? Scales in a straight line. Use a pan wide enough to hold the eggs in one layer under 2.5 cm (1 in) of water; a crowded pan takes longer to boil. Some items (like eggs) don’t halve neatly: beat them, then measure out half.
Ingredients
You need: medium saucepan with a lid · medium bowl for the ice bath · slotted spoon · cutting board and knife · medium mixing bowl
Contains: egg
Method
Bring the eggs to a boil
Put the 6 eggs in a medium saucepan in a single layer and cover them with cold water by 2.5 cm (1 in). Bring to a boil over high heat.
Ready when: The water is at a full, rolling boil.
Let them sit, covered
Take the pan off the heat, put the lid on and leave the eggs in the hot water for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, fill a medium bowl with 1 litre (1 quart) of cold water and a tray of ice cubes.
Ready when: Lid on for the full 10 minutes: the eggs finish cooking in the trapped heat of the water.
Otto tried this firstOtto 'helps' by lifting the lid every two minutes to check. The eggs cook in trapped heat; keep the lid on for the full 10 minutes.Chill and peel
Lift the eggs into the ice water with a slotted spoon and leave them for 5 minutes. Peel them.
Ready when: Cut one egg in half: the white and the yolk are both completely firm, with no runny or glossy center. If not, return the eggs to simmering water for a couple of minutes and check again.
Dice the eggs
Cut the peeled eggs into medium dice. Small cubes keep some bite; mashing turns the salad pasty.
Mix
In a medium bowl, gently mix the diced eggs with 57 g (1/4 cup) mayonnaise, 2 tbsp red onion, 1 tbsp parsley, 3 tbsp celery, 2 tsp Dijon mustard, 2 tsp lemon juice, 1/4 tsp salt and pepper to taste. Serve, or cover and chill.
Swaps
- Instead of Dijon mustard (2 tsp): yellow mustard, up to 1 tbsp A milder, classic deli flavor.
- Instead of red onion (2 tbsp): thinly sliced green onions, up to 1/4 cup Milder and fresher.
Make ahead, store & reheat
- Make ahead
- Mix it up to a day ahead and keep it covered in the fridge; resting helps the flavors blend. Plain hard-boiled eggs (peeled or not) can be cooked up to a week ahead and kept in the fridge.
- Storage
- Keep egg salad covered in the fridge and eat it within 3 to 5 days. Don't freeze it. Don't leave it out of the fridge for more than 2 hours (1 hour above 32°C / 90°F); for picnics and lunch boxes, pack it with an ice pack.
If something goes wrong
- Yolk still soft in the middle Why: The eggs are undercooked (for example, the lid came off while they sat).
Put them back into simmering water for a few minutes and check one again. Only use eggs with a fully firm yolk and white.
Good to know
- Serve on toasted bread with lettuce, stuffed into small tomatoes, or in lettuce cups.
Safety
- Cook the eggs until both the white and the yolk are firm. Eggs can carry Salmonella; a firm yolk is the sign they're cooked through.
- This recipe uses store-bought mayonnaise. Homemade mayonnaise made with raw eggs is not part of this recipe.
- Boiling water scalds. An adult should move the eggs into the ice bath; kids can peel the cooled eggs and stir the salad.
- Egg salad is perishable: keep it cold and don't leave it out more than 2 hours.