Best Egg Salad Recipe
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A few little additions take this classic egg salad recipe from basic to really good, while keeping everything you love about the tried-and-true favorite.
Egg salad is a simple, familiar favorite, but it can be surprisingly easy to get wrong. For me, a good egg salad recipe begins with perfectly cooked hard-boiled eggs, then it’s all about balance. Mayo adds richness, while lemon juice, Dijon mustard, and a touch of Worcestershire bring brightness, tang, and depth. I add celery, scallions, and fresh parsley for crunch and freshness, which keeps the salad from feeling too heavy.
Pile it onto toasted bread for an egg salad sandwich, spoon it over greens, or serve it with crackers for an easy lunch.
“Without a doubt THE best egg salad ever! It was so good I made a second batch.”
What You’ll Need To Make Egg Salad
- Eggs: Properly cooked eggs are the foundation of a good egg salad. I like the yolks fully set but still creamy, without that dry, chalky texture you sometimes get from overcooked eggs. The method below will get you there.
- Mayonnaise: Forms the rich, creamy base of the dressing. Use a good-quality brand, such as Hellmann’s or Duke’s.
- Dijon mustard: Adds a little tang and sharpness to cut through the richness of the eggs and mayo.
- Lemon juice: A small amount of fresh lemon juice brightens the salad and keeps it from tasting heavy.
- Worcestershire sauce: My little extra. You only need a touch, but it adds savory depth and makes the whole salad more flavorful without calling attention to itself.
- Celery, Scallions & Fresh Parsley: These add crunch and freshness and keep the salad from feeling too rich. I like scallions here because they give you mild onion flavor without overpowering the eggs, while the parsley adds a fresh, herbal note.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
How To Make Egg Salad
Hard-boil and chop the eggs: Gently lower the eggs into boiling water and cook for exactly 11 minutes. Transfer to an ice bath to cool, then peel and chop.
Mix the egg salad: Whisk the dressing until smooth and well combined. Add the eggs, vegetables, and herbs and gently fold everything together. Serve right away or refrigerate for up to 3 days. Always give it a taste before serving—the seasoning can mellow as it sits, so it may need a little salt, pepper, or lemon juice to perk it back up.
Got Hard-Boiled Eggs? More Recipes You May Like
Best Egg Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 large eggs
- ¼ cup mayonnaise, best quality such as Hellmann's or Duke's
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1½ teaspoons fresh lemon juice or white wine vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ¼ cup finely diced celery, from 1 stalk
- 3 tablespoons finely sliced scallions, from 2 to 3 scallions
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
- Fill a medium saucepan with enough water to cover the eggs by about 1 inch. Bring to a boil over high heat. Using a slotted spoon, gently lower the cold eggs into the boiling water one at a time, taking care not to let them hit the bottom of the pan, which can crack the shells. Adjust the heat as needed to maintain a gentle boil and cook for 11 minutes; this gives you fully set but still tender, creamy yellow yolks.
- Meanwhile, fill a medium bowl with ice and cold water. As soon as the eggs are done, use a slotted spoon to transfer them to the ice bath. Let cool for 10 minutes. Gently crack the eggs all over, then peel under cool running water, starting at the wide end. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to use. Dry the eggs, then chop into ¼-inch (6-mm) pieces.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, and sugar. Add the chopped eggs, celery, scallions, and parsley. Using a rubber spatula, fold to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. Serve or refrigerate until ready to use. (If you refrigerate the egg salad, be sure to taste it again before serving and adjust the seasoning; I find the flavors mellow out a bit after some time in the fridge.)
Notes
- Peeling Hack: Start peeling at the wide end of the egg, where there’s usually an air pocket. Peel off a small piece of shell at the bottom to expose the membrane, then slip the egg back into the water (ice water or room temperature water both work) for a minute or two. The water seeps under the shell and helps release it more easily.
- Make-Ahead Instructions: The eggs can be cooked, peeled, and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator 3 days ahead. If you keep the eggs in their shell, they can last for up to a week. The egg salad will keep well in a covered container in the fridge for about 3 days.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Egg Salad! This took me back to the fifties and what a treat it was! I served this with homemade tomato soup and enjoyed this wonderful hearty winter meal! I only had dried chives and parsley, but let them hydrate in the mayo and mustard while the eggs cooked. The hard-boiled egg directions were spot on. Thanks, Jenn!
Delicious. Adding a little dijon and lemon would kick it up a notch. Same with the tuna salad.
When making something I check to see if you have a recipe. A go to reference. I have sent out your url to many folks. Thanks.
This is RIDICULOUSLY GOOD. I am really picky about egg salad but never made my own before. I made this just now and upon tasting it I said out loud, “RIDICULOUS” and just kept shaking my head. It’s THAT GOOD. I added a bit of cayenne but that’s the only addition I made. I can’t wait to put my computer down and wrap up this egg salad with soft tortillas and stuff my face.
The best!
Best egg salad ever!! Was skeptical about worcestershire sauce but really good depth ingredient. This is recipe that I will always use, thank yoù!!
Quite simply, this is the best egg salad recipe ever. I didn’t change a thing and it comes out perfect every time, even when doubling the recipe. Thank you Jenn!
Somebody gave us a dozen small eggs from their chickens. Having no other immediate use for them I decided to try this recipe. I used seven of them. I also halved the mustard since my wife is not a big fan of that condiment. Having no scallions on hand I substituted chives from the garden. The result was good, but perhaps a bit blander than I expected.
Today I used the other five but kept the other ingredients the same. I also chopped the eggs finer since I prefer that texture. Perfect!
So, a very good recipe but depending on your taste you may want to increase the seasonings a bit.
Made this for the first time a few weeks ago. VG recipe. Thanks.
Best egg salad I ever ate! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
Is it at all possible to sub something else in for the Mayo? Never been a big Mayo fan… but really want to try this! Greek Yogurt, maybe? Or would eliminating it just completely defeat the purpose?
Hi Claire, I think it would work but because Greek yogurt is more tart than mayo, I’d suggest eliminating the lemon juice/white wine vinegar to reduce the tart flavor a bit. Please LMK how it turns out with yogurt!