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Home » Main Dish » Classic Egg Salad Recipe

Classic Egg Salad Recipe

By Valerie · May 19, 2019 11 Comments

30 30 Minute Meals MD Main Dish
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Whether you pile it on greens, spread it on crackers or make it a sandwich this Classic Egg Salad Recipe is a comforting, delicious meal.

An egg salad sandwich cut in half and stacked.

Egg Salad is one of the best examples of how sometimes keeping things simple is best. You can do all kinds of tweaking to this base recipe to make it your own but I really just love it as it is. Classic, nostalgic, and always delicious.

I know there are a lot of strong feelings out there on just what needs to go into egg salad but I’m going to show you how I do it and also give you some tasty variations.

An egg salad sandwich cut in half and stacked.

A clear glass bowl full of hard-boiled eggs.

Check out my method for Perfect Easy to Peel Hard-Boiled Eggs – you’ll need 8 for this recipe.

Get this part done in advance and the rest is a breeze.

How to Make Classic Egg Salad

Let’s start with my uncomplicated, base recipe. From there you can add or substitute ingredients to suit your taste.

A clear glass mixing bowl with the ingredients for Classic Egg Salad.

My Egg Salad recipe consists of hard-boiled eggs cooled and chopped, finely diced red onion, and celery. The creamy dressing is the key to this recipe. Mayonnaise, yellow mustard, onion powder, paprika, and a little salt and fresh ground black pepper. Sounds simple right? It’s the best!

If you really want that old-school, straight from Grandma’s kitchen flavor, the mustard has got to be good, old-fashioned yellow mustard in my opinion. You can substitute Dijon but yellow mustard will yield that classic flavor.

Let’s talk about onion for a minute. I’m not typically a fan of raw onion but this salad is just not the same without it and I think finely diced red onion is the perfect choice. It adds a little color contrast, a bit of texture, and excellent flavor. Check out my variations below for substitutions.

The same goes for the celery. We’re not adding very much, just enough to add some texture to the creamy eggs.

The egg salad after mixing it together in a glass mixing bowl.

Once combined you can cover and refrigerate it but it’s best if used within a couple of days.

It’s always a happy day when I remember I’ve got a batch of this Egg Salad waiting in the fridge for an easy lunch.

An egg salad sandwich sliced in half and stacked.

Pile it on sandwich bread with greens. It’s also really good with sliced tomato and pickles.

An egg salad sandwich cut in half and stacked on a cutting board.

Classic Egg Salad Variations

Onion – If you are not a fan of red onion you can substitute thinly sliced green onion, finely diced shallots, or even fresh chives for a milder onion flavor.

Mustard – For a slightly more sophisticated flavor give Dijon a try in place of the yellow mustard.

Herbs – Add fresh or dried dill, basil, or tarragon. Start with a very small amount, taste, and go from there.

Bold flavor boosts – Add some sweet pickle relish, a little crumbled bacon, chopped olives, or a touch of curry powder.

Lighten it up – Substitute some of the mayonnaise for non-fat Greek yogurt.

A vertical two image collage of an egg salad sandwich and egg salad in a glass bowl with overlay text

An egg salad sandwich with lettuce cut in half and stacked on a cutting board.

Classic Egg Salad Recipe

Whether you pile it on greens, spread it on crackers or make it a sandwich this Classic Egg Salad Recipe is a comforting, delicious meal.

5 from 2 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Main Dish, Sandwiches
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
0 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Servings: 4
Calories: 350kcal
Author: Valerie Brunmeier

Ingredients

  • 8 hard boiled eggs
  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
  • 2 tablespoons finely diced celery
  • 2 tablespoons finely diced red onion
  • 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt or to taste
  • fresh ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Peel and chop the eggs and transfer them to a medium mixing bowl. Add the mayonnaise, mustard, celery, onion, onion powder, paprika, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine the mixture.

Nutrition

Calories: 350kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 385mg | Sodium: 465mg | Potassium: 136mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 620IU | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 50mg | Iron: 1.2mg
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Categories: 30 Minute Meals, Main Dish, Salad, Sandwiches

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Reader Interactions

Latest Comments
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  1. RoadLord says

    September 16, 2020 at 6:15 pm

    5 stars
    Funny that this showed up in my Facebook feed just as I was trying to figure out what to do with the 10 or so two-packs of Costco HBE’s in my fridge! Gonna knock this one out tomorrow fir lunch, oh yeah!

    Reply
    • Valerie says

      September 19, 2020 at 9:36 am

      I hope it worked out well for you!

      Reply
  2. Cynthia says

    September 16, 2020 at 4:53 pm

    The Egg Salad recipe kooks delicious…I must make it. The bread also looks great…what type of bread is it?
    Thanks!

    Reply
    • Valerie says

      September 19, 2020 at 9:40 am

      Hi Cynthia. I believe that is Nature’s Own Thick-Sliced Multigrain. It’s great for sandwiches!

      Reply
  3. Lorna says

    June 13, 2020 at 1:35 pm

    I chop up some dill pickle in my egg salad.

    Reply
  4. Cindy says

    April 26, 2020 at 1:16 pm

    Great recipe! Even my picky eater liked it!

    Reply
    • Valerie says

      April 26, 2020 at 1:22 pm

      So happy to hear it, Cindy 🙂 We crave this on a regular basis!

      Reply
  5. Jennifer says

    March 28, 2020 at 7:36 pm

    I just made this & it’s so good! Thank you for perfect proportions!

    Reply
  6. MAHLET BLUFORD says

    May 26, 2019 at 11:14 am

    I love your recipe for Egg salad. The major difference between yours and mine is that I always add sweet relish.

    Reply
  7. Norm says

    May 20, 2019 at 5:28 am

    5 stars
    Outstanding Recipe ! Thanks Again Val for a really great Recipe. I would like to see your version of Tuna salad also sometime.

    Reply
  8. Judy says

    May 20, 2019 at 3:18 am

    This is great! My husband and I like lite lunches and this is perfect for us. Thanks for the recipe!

    Reply

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