Mom’s Egg Salad Recipe

at a glance
Prep Time 5 minutes
Servings 4 to 6 servings
5 from 1 vote

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This timeless recipe for My Mom’s Egg Salad is an excellent way to use up hard-boiled eggs in a way that gets a comforting, healthy meal on the table.

Mom's Egg Salad

There comes a time in a thing’s life where it arrives at a defining fork in the road. While all things start off shiny, new, and quickly evolving, they each eventually find themselves at the same fork. This fork is less a fortune teller than commissioner. Given two choices, the thing must decide if it will veer left towards “keeps getting better with age” or right, towards “timeless classic.”

Marriages, world views, style, certain wines, and grand central Texas oak trees all veer left.

Memories, books, red nail polish, your favorite song, and need-no-work recipes head right.

Timeless classics aren’t so much frozen in time as they are impervious to it. They glide by, year-by-year, waving at the passing moments, secure in who they are and what they represent. Egg salad, a recipe perfected generations ago, is firmly in this category.

Like so many truly confident things, this recipe isn’t boastful. It doesn’t brag about innovations, the tables it has graced, the people it has met, or its success on social media. It’s egg salad and that is more than enough.

Mom's Egg Salad

I grew up enjoying my mom’s egg salad (unassuming and mustard-ey and pickle-y) on toasted bread, usually with a glass of ice-cold coke on the side. Egg salad sandwiches were enjoyed around a quiet 11:30 a.m. lunch table in my parent’s home. Nobody argued with egg salad because egg salad wouldn’t argue back. It gracefully bookmarked the change of morning into afternoon. Those days always seemed to flow more smoothly.

How to Hard Boil Eggs for Egg Salad

Egg salad, of course, starts off with hard-boiled eggs. To be honest with you, the perfect hard-boiled egg has always eluded me – I tried all of the tricks, and still ended up with mostly yolk in my hand and the mass of the egg whites stuck to the shells. I finally found the fail-proof trick to hard-boiled eggs, though, and it all has to do with temperature. 

What’s the key? Once your eggs are done boiling, let them sit in an ice bath for a few minutes before peeling. For more details, you can check out our perfect hard-boiled eggs tutorial!

Classic Egg Salad Ingredients

  • Hard-boiled eggs – this one’s a given! We use a dozen hard-boiled eggs for this egg salad.
  • Celery – chopped celery gives our egg salad a good crunch.
  • Mayonnaise – we use ¼ cup mayo to hold our egg salad together. If you don’t like mayo, feel free to use plain Greek yogurt. Do note that if you are using Greek yogurt, you’ll need a bit more salt, pepper, and mustard to balance out the flavors.
  • Mustard – a squirt of yellow mustard (about 3 tablespoons) is the perfect amount for a tangy egg salad.
  • Dill relish – arguably my favorite ingredient in the bunch – 3 tablespoons of dill relish gets our egg salad perfectly salty and briny and adds a nice crunch. 
  • Garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper – the oh-so-classic seasoning combination that always seems to get the job done *just* right.
  • Toasted bread or lettuce (for serving) – in my house, the mixture is stirred up and served on a bed of lettuce or in between two pieces of toast. If you’re looking for some healthier bread options, I recommend checking out Legit Bread for a Paleo-friendly option and Canyon Gluten-Free (a personal favorite of mine) for a GF option.

Mom's Egg Salad

What can I substitute for mayo?

Plain Greek yogurt can certainly be substituted for mayo, but if you go this route, we suggest adding another tablespoon or so of mustard, plus a bit more salt and pepper (to taste), to achieve that classic egg salad taste. Another option is to use Greek yogurt in place of half of the mayo (2 tablespoons mayo + 2 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt). 

How long does egg salad keep?

The best way to store egg salad is in an airtight container (like these) in the refrigerator. Stored this way, it’ll keep for 5 days max, and is best enjoyed by day three.

Enjoy!

Mom's Egg Salad

By: Cassy
5 from 1 vote
Prep Time: 5 mins
Servings: 4 to 6 servings
This timeless recipe for My Mom’s Egg Salad is an excellent way to use up hard-boiled eggs in a way that gets a comforting, healthy meal on the table.

Ingredients  

  • 12 hard-boiled eggs peeled and cut into quarters
  • 1 cup celery chopped
  • 1/4 cup avocado oil mayo or make your own via the recipe in my book
  • 3 tablespoons mustard
  • 3 tablespoons dill relish drained
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt more to taste
  • 1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon fresh chives chopped, optional

Serving options::

  • fresh spinach
  • fresh Romain lettuce
  • Legit Bread
  • Canyon Gluten-Free Bread

Instructions

  • Stir all the egg salad ingredients together until evenly mixed.
  • Spoon the salad on a bed of lettuce or between slices of toast.
  • Enjoy!

Nutrition Information

Nutrition Facts
Mom's Egg Salad
Amount per Serving
Calories
351
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
27
g
42
%
Saturated Fat
 
7
g
44
%
Trans Fat
 
0.03
g
Polyunsaturated Fat
 
9
g
Monounsaturated Fat
 
9
g
Cholesterol
 
565
mg
188
%
Sodium
 
687
mg
30
%
Potassium
 
293
mg
8
%
Carbohydrates
 
6
g
2
%
Fiber
 
1
g
4
%
Sugar
 
2
g
2
%
Protein
 
20
g
40
%
Vitamin A
 
963
IU
19
%
Vitamin C
 
1
mg
1
%
Calcium
 
96
mg
10
%
Iron
 
2
mg
11
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Meet the Author
Cassy Headshot

Cassy Joy Garcia

HOWDY! I’m Cassy Joy and I am just so happy you’re here. I’m the founder, Editor-in-Chief, and Nutrition Consultant here at Fed and Fit. What started as a food blog back in 2011 has evolved now into so much more.
Get to know Cassy

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Kelli says

    Kelli —  05/09/2017 At 10:02

    Beautifully written Cassy!

    • Cassy says

      Cassy —  05/11/2017 At 07:09

      Thank you! 🙂

  2. Mandy says

    Mandy —  05/28/2018 At 17:18

    Hi Cassy,
    This recipe looks amazing! I want to make this for my daughter’s bridal shower. She is having a croissant bar with egg salad, chicken salad, meats and cheeses. We expect 30 people, should I just double or triple the recipe?
    Thanks
    Mandy