Egg Salad
195 Comments
Updated Feb 19, 2025
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The classic egg salad recipe I come back to time and again! It’s perfectly creamy, slightly chunky, and flavored just right with Dijon mustard, lemon juice, and plenty of fresh herbs.
Why You’ll Love This Egg Salad
Even though egg salad is such a simple dish, it’s all about nailing the right proportions and texture for that perfect deli-style salad. My version is a nod to that classic egg salad we all know and love—the kind that makes regular appearances layered into lunchtime sandwiches or served up for summer picnics, and holiday parties like Easter. It’s straightforward with no unexpected ingredients and tastes just like home. Here are a few more reasons why it’s the best:
- The texture is perfect. There’s no mushiness here! It’s delightfully chunky, with all the ingredients still visible—just as it should be.
- The flavor is just right. With a touch of Dijon mustard, crisp red onion, and loads of fresh herbs, it’s flavorful enough to enhance the eggs without overpowering them.
- It’s customizable. Want to jazz it up? I’ll share a few delicious variations below. I love treating this egg salad recipe as a blank canvas to add spices and flavors, similar to my chicken salad, tuna salad, or shrimp salad recipes.
Egg Salad Ingredients
- Hard-Boiled Eggs: Since the eggs are the star ingredient, make sure to follow my hard-boiled egg recipe for a perfectly cooked batch. You don’t want the eggs too hard and rubbery, too soft and not mixable, or overly cooked with a green yolk. I think 12-minute eggs are the best!
- Mayonnaise: Fresh homemade mayonnaise is always my go-to, but you can use store-bought or mix in some yogurt if you’d like a creamier texture with less mayo.
- Dijon Mustard: I prefer Dijon mustard over yellow mustard for its robust and tangy flavor. Yellow mustard tends to have a more muted taste.
- Red Onion: Red onion adds a vibrant pop of color and a satisfying crunch. Alternatively, you can use thinly sliced green onions.
- Lemon Juice: Just a teaspoon of fresh lemon juice brightens the salad and keeps the flavors fresh.
- Fresh Herbs: I’m using plenty of parsley and chives, but feel free to swap in other herbs like dill. In my opinion, the more herbs, the better!
Find the printable recipe with measurements below.
How To Make Egg Salad
Make the hard-boiled eggs. Bring water to a boil in a medium-sized pot, reduce the heat to low, and use a skimmer to gently add the eggs to the water. Then, turn the heat back up to a boil and set a timer for 12 minutes.
Chill the boiled eggs. While the eggs are boiling, prepare an ice-water bath. Once the eggs are done, use the skimmer to remove the eggs, and immediately submerge them in the ice water bath to stop them from cooking. Then, peel the eggs once they’re cool to the touch.
Mix the salad together. Slice your eggs into chunks (but don’t slice them too small) and add them to a mixing bowl along with the mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, red onion, lemon juice, parsley, and chives. Give it all a stir until it’s well combined. And that’s it! Super easy.
Egg Salad Variations
There are so many ways to keep a salad like this fresh and exciting. Here are a few tasty ideas, though I’d love to hear any other ideas you may have in the comments below!
- Avocado Egg Salad: Swap some of the mayonnaise for one avocado. This will give a deliciously creamy avocado base for the salad.
- Curried Egg Salad: This version has sliced green onion, grated carrots, and a pinch of curry powder for that beautiful golden color.
- Pickle Egg Salad: Add chopped dill pickles, sweet pickle relish or some of my pickle de gallo for a tangy twist. A splash of pickle juice instead of lemon juice can enhance the flavor further as well!
- Spicy Egg Salad: Stir in a dash of hot sauce, Sriracha, or chopped jalapeños for a spicy kick. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper for extra heat.
Ways To Enjoy Egg Salad
- Egg salad sandwich. You can enjoy egg salad as an open-faced sandwich with a sprinkle of microgreens on top, or a classic egg salad sandwich with butter lettuce leaves topped on bread. For an extra-green spin, top it on my falafel flatbread!
- Egg salad wrap. Wrap the egg salad in a tortilla or romaine lettuce leaves with sliced cucumber, bell pepper, and other simple veggies you love.
- Egg salad bowl. Make a salad bowl with leafy greens, diced avocado, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, and dollops of egg salad on top.
More High-Protein Salads
- Cobb Salad (or Turkey Cobb Salad): Protein-packed and vegetable-heavy.
- Turkey Salad: The best way to use leftover holiday turkey.
- Salmon Salad: Tossed in the best creamy lemon dressing.
- Cucumber Shrimp Salad: Another delicious way to enjoy a shrimp salad.
- Or enjoy these other delicious salad recipes or egg recipes!
If you make this egg salad recipe, I’d love to hear how it turned out in the comment box below! Your review will help other readers in the community. And if you’re hungry for more healthy food inspiration and exclusive content, join my free newsletter here.
Best Egg Salad
Description
Video
Equipment
- Glass Mixing Bowls My favorite set of mixing bowls!
Ingredients
- 6 eggs, room temperature
- ¼ cup red onion, finely diced
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons parsley, finely diced
- 2 tablespoons chives, finely diced
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Boil the eggs. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Then turn the heat to low so there's no bubbles. Use a skimmer to slowly and gently place the eggs in the pot. Turn the heat back to high and boil the eggs for 12 minutes.
- Chill the eggs. Transfer the eggs to an ice water bath to stop the cooking process and cool completely (at least 15 minutes).
- Mix the salad. Peel the hard-boiled eggs, and slice them up to your preferred level of chunkiness. Add the chopped eggs to a mixing bowl along with the red onion, chives, parsley, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Stir all of the ingredients together, until well combined.
- Enjoy the egg salad straight from the bowl, or in a sandwich or wrap. I have more ideas in the post!
Lisa’s Tips
- Make-ahead tip: You can prep the hard-boiled eggs a day in advance and store them in the fridge.
- Storage tip: Egg salad can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. Never leave it out at room temperature for more than 2 hours (or 1 hour if it’s particularly warm outside). Otherwise, it may start to go bad.
- The eggs may crack if you introduce cold eggs straight to the boiling hot water. So I leave my eggs out prior to boiling, or run them under lukewarm water for a few seconds, as well as turn off the boil right before placing the eggs in the pot.
- I also use a skimmer to introduce the eggs to boiling water gently, so they don’t hit the bottom of the pot and crack.
Nutrition
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This recipe was originally posted April 2019, but updated to include new photos and information for your benefit!
Can’t remember the last time I made ES but today your video inspired me. Oh my yummy goodness, it was delish!! Had everything on hand but chives/parsley, added celery just because I had it. Watched your video for hard boiled eggs. Came out perfect, peeled easily w/little effort, yay!! Mixed it all together, made a sandwich topped with greens, it was SO good. The curry version sounds yummy as well!! Love your videos/recipes, thanks for sharing Lisa!! :)
Glad this video inspired you to make egg salad again Jenny!
Hey Lisa,
I am Harriet, from Nigeria. I tried this recipe today with my partner and we loved it. We used it as a sandwich dressing, with lettuce and he said it’s the best sandwich he has ever had🤭. I am looking forward to trying your other egg recipes. Thank you so much for all that you do. Keep shining ❤
Amazing! Glad both of you enjoyed this egg salad recipe :)
Great salad and great idea on using eggs! Thanks
Glad you loved this one Patricia!
I tried your “Best Ever Guacamole” this is truly the best guacamole! I’m going to try your other recipes.
Excited for you to try my other recipes as well Michael!
This is amazing! Delicious! Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Of course! Glad you enjoyed it Jan :)
Best egg salad recipe ! Boiled the eggs for 12 mins and they were perfect. So tasteful and perfect side dish for our Sunday barbecue!
Amazing! This one definitely is a winner for a weekend barbeque
I used to make my egg salad with just mayo and celery…NOT ANY MORE! I now make the best egg salad thanks to Lisa.
So glad you love this recipe Migdalia!
This is the best egg salad! Paired it with your falafel flat bread for an amazing delicious lunch!
Happy to hear you enjoyed this egg salad Belinda!
Do you use Italian parsley or regular?
Just regular parsley! But feel free to use whichever you like :)
I made this egg salad last week. Everyone liked it. Said it was the best they ever had and wanted the recipe. I added 1/4 cup chopped celery to the recipe.
This is the best egg salad recipe! We’re not big fans of parsley, so we subbed dill instead and it’s delicious. Only 6 eggs is never enough, so we always double or triple to make this worth our time to enjoy for a couple days!
Dill is always a great herb substitution :)
This sounds lovely, so lovely that I think we’re going to try it for lunch. Thank you for sharing.
I liked my hard boiled eggs done at 14 minutes….perfectly cooked!!
This is delicious! Thank you for sharing.
Glad you enjoyed this recipe Kelly :)
Delicious! Loved it and the hard boiling egg tips are so useful! Thank you so much!
Hi Jen- Wonderful! Happy to hear you found the tips useful to create the perfect set of eggs.
Delicious! Very simple and easy to put together. I meal prepped this so I wouldn’t have to cook in this heat, as Toronto temperatures are soaring! I love that I can grab it from the fridge to eat without any cooking or prep. I paired it with your creamy coleslaw recipe for the ultimate nourishing summer meal! Thank you for sharing :)
Hi Emily- So glad you loved this egg salad recipe! Sounds great paired back with some homemade coleslaw :)
Delicious….. but I would reduce the amount of red onion a bit. Maybe 1/6 of a cup rather than 1/4?
Great process for boiling the eggs and yummy recipe, thanks!
Glad you found this easy to make and delicious :)
Just delicious… even for those who aren’t huge fans of egg salad! Didn’t have chives and it still came out great!
Hi Danielle – Glad you loved this recipe, especially if you’re not an egg salad fan!
I had some leftover red onion and herbs from your tuna salad recipe, so I thought I would give this one a go. I am actually not an ‘egg salad kinda person’, but this one is really tasty. The mustard gives it a real kick and the red onion a nice crunch. Thanks Lisa for inspiring me to always try something new, even when I think it is not my thing ;-)
For someone who isn’t a huge fan of egg salad, I’m glad you enjoyed this recipe. And good thinking about the leftover red onion and herbs! Great way to utilize these ingredients for different types of salads :)
How many servings?
Hi Victoria – there are 4 servings in this recipe.
I added a little sweet relish to mine and some slice black olives.
Hi Barbara – I love those small additions for a boost in flavor!
This was very good
So glad you enjoyed this egg salad recipe Karen :)
Tried, but I really prefer yellow mustard. Dijon just has a spicey taste whereas I feel yellow has more actual flavor. Also don’t really see the need for the chives,… flavor just gets lost with the onion. Added dill which made a nice difference.
Very tasty and easy. This will be my go to egg salad!
Wonderful! Happy to hear you found a winning egg salad recipe :)
Seriously good. I did not have parsley so subbed dried dill. So very, very good thank you. Ive tried two of your recipes (broccoli cranberry salad) and they are both 5 star!
Hi Kelly – So thrilled to hear that you loved both recipes! :)
My favorite recipe for egg salad includes Dijon, but also RANCH dressing! I sometimes like to add in a few green onions and a bit of pepper. So tasty as a sandwich or dipping veggies into. Be careful with putting too much ranch or it can be a little runny.
Delicious!!! Loved bigger chunks
Hi Alicia – Bigger chunks the better :) Glad you enjoyed this recipe!
I just made this egg salad. It is great. Taste great. Will definitely be making this again. Thanks for the recipe.
Hi Jamie – Wonderful! Can’t wait for you to whip this up again :)
This recipe is awesome, everything is explained so well! And the egg salad tastes amazing! It’s super creamy and has a lot more flavor than most egg salads I’ve tried. It’s great by itself, on a sandwich, or in a wrap! Love it!!
Hi McKenzie – Glad you loved this egg salad recipe :) It’s such a versatile recipe to use in other meals as well!
I love a good egg salad and I think I’ve been doing it wrong all these years:) I love this simple recipe, so delicious and creamy!
Hi Giselle – Glad you finally got to perfect a delicious egg salad :)
Does anyone else experience the egg salad becoming very watery after it sits for at least a day in the fridge? I’ve always noticed this happening. I’m thinking it could be the salt drawing out the moisture so I’m not going to add it this time and see what happens.
Excluding the salt didn’t seem to work. End up with a watery mess.
Hi David – there’s not much liquid in the recipe so I don’t know what could be causing that for you (I’ve never had mine turn watery). Perhaps try a different brand of mayo next time, in case that’s contributing to it.
This was DELISH…This is my first time ever making egg salad and it was so delicious, I ate the whole thing (guess I’ll have to make more tomorrow :) I don’t like parsley so I used dill and chives and it was so yummy. Thank you for sharing :)
Hi Mallory – Congrats on making your first egg salad! I’m glad it was a success :)
I am not not a vegan, so I added chopped crispy bacon and made breakfast sandwiches my my egg salad. Delicious.
Hi Susan – Adding crispy bacon sounds absolutely delicious with this :)
Delicious! More interesting than the typical egg salad recipe, with a nice tang from the lemon juice and dijon mustard (I used Grey Poupon), and tastes even better the 2nd day!
Thanks so much MaryLee! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe and I agree, it always tastes better the next day (if you manage to have any leftovers). ;)
What is the leave you used to wrap it in in the photo
Hi Joanna – I used collard greens for the wrap. But you could use a variety of different lettuces and leaves.
I love this egg salad recipe! I did add some chopped celery,just for more crunch, but that is just my preference. Great also without it. You also showed me how to boil eggs in your boiled egg video to the concistency I want, which I have always struggled. with yay!
Awesome, April! I’m so happy you loved the egg salad and your hard-boiled eggs turned out perfectly! Thank you so much for the kind comment! :)
My favorite egg salad recipe!
Yay! I’m happy to hear that. Thanks Jeri!
This is the best egg salad recipe I have ever tried at home. I will make this again and again. I love the fresh herbs: I added parsley, chives, and dill. I had many compliments from my family who tried it.
Fantastic, Brianne! I’m so glad your family loved the egg salad! Thanks for the kind comment! :)
Super easy and delicious!!!
Wonderful! I’m so thrilled you loved the recipe Mary!
Simple and delicious ?
Thanks so much! I’m happy you loved the recipe!
I forgot to put lemon juice in it, but it was still an amazing salad, thank you!
Wonderful! I’m so happy you loved the recipe Mia!
Awesome, very tasty!! Totally enjoyed it. We also did the collard wrap as you shared with us Great taste loved it!!
Hi Wendell – Thanks for the kind words and I’m so glad you enjoyed the egg salad wrap! :)
To make this keto!
Increase (real) mayo to 1/3 c
Omit red onion and sub onion powder (about 1 t or to taste)
Add 10 sliced green olives
Make sure dijon has no sugar or use plain yellow
Omit toppings or add low carb options like sprouts or fresh herbs
Wrap in any leafy green of choice (I like butter lettuce or leaf)
Macros:
Fat 68%
Carb 3.7%
Protein 25%
Thanks for sharing your tips Shanna! :)
Hmmmm well I know what I’m making for dinner tonight! Lisa, I love all your recipes. THANK YOU SO MUCH!
You’re so welcome, Olivia. Thank you so much for your enthusiasm for my recipes. :)
I really love the idea of the collard wrap, it looks so fresh and delicious! Sounds like a wonderful recipe
Thanks Diana! Yes, the collard wrap and veggies gives this egg salad a delicious crunch. :)
Absolutely love your idea of wrapping your egg salad in a collard leaf. Such a great idea. Your pictures really highlight your dish!
Thanks, Kelly! Yep, always looking for a gluten-free wrap. :)
I love your simple deviled eggs and what a great idea to turn them into a collards wrap! I love collards!
Hi Pam – I think you mean my egg salad recipe, but I do have a deviled eggs recipe as well :)
This is a great recipe for summer picnics! Delicious!
Yep, totally agree, Cliona! :)
This is an amazing Dinner Salad. Looks creamy and tasty and delicious.
Thanks for the kind words Veena!