Isn't egg salad great?

[melkor]

Strangely, I find the idea of egg salad revolting.  Too squishy.

On the other hand, I love a sandwich made with sliced hard boiled eggs in the middle and lots of mayonnaise spread on each slice of bread.

So eggs + mayo squished together in advance and put on bread == revolting. Eggs sliced and places on bread coated with mayo and squished together by mouth == delicious.

Exactly!!! But, I'm telling you, there's something about the saladification process that makes egg salad more squishy than sliced eggs.

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One thing you can do to up your yolk ratio is discard half the whites.

Those who don't like egg salad may just have an anti-egg-salad preference. Or, they may never have had good egg salad. Cold, overcooked egg mush -- rubbery and slimy at the same time -- with an alarmingly high percentage of bad mayonnaise is as representative of good egg salad as Sizzler's "Petite Lunch Steak" is of a USDA Prime, dry-aged porterhouse. I urge anybody in that position to try a freshly cooked (not overcooked, no green yolk) egg, still warm, lightly chopped/mashed with a fork with some good mayonnaise, salt and pepper, so there are some big chunks, some smaller chunks and some nearly pureed parts.

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I don't like discarding things, and since I shop at the SF farmers market, eggs cost $7/dozen (ask Alan Richman...). I'd add great eggs to your list of things that make great egg salad... Egg salad made from farm eggs laid that day, with mayo made from the same eggs... While that makes a great egg salad, I'm not convinced it makes a great dish. There has to be a way to improve on egg salad without discarding part of the egg.

[mizducky]

I don't like discarding things, and since I shop at the SF farmers market, eggs cost $7/dozen (ask Alan Richman...).  I'd add great eggs to your list of things that make great egg salad...  Egg salad made from farm eggs laid that day, with mayo made from the same eggs... While that makes a great egg salad, I'm not convinced it makes a great dish.  There has to be a way to improve on egg salad without discarding part of the egg.

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You could always give your extra egg white to those of us who like it.

[melkor]

I don't like discarding things, and since I shop at the SF farmers market, eggs cost $7/dozen (ask Alan Richman...).  I'd add great eggs to your list of things that make great egg salad...  Egg salad made from farm eggs laid that day, with mayo made from the same eggs... While that makes a great egg salad, I'm not convinced it makes a great dish.  There has to be a way to improve on egg salad without discarding part of the egg.

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You could always give your extra egg white to those of us who like it.

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Somehow I think the post office won't like me turning up with a ziplock full of mashed egg whites with your addressed on it...

[Domestic Goddess]

This thread is making me have the urge to fix egg salad now. I'm with the still-warm egg chunks with mayo, laid on thick on toasted bread camp. I also add minced onions and sometimes chopped capers or black olives to my egg salad.

Hmmm... I've got 4 old eggs in the fridge ... time to break out the pan and boil them.

[MelissaH]

I had a very different take on egg salad a few years back. Literally, it was salad with egg.

One of my husband's colleagues is Lithuanian, married to a Russian. And apparently the Russians have a wide variety of salads, of which I've been lucky enough to taste many. They all seem to use a mayonnaise-based dressing. I'm not normally fond of anything with mayonnaise, but somehow it works in Elena's salads. Heck, I'm not usually a trout lover, but I really liked the salad she made that incorporated both trout and mayo.

Anyway, she made a "mimoza" salad for us once. It was a chopped salad, with (IIRC) beets, carrots, greens, and probably other stuff too. But the part that made it "mimoza" was the hard-boiled egg topping. The whites and yolks were separated, and each were finely grated. The grated whites were spread over the entire salad, and then the grated yolks went on top of that. Apparently, the yellow and white looks like a field of flowers in bloom, and these flowers are called "mimoza" in Russian, hence the name of the salad.

That was the best egg salad I've ever had.

MelissaH

[BarbaraY]

Hmmmm? I woke thinking I would boil eggs to make an egg sandwich for our lunch today. I have a loaf of nice rye bread just waiting for this.

I'm of the egg and mayo school with, perhaps, some chopped olive. No relish, no onion, and for heaven's sake no tuna.

I don't want tuna in my eggs or eggs in my tuna!

[K8memphis]

...Anyway, she made a "mimoza" salad for us once. It was a chopped salad, with (IIRC) beets, carrots, greens, and probably other stuff too. But the part that made it "mimoza" was the hard-boiled egg topping...

... The whites and yolks were separated, and each were finely grated. The grated whites were spread over the entire salad, and then the grated yolks went on top of that. Apparently, the yellow and white looks like a field of flowers in bloom, and these flowers are called "mimoza" in Russian, hence the name of the salad.

That was the best egg salad I've ever had.

MelissaH

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<clapping hands smilie face> SHREDDED EGGS RULE!!!

And I use them to border salads too. Makes a beautiful border.

Edited June 22, 2007 by K8memphis (log)

[hummingbirdkiss]

sigh the thought of egg salad makes me want to twirl my hair! talk about the ultimate childhood comfort food for me!

I like it with a little olive oil sizzled garlic, parsley and red chile tossed into the store bought mayo ..chopped green olives and some celery or water chestnuts for crunch

I love it on any kind of bread... but I also roll it in a giant curly lettuce leaf..use it as a dip for red peppers...or celery...or even jicama..

great with ice cold radishes

ok I am making some for lunch thanks for this idea!!!

Edited June 22, 2007 by hummingbirdkiss (log)

[annecros]

Try it with Pickled Eggs and mayo, stuffed inside a tomato (the best) or a bell pepper (almost as good) and chilled for 30 minutes in the fridge with a crusty slice of buttered bread on the side.

Everyone should do it at least once in a lifetime.

[zoe b]

I'm with slkinsey--I don't care for egg salad, adore sliced egg sandwiches--I've actually been on a kick lately and have had one for lunch every day:

one sliced, underooked and still warm egg from our hens.

Hellman's mayo and either sricha sauce or french grainy mustard. Lettuce from the garden

and it has to be on something crunchy---good toasted bread or an english muffin is ok in a pinch.

you CAN add bacon or tomatoes--it's ok, but it takes away from the primal eggness.

heaven!!!

Z

[Reignking]

Cold eggs? Yuck. I'm so glad that there are others that agree -- I thought anything but outright devotion to the egg in all forms would get one ostrasized from here.

[BertaBurtonLake]

Egg salad? Food of the gods, I tell you! Its beauty, to me, lies in its simplicity. Perfectly boiled eggs with tender whites and pristine yellow yolks still warm, yolks seived and whites chopped, combined with homemade mayo or Hellman's, a pinch of ground mustard for a subtle warmness on the tongue, sea salt and fresh ground pepper on lightly toasted rustic bread......mmmmm, heavenly!

Berta <---- going to the kitchen to make food of the gods, er, egg salad

[The Old Foodie]

I had a very different take on egg salad a few years back. Literally, it was salad with egg.

Anyway, she made a "mimoza" salad for us once. It was a chopped salad, with (IIRC) beets, carrots, greens, and probably other stuff too. But the part that made it "mimoza" was the hard-boiled egg topping. The whites and yolks were separated, and each were finely grated. The grated whites were spread over the entire salad, and then the grated yolks went on top of that. Apparently, the yellow and white looks like a field of flowers in bloom, and these flowers are called "mimoza" in Russian, hence the name of the salad.

That was the best egg salad I've ever had.

MelissaH

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This reminded me of something, and I just had to go looking. Here is an English take on the idea, from Cassell’s Vegetarian Cookery, 1891. I cant see myself doing the red sprinkly bit though!

Egg Salad.

Egg salad consists of an ordinary salad made with French lettuces, with an extra quantity of hard-boiled eggs. If you want to make the salad look very pretty on the top, cut up the lettuces and dress them with oil and vinegar in the ordinary way. Make the tops of the lettuces (which should be placed in a round salad-bowl) as smooth as you can without pressing them down unnecessarily. Now take six hard-boiled eggs, separate the yolks from the whites, powder the yolks, and chop up the whites small. Sprinkle a ring of yellow round the edge of the salad-bowl, say an inch in width, then put a ring of white round, and place the remainder of yolk in the middle, almost up to the centre. Have the centre about two inches in diameter. We now have a yellow centre surrounded by a broad white rim (as, of course, there is more white than yellow), and an outside yellow ring, which meets the white china bowl. Reserve about a teaspoonful of pieces of finely chopped white, and put them in a saucer, with a few drops of cochineal, and shake them. This turns them a bright red. Sprinkle these red specks very sparingly on the white, and take about half a teaspoonful of chopped blanched parsley, and sprinkle these green specks on the yellow. This makes the dish look pretty.

I think we are almost in the realm of composed salads here.

Janet

[jscarbor]

I like egg salad and love eating it right after making it while still warm. I also prefer to boil the egg medium, kind of just between soft and hard. I think this gives it a little more creaminess and enables you to use less mayo? Salt pepper, finely chopped onion, some other stuff and then out it on some bread with arugula and sliced salmon. Ohh so good.

[Kris]

I love egg salad. But I won't eat it from a deli, restaurant or other outside establishment. It must be homemade by ME.

I like it very simple - 2 hard boiled eggs peeled and chopped while warm mixed with a little salt, freshly ground pepper and mayo. That's it. YUMMY!

I had an egg salad sandwich for dinner last night. It was heavenly since I hadn't eaten one in so long.

[miladyinsanity]

2 hardboiled eggs--and I do mean hardboiled...runny yolks means that the devil is playing tricks on me. Japanese squeeze-bottle mayo and salt--no pepper. And it has to be on cheap supermarket bread.

Egg salad used to be the only way I ate eggs that were not scrambled. But even today, I think the yolk is the devil's food.

[prasantrin]

Here is a totally different take, from a cookbook from 1827.

Egg Salad.

Boil six cloves of garlic six minutes, and pound them with a few capers and two anchovies; mix them very well with oil, salt, pepper, and vinegar, and dish it under hard-boiled eggs, whole or cut in two.

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I'd probably eat that. And if the eggs were mashed and the whole thing were mixed with a bit of mayonnaise, I might even grow to like egg salad sandwiches!

Once in a great while, I suddenly get a craving for an egg salad sandwich, so I make it myself. I go through the trouble of boiling the eggs (the boil, cover, turn off the stove way, so I know the eggs aren't overboiled), adding whatever ingredients I think will make the salad taste good, and then I eat. And I always finish my meal thinking, "Why do people like egg salad?" In my case, it's the egg. Hardboiled eggs are evil, even if they are mixed with other things. Although if I try the garlic, anchovy, and caper combo, I might change my mind.

[Bonnie Ruth]

Forgive me. Still-warm hard-boiled egg, room-temperature mayonnaise, salt, freshly ground white pepper, crushed together with a fork until medium chunky, served on whole-wheat sourdough toast with Romaine lettuce.

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Sounds perfect to me except for the sourdough toast. I must have mine on very fresh, soft bread. Homemade is even better. And always with a tall glass of cold milk. I don't even bother making egg salad if I don't have milk.

[Terila]

As if eggs weren't great enough, egg salad is eggs with a dressing made from eggs. I love it so much, and I think we should talk about it. I really do.

My contribution to the discussion is this: the best egg salad is warm egg salad. As in, you make it immediately after you hard-cook the egg, while the egg is still retaining its heat from cooking, and you eat it right away.

Who's next.

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I'm with you that it should not be at a hard-cold chill.

I'm partial to Gelson's Tarragon Egg Salad. I love the rectangular cut, the right amount of creaminess and the great tarragon flavor.

I love it in sandwiches, on Wasa, on bagels or stuffed into stalks cut from the celery heart. Yum!

[Terila]

I love egg salad.  But I won't eat it from a deli, restaurant or other outside establishment.  It must be homemade by ME.

I used to make egg salad myself. But somewhere along the line I lost the ability to hardboil eggs! I have no qualms about tackling a recipe that takes days to prepare ... but hard boiled eggs!!!

I wish I could gain the knack again.

[lcdm]

I can't eat warm eggs. My egg salad must be cold. I grate the eggs in the food processor and than mix with mayo. I like it on white toast w/lettuce and tomato (only in season tomatoes). Sometimes I make open face sandwiches (eliminates the squishing out of the filling) or on crackers. My mom used to put the cold boiled eggs through the meat grind - the whites would come out like tiny pearls - yum.

[emilyr]

Am I the only one who makes egg salad different every time? Usually just mayo and some yellow mustard, but I do a curry version, one with tarragon, one with capers and red onions. This reminds me of the potato salad thread. I never make that the same every time either. I just throw in what ever I have on hand.

Although, I do have to say, I do like my eggs just a bit warm. I cook them and toss them in ice water, then peel once they're cool enough to handle. Usually by the time I eat it, only the yolks are still warm.

I do only eat egg salad on whole wheat or rye bread. I just don't seem to like it as much on white.

[GourmetLight$]

I used to work at a place with a deli downstairs and I had tried, and was tired of, virtually everything they offered. Then I noticed they had egg salad and it didn't look too bad. I tried it that day and it was pretty bland. The next day I ordered it again on egg bread, and at my desk added packets of mustard, pickle relish, and horseradish sauce and created......the Devilled Egg Sandwich! That's the only way I can eat it now, and it's not bad.

Cheers,

[Lindacakes]

There are some nice ideas here I want to try, but for me, it's all in the construction.

Toast and butter an English muffin. Lay strips of bacon across to exactly cover it, trim any overhang. Top with egg salad (hard boiled eggs chopped medium and Miracle Whip). Pepper the top. Eat open faced.

Alternately, one can cut the bacon into pieces the size of a penny and mix it in. This can be served wrapped in a lettuce leaf. I would steal that hollowed out perfectly ripe tomato for this.

Make a piece of toast, butter it. Add a swipe of Miracle Whip. Slice the hard boiled egg with the classic egg slicer. Carefully lay the egg slices across the bread. Salt and pepper. Eat open faced.

I consider the deviled egg to be a variation which embraces the wisdom of mustard. The deviled egg should also be carefully constructed. It is not only not necessary, but grotesque to apply a pastry bag to this process.

There was a MW fan above who didn't have another use for it. This is a vestige of my childhood I hang on to beyond my palette's expensive education. Another use -- turkey sandwich. Cannot have turkey sandwich without it.

[Henry dV]

As if eggs weren't great enough, egg salad is eggs with a dressing made from eggs. I love it so much, and I think we should talk about it. I really do.

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Sorry to say big fella, eggs are designed to make me ill !

I`m not allergic but the smell/taste is too much for me, souffles are the eggiest I can ever get near.

Sorry for the sidetrack..........please carry on !