This has to be a joke, right? I mean egg salad for Pete’s sake! First of all, who actually eats egg salad past about eight years old? And second, who needs a step-by-step recipe guide to make it?
As to the first question, I eat egg salad. It’s like deviled eggs, on bread. And I like me some deviled eggs.
So who needs directions for it? Anyone who’s never made it. No matter how easy something is, until you’ve seen it for the first time you don’t know that it’s easy.
More important is that this is what this blog is about, and it’s why I wrote the book. I’ve gotten so many comments from people saying, “I haven’t had that for years. I’m going to go make some.” It’s like we’re all trying so hard to make the foods we should like, foods that look impressive and sound intimidating, that we sometimes forget that the simple things are good, too.
I spent several minutes in the grill accessories aisle yesterday looking at various racks to grill delicate foods in. I’ve already got a grill pan that works great for vegetables, but I thought a removable rack would make it easier to do fish. And with the luck I have with seafood, I need all the help I can get.
Then I realized: I like steak and pork on the grill. No, I loooooove steak and pork on the grill. And I’m pretty good at it. There I was, standing there looking at buying some more stuff, stuff that there’s no room for in my kitchen as it is, to try grilling some fish … which I don’t even like all that much.
Sure, I like shrimp and scallops, but grilled salmon? Grilled whitefish? Eh, they’re okay. But if you told me I’d never have them again I wouldn’t cry. So why was I looking at those racks? Because I thought I should like grilled fish. Everyone else seems to. And it’s hard to get right, so people are impressed when you do it well. I like impressing people, don’t you?
People used to eat food they liked, not food that was impressive or that happened to be fashionable. And an egg salad sandwich is about as unfashionable as you can get. That’s why I did it for my 100th post.
Ingredients
hard boiled eggs, two per person
mayonnaise
mustard
Directions
I’ve tried all the tips for peeling hard boiled eggs, but I always have some that come out ugly. So when I make deviled eggs, I boil a bunch of extras. Sometimes they don’t peel well, sometimes the yolk is too close to the edge, like this one.
They taste fine, but they’re not going to look good. So, egg salad time. Start by dicing all the eggs.
For eight eggs, like I did here, add about three tablespoons of mayonnaise (home made if you can) and one tablespoon of mustard. I like spicy brown, but will take Dijon or plain yellow in a pinch.
Mix it all together, and check if it’s tangy enough. If I’m making it for just me, I’ll go about half-and-half on the mustard and mayo.
The dainty way to serve this is to put a scoop of it on a lettuce leaf. Iceberg, of course.
Or my way, on some sourdough bread with the lettuce leaf. And a slice of white American cheese, if you’ve got it.
And that’s it.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go throw a steak on the grill to celebrate my milestone.
PS: No, I didn’t buy the rack for the fish.
It's not just for kids. Egg salad is a can't-miss comfort food for all ages.
Ingredients
- hard boiled eggs, two per person
- mayonnaise
- mustard
Instructions
Boil and peel the eggs.
Dice the eggs - including yolks - fairly small. (For "pretty" salad use an egg slicer, for rustic you can just use a fork and go to town.)
Mix in mayo and mustard, about two parts mayo to one part mustard, until it's as moist as you like.
