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Sometimes, all I want is a simple sandwich filled with something easy and delicious. And it just doesn’t get any easier than this homemade Egg Salad. So, if you’re short on time and want something filling and quick, I highly recommend you try this egg salad recipe! This is my super easy and delish version, but I’ve got lots of ideas for variations below, too!
“Thanks for this! It’s exactly what I needed – a great basic recipe and suggestions for how to improvise based on what I’ve got in the fridge. Just had a delicious egg salad sandwich for lunch, and will definitely be coming back to this one!”
Teevee
An Easy Classic for Busy Weekdays
When I was looking around at different egg salad recipes on the internet, they all seemed to be a little too complicated for my busy life. Almost all of them included fresh herbs, one single rib of celery, or other things that I don’t usually keep on hand. So, I made my egg salad as simple and delicious as possible. Just a few simple ingredients that you can keep in your fridge, and nothing fancy. But if you want something fancy, I’ve got ideas for that below, too. 😉
Recipe Success Tips
- It’s a classic for a reason. This version keeps the ingredient list short and familiar, so it tastes like the egg salad most of us grew up with (just a little brighter from the Dijon, lemon, and relish!) And as much as I love my tuna salad, this recipe is my go-to when I want something creamy, simple, and super classic.
- Bring the water to a full boil first. The water needs to come all the way up to a full boil before you put the lid on, turn off the heat, and let the eggs sit; otherwise, they may not cook through properly.
- Avoid a watery egg salad! If your eggs are still hot when you mix everything together, the salad can loosen up, so let them cool first. Also, use a light hand if your relish is quite watery and adjust the amount used if it’s making the mixture too loose. Fresh add-ins like celery, onion, or other crunchy veggies can also release water and make the salad a bit watery if not served right away.
- Use bread with some structure. I like this recipe on toasted sandwich bread, sourdough, or a croissant if I want something a little richer. Toast is especially nice here because it gives the soft filling a little contrast and helps keep the bread from getting soggy too fast.
- Adjust it to your taste. The salt, mustard, lemon, and dill relish can all be tweaked here. Start small and build from there if you’d rather keep the flavors softer and less punchy.
Easy Egg Salad
Cost $2.98 recipe / $1.49 serving
Ingredients
- 4 large eggs ($2.68*)
- 3 Tbsp mayonnaise ($0.15**)
- 1 Tbsp dill relish ($0.08***)
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard ($0.02)
- ¼ tsp lemon juice ($0.01)
- ⅛ tsp salt ($0.02)
- ⅛ tsp black pepper (freshly cracked, $0.02)
Video
Instructions
- Add the eggs to a saucepot and cover with water. Place a lid on the pot and turn the heat on to high. Bring the water up to a full boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat off and let the eggs sit in the hot water (lid on) for 12 minutes.
- After 12 minutes in the hot water, transfer the eggs to an ice bath or run under cold water until cool. Peel the eggs then chop them into ½-inch pieces.
- Add the chopped egg to a bowl along with the mayonnaise, Dijon, relish, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine, mashing some of the egg yolk into the dressing as you stir.
- Taste and adjust the ingredients to your liking. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat.
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Notes
Nutrition Information
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Egg Salad Step-by-Step Photos
Boil the eggs: Add four large eggs to a pot and cover with water. Make sure the water covers the eggs by about 1 inch. Place a lid on the pot and turn the heat on to high. Allow the water to come up to a full rolling boil. Once boiling, turn the heat off and let the eggs sit in the hot water with the lid still on for 12 minutes.
After 12 minutes, transfer the eggs to an ice bath or run under cold water until cooled. Peel and roughly chop the eggs into ½-inch pieces.
Make the salad: Add the chopped eggs to a bowl along with 3 Tbsp mayonnaise, 1 tsp Dijon mustard, 1 Tbsp dill relish, ¼ tsp lemon juice, and ⅛ tsp each of salt and pepper.
Stir all of the ingredients together until well combined, mashing some of the yolks into the dressing as you stir. I like to mash just enough of the yolks into the mayo mixture to make it creamy, while still leaving plenty of larger egg pieces for texture. Taste and adjust the seasonings to your liking.
Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat! (serving suggestion pictured: egg salad sandwich on toast with mixed greens).
What Else Can I Add?
Alright, here’s where you can have some fun if you happen to have some of these ingredients on hand. Try adding any of these to your egg salad to take it up a notch:
- Hot sauce: For heat and a little extra tang! Tabasco, gochujang, chili garlic sauce, sriracha, etc., will all work. I personally love a sriracha egg salad! Add as much or as little spice as you can handle.
- Green onion: Adds a mild onion bite without overpowering the salad.
- Crumbled bacon: Adds a salty and smoky crunch. I like to cook my bacon in the air fryer to make it extra crispy.
- Kimchi: Gives the salad a punchy, tangy, slightly spicy twist. Chop it finely so it mixes in evenly.
- Mashed avocado: Use in place of the mayo for a fresher flavor.
- Everything bagel seasoning: Adds crunch plus a savory mix of garlic, onion, sesame, and poppy seeds.
- Pickled red onions: For brightness and sweet tang that cuts through the creamy dressing.
- Capers: Adds a salty, briny pop that makes the whole salad taste a little punchier.
- Celery: Adds fresh crunch and a little more texture. I prefer finely diced celery whenever I add it to this recipe.
- Jalapeños: Either diced fresh or pickled jalapeños work for added spice (remove the seeds unless you want it real spicy!)
- Fresh herbs: Finely minced dill, parsley, or chives help it taste fresher and a little more vibrant.
Serving Suggestions
I love a classic egg salad sandwich (either on toast or a croissant with lettuce), but you can also serve this salad with crackers for scooping, in lettuce cups, on avocado toast, or even in an avocado half! I also think it’s delicious served up wrap-style in a tortilla (or our cottage cheese wraps for a lower-carb option) with lettuce or as a salad topper over a bed of greens.
how to store
I purposely made this a small batch recipe so you don’t have to worry about leftovers, but if you choose to make a larger batch, the leftovers should stay good in the refrigerator for about 4-5 days.
This recipe scales up very easily. Simply adjust the number of servings in the recipe box and the ingredients will auto adjust for you.
Try These Easy Egg Recipes Next:
- I used to struggle making Poached Eggs until I followed this simple method that gives you tender whites and soft, runny yolks in just 8 minutes!
- These Deviled Eggs are an easy 5-ingredient party classic that’s perfect for holidays, potlucks, and or get-togethers.
- Our Scrambled Eggs cook up soft, creamy, and fluffy, and I love how easy they are to customize for breakfast any day of the week.
More Creamy Salad Recipes
Our Easy Egg Salad recipe was originally published 2/7/22. It was retested, reworked, and republished to be better than ever 4/7/25.
Da BEST RECIPE ever made! Period
The egg salad is great for those who like a more salty salad. I like a little sweeter egg salad however overall it was good cold not warm. Thanks for sharing the recipe. ❤️😊
Just made this, base recipe is good I would just add more mustard personally for taste. It also taught me how to do hard boiled eggs that dont turn grey!
I Have one of those egg slicers. Put the egg in one way, slice, then turn the egg the other way for diced egg. Im partial to green onion in my egg salad but otherwise will try this method tomorrow.
Very good recipe! If you don’t have dill relish you can chip up pickles
I swear I remember a recipe for a lemon herb egg salad that I used to be available on this site! No relish, a bigger hit of lemon, some thyme – can you help me with the modifications that would bring back that old favorite? My tastebuds thank you!
Yes! The only differences were no relish in that one, and she added 1.5-2 tbsp of fresh herbs. She used thyme but also suggested dill, parsley, or tarragon and you can even add a little lemon zest if you want it more lemony. Good luck!
Thank you so much!!
Beth this was AMAZING! Easily customizable and doubled. Even though I didn’t chill in fridge, which would’ve been preferred, it was a fantastic, easy dinner with toast! This recipe totally hit the spot and I will be saving it for years, maybe implementing some chopped celery.
Thank you!
I made it a bit different..no relish, but used a bit of dill pickle juice instead lemon juice and added dried dill for flavor! Excellent taste
Love simplicity.
Thanks for this! It’s exactly what I needed – a great basic recipe and suggestions for how to improvise based on what I’ve got in the fridge. Just had a delicious egg salad sandwich for lunch, and will definitely be coming back to this one!
Looks good but can I use sweet pickle relish instead?
If you don’t mind that sweet flavor in your egg salad then that’s fine! Just be aware that it will taste a bit different that the original version.
Thank you so much. This looks simple and delicious! Jesus loves you. Have a great day!
I don’t know how I got to 32 years old before I tried egg salad. I guess it always looked weird to me, but as a deviled egg lover, I don’t know how it never occurred to me that it’s basically the flavor of deviled eggs, but on a sandwich. Anyway, this was delicious! Highly recommend. I can see myself making this many times over, as it’s very easy, and I almost always have the ingredients lying around.
Easy recipe. Delish
Don’t follow this way of hard boiling an egg. They will not be cooked!
My eggs cooked just fine with this method. I wonder if maybe your water didn’t get hot enough? It needs to come up to a full boil, and then you put a lid on to trap the heat inside.
Exactly how I do my eggs too! Comes out perfect everytime. Pasta too