Egg Salad is a Budget-Friendly Meal When Your Cupboard's Bare

Egg salad was one of the first foods I remember making by myself as a kid. It was super simple and I could whip up a batch using items that were typically on hand in my mom's kitchen—eggs, mayonnaise, mustard and relish. I ate it on crackers, made sandwiches with it and I still do. 

Over the years, I've tried loads of egg salad recipes, added ingredients like parsley, celery, tomatoes, lettuce, capers and any number of herbs and spices, all in an effort to inject a little excitement into my simple egg salad. While I enjoyed those experiments, it seems I always turn back to basics and my simple blend of ingredients. Why reinvent the wheel?

The key to a great egg salad is perfectly cooked eggs. Over-cooked eggs will have a dark green ring around the yolk, which will give your salad a slight, green tinge. When adding in the relish, be sure to drain any excess juice from the relish before adding it to your egg salad. Too much liquid will make your egg salad loose and runny. 

Store your salad in an airtight container in the fridge for one to two days.

Simple Egg Salad

Serves four.

¼ cup mayonnaise

¼ cup finely-chopped red onion

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon sweet pickle relish

Pinch paprika

6 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and coarsely chopped

Salt and pepper, to taste

Combine mayonnaise, onion, mustard, relish and paprika in a medium bowl, mix until well-blended. Stir in the eggs, season to taste with salt and pepper. Chill until ready to serve.