For a quick lunch or a light dinner, it’s tough to beat this old-fashioned egg salad sandwich recipe. The easy, make-ahead option comes together in just minutes with a handful of simple ingredients.
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If you’re looking for other old-fashioned sandwich ideas, don’t miss our favorite tuna salad recipe, this club sandwich, and this classic Southern tomato sandwich, too!
The Best Egg Salad Sandwich Recipe is so Easy
Every mom or grandma needs a classic go-to recipe for an old-fashioned egg salad sandwich, and this is our absolute favorite! The dish has just the right amount of mayonnaise and yellow mustard to hold the ingredients together; the perfect balance of sweet-and-savory ingredients (thanks to plenty of relish); and can easily be adapted to accommodate your individual preferences.
Serve the egg salad on a bed of lettuce with a side of homemade crescent rolls, on homemade white bread, on store-bought wheat bread, on buttery croissants, or on thick-sliced, toasted English muffin bread. Sprinkle it with paprika for color, add chopped fresh herbs for a bright touch, or layer it with salty, crispy bacon for smoky flavor. The options are endless, making this truly the best egg salad sandwich recipe!
Ingredient Notes and Tips for Success
- I’ve included my favorite method for hard-boiling eggs in the recipe below, but you can also purchase peeled, hard boiled eggs at the store for a shortcut.
- The mayo not only acts as a binder to hold the salad together, but it provides great flavor. I prefer Duke’s brand.
- We keep it simple with the addition of celery for great flavor and crunch, but you can add other fresh veggies as well. Good mix-ins include minced red onion, sweet bell peppers, minced or grated carrots, chopped cucumber, and chopped cherry tomatoes.
- For an herby egg salad, add 1 tablespoon each of chopped fresh flat leaf parsley, fresh dill, and fresh chives. The fresh herbs are totally optional, but they really brighten up the salad!
- An old-fashioned egg salad sandwich recipe is typically served on a simple white or wheat sandwich bread. That said, you can get as creative as you like! If you’re serving the sandwiches at a bridal shower or baby shower, offer them on little bite-sized mini croissants, angel biscuits, or soft dinner rolls. Rye, pumpernickel, sourdough bread, and English muffins will also work well!
How to Make an Egg Salad Sandwich
This old fashioned egg salad sandwich recipe comes together in just minutes with a few pantry staples! In fact, the beauty is in its simplicity. You can certainly jazz it up with the mix-ins of your choice, but we think it’s perfect exactly as written. You’ll find detailed measurements in the recipe card below, but here’s the overview:
- Hard boil the eggs. Run them under cold water, and when they’re cool enough to handle, remove the shells.
- Roughly chop or mash the eggs with a fork or pastry blender. You want the egg salad to remain a little bit chunky, rather than turning into a thick paste when you stir everything together. Some texture is good!
- Stir together the mayonnaise, mustard, celery, pickle relish, salt, and pepper. Strain any excess juice from the pickle relish so that it doesn’t thin the dressing too much.
- Add the chopped egg and gently stir to combine.
- Assemble the sandwiches by layering the egg salad and lettuce on rolls, croissants, or slices of your favorite bread. I like a soft, ruffled lettuce such as red leaf or butter lettuce for that fresh, crisp flavor. You can toast the bread first if you like, but that’s just a matter of personal preference.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
Classic egg salad sandwiches are delicious with a glass of sweet tea or grape juice alongside crunchy potato chips, crisp dill pickles, this cucumber tomato onion salad, carrot sticks, celery sticks, and bell pepper slices with ranch dip, this marinated vegetable salad, a fresh fruit salad tossed with this honey lemon fruit salad dressing, or a carrot and raisin salad. And don’t forget the beverages! Try old-fashioned blackberry lemonade, freshly-squeezed lemonade, sweet tea, or a pink lemonade spritz!
Preparation and Storage Tips
- Egg salad is a great make-ahead option because it keeps in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
- Wait to assemble the sandwiches just before serving to prevent the bread from getting soggy.
- Keep egg salad chilled at all times, and avoid leaving it out at room temperature for more than 2 hours. I do not recommend freezing the salad, since the texture of the mayo and veggies will degrade after thawing.
Did you make this recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment with a 5-star review at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
Old Fashioned Egg Salad Sandwich
Ingredients
- 6 large hard-boiled eggs (see instructions below)
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
- ¼ cup finely diced celery
- 2 tablespoons sweet pickle relish, drained of juice
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- For serving: croissants, bread or rolls of choice (toasted if desired); lettuce
Instructions
- Place the peeled, hardboiled eggs in a bowl. Roughly chop the eggs using a fork or pastry blender.
- In a large bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, mustard, celery, pickle relish, salt, and pepper.
- Add the chopped egg and gently mix until combined.
- Assemble sandwiches with egg salad and lettuce on croissants, bread, or rolls of choice. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Recipe Variations
- Jazz up the mayo dressing by including a dollop of Dijon mustard instead of yellow mustard, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, or a little bit of vinegar, hot sauce, garlic powder, paprika, or chopped green onion. The options are endless!
- Add curry powder to the mayonnaise mixture, to taste, for a curried egg salad sandwich.
- Try a BLT egg salad sandwich by including strips of crispy bacon and sliced tomato on the sandwiches with the egg salad and lettuce.
- Add a Southern touch by spreading pimento cheese on the sandwiches.
- Sliced fresh tomato or pickled red onions would also be delicious toppings for the sandwiches.
- For a lighter egg salad recipe, replace about half of the mayonnaise with plain Greek yogurt.
- Instead of making sandwiches, serve the egg salad on a bed of greens, in lettuce wraps, or scooped with crackers. Offer this Southern cornbread recipe, Aunt Bee’s 3-ingredient biscuit recipe, pumpkin muffins, sour cream blueberry muffins, lemon poppy seed cake, strawberry bread, banana nut bread, or blueberry scones on the side.
More Sandwich Recipes to Try
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Old Fashioned Sloppy Joes Recipe
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Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad
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Originally published in February, 2021, this post was updated in April, 2025.
I don’t like sweet pickle relish (makes me shiver to think about it!) but I add just a bit of dill pickle juice. I don’t like chopped pickles in anything except my potato salad. I guess it’s all in what your whole family likes, more than what you yourself like, right?
Agreed! The great thing about egg salad is how versatile it can be.