Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this website.
The best Egg Salad Sandwich recipe comes together easily with just a handful of simple ingredients. A favorite for generations, this Southern egg salad is full of chopped hard-boiled eggs, creamy mayonnaise, a touch of mustard, sweet pickle relish, crisp celery, salt and pepper. That’s it! Pile it high on your favorite bread and serve the sandwich with potato chips and pickles for a quick lunch or a light dinner. It always wins rave reviews!
Old Fashioned Egg Salad Sandwich Recipe
Every mom or grandma needs a classic go-to recipe for the best egg salad sandwich, and this is our absolute favorite! The salad has just the right amount of mayonnaise 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 it 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, and this simple egg salad sandwich is always a hit!
Ingredients
This is an overview of the basic ingredients that you’ll need for an easy egg salad sandwich recipe. As always, the specific measurements and complete cooking instructions are included in the printable recipe box at the bottom of the post.
- Hard-boiled eggs: roughly chopped (not too fine), for a chunky egg salad rather than a mushy, paste-like consistency.
- Mayonnaise: the binder that holds the egg salad together. Pick a high-quality mayonnaise, such as Duke’s brand.
- Yellow mustard: a small amount adds color and tangy flavor to the creamy dressing.
- Celery: gives the salad a little bit of crisp crunch. You can omit this ingredient if you prefer.
- Sweet pickle relish: a sweet, tangy contrast to the creamy, savory salad.
- Kosher salt and pepper: for flavor.
- Bread, croissants, or rolls: for building the sandwiches.
- Lettuce: for layering on the sandwiches; I like a soft, ruffled lettuce such as red leaf or butter lettuce.
Which Bread for a Classic Egg Salad Sandwich?
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, small biscuits, homemade crescent rolls, or soft dinner rolls.
For a standard-size sandwich and a heartier meal, make your egg salad sandwiches on homemade white bread, honey wheat bread, croissants, buttermilk biscuits, bagels, English muffins, oatmeal bread, no-knead bread, baguette, or English muffin bread (shown here). Store-bought rye, pumpernickel, or sourdough breads will also work well! You can toast the bread first if you like, but that’s just a matter of personal preference.
How to Boil Eggs for Egg Salad
You’ll need 6 hard-boiled eggs for this salad. For a shortcut, you can purchase hard-boiled, peeled eggs at the grocery store (usually near the regular egg cartons or in the deli section). If you’d like to boil your eggs at home, it’s really simple to do!
- Place the eggs in a large pot and cover with cold water.
- Bring the water to a boil, remove the pot from the heat, cover, and let stand for 12 minutes.
- Drain and rinse the eggs under cold water for 1 minute.
- Once the eggs feel cool, crack the shells and carefully peel under cold water.
- Roughly chop the eggs to use in the salad recipe.
How to Make an Egg Salad Sandwich
Once you have the hardboiled eggs peeled and chopped, the rest of the process is incredibly quick and easy!
- Stir together the mayonnaise, mustard, celery, pickle relish, salt and pepper.
- 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.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
Storage
Egg salad is a great make-ahead option because it will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. Assemble the sandwiches just before serving to prevent the bread from getting soggy.
What side dish goes with egg salad sandwiches?
Serve this Southern egg salad with any of the following sides:
- Ambrosia salad, Watergate salad, or fruit salad
- Potato chips
- Pickles
- Southern Macaroni Salad
- Three Bean Salad
- Broccoli Cauliflower Salad
- Southern Potato Salad
- Carrot & Raisin Salad
- Wedge Salad
- Southern Succotash
- Rice Salad with Corn, Bacon and Pimentos
- Tomato, Cucumber & Onion Salad
And don’t forget the beverages! Try old-fashioned blackberry lemonade, freshly-squeezed lemonade, sweet tea, or a pink lemonade spritz!
Recipe Variations
- Instead of making sandwiches, serve the egg salad on a bed of greens. Offer honey cornbread, biscuits, pumpkin muffins, blueberry muffins, lemon poppy seed bread, strawberry bread, banana nut bread, or blueberry scones on the side.
- Herbs: add fresh herbs to the egg salad for a bright finishing touch and extra flavor. Try dill, parsley or chives.
- Sprinkle with a dash of paprika for color.
- 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.
Tips for the Best Egg Salad Sandwich Recipe Ever
- Prep the egg salad the night before (or a few days in advance), but wait to assemble the sandwiches until right before you’re ready to serve them. This will prevent the bread or rolls from becoming soggy.
- Use a high quality mayonnaise, since that’s the base of the salad dressing. We like Duke’s brand.
- Strain any excess juice from the pickle relish so that it doesn’t thin the dressing too much.
- Farm-fresh eggs are best when you can get them, but you can also take a shortcut and purchase peeled, hardboiled eggs at the grocery store if necessary.
- Roughly chop the eggs, but don’t mince them into tiny pieces. 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!
More Sandwich Recipes to Try
- Classic Patty Melt
- Reuben Sandwich
- Classic Tuna Melt
- Homemade Sloppy Joes
- Crispy Fried Fish Sandwiches
- Tomato Sandwich
- French Dip Sandwiches
Egg Salad Sandwich
Ingredients
- 6 large eggs
- 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; lettuce
Instructions
- Place eggs in a single layer in a saucepan. Cover with water so that there is about 1 inch of water over the eggs. Bring to a boil, remove from heat, cover, and let stand for 12 minutes.
- Drain and rinse eggs under cold water for 1 minute.
- Once the outside of the eggs feel cool, crack egg shells and carefully peel under cold water.
- Roughly chop the eggs.
- In a large bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, mustard, celery, pickle relish, salt and pepper. Add the chopped egg and gently mix until combined.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
- Assemble sandwiches with egg salad and lettuce on croissants, bread or rolls of choice. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Prep the egg salad the night before (or a few days in advance), but wait to assemble the sandwiches until right before you’re ready to serve them. This will prevent the bread or rolls from becoming soggy.
- Use a high quality mayonnaise, since that’s the base of the salad dressing. We like Duke’s brand.
- Strain any excess juice from the pickle relish so that it doesn’t thin the dressing too much.
- Farm-fresh eggs are best when you can get them, but you can also take a shortcut and purchase peeled, hardboiled eggs at the grocery store if necessary.
- Roughly chop the eggs, but don’t mince them into tiny pieces. 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!
Comments