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Deviled eggs are the ultimate party food. They are cheap and easy to make and can be dressed up for formal occasions or your kid’s afternoon snack. Sometimes called Russian Eggs or Stuffed Eggs, Deviled Eggs are hard-boiled eggs that are cut in half, the yolk removed and mixed with flavorful ingredients to form a paste, and then reinserted into the egg-white boats.
I love deviled eggs. As a caterer, these were some of my most popular appetizers for weddings, baby showers, and family reunions. They are gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegetarian (unless you choose to top them with bacon or chorizo or smoked salmon), and cost a mere 25 cents a piece, making it a great options for serving to big crowds. Though they are wonderful all year long and for any occasion, springtime is when fresh farm eggs have the brightest, orangest yolks, and it is the time of year that I think about them the most. These make great use of all those Easter Eggs and are also perfect for Mother’s Day. They are a big hit with my kiddos and are a super nutritious snack.
I like to top my deviled eggs with an assortment of garnishes, whatever I have on hand. But beware, people eat more of them when they have assorted garnishes!
Here’s a list of my favorite deviled egg toppings:
- bacon lardons
- smoked salmon
- curry powder
- smoked paprika
- cooked shrimp
- sliced dry chorizo and ancho chili powder
- sliced radish and herbs
- sliced or minced celery heart and leaves (the innermost lime green part of a head of celery and my favorite part of celery)
- olives
- minced cornichons/pickles
- Seriously Whole Grain Mustard (pickled mustard seed)
- minced herbs (chives, tarragon, dill, and/or parsley)
- miner’s lettuce (grows wild here in the spring in Northern California)
- edible flowers (rosemary, sage, and/or chive blossoms work great)
- Lil Smokies (for the kiddos)
- caviar
Tips and Tricks
- For cooking perfect hardboiled eggs and easy peeling, check out this post (The Easy Way to Peel Hard-Boiled Eggs)
- You can make the yolk mix ahead of time and store the whites and yolk mix separately until ready to serve.
- A piping bag makes for quick, easy filling. You can pipe hundreds of deviled eggs in a matter of minutes with piping bags. If you use disposable plastic piping bags, which I highly recommend, you can fill them with the yolk mix, and tie the end off for storage and transport
Deviled Eggs
- Prep Time: 30 min
- Cook Time: 12
- Total Time: 42 minutes
- Yield: 24 bites 1x
- Category: appetizer
- Method: cold prep
- Cuisine: American, Italian, Russian
Description
These little bites are easy and inexpensive to make and perfect for snacking on with kids or dressing up and taking to holiday parties.
Ingredients
7 T mayonnaise
5–6 teaspoons of your favorite mustard
5–6 teaspoons of cornichon or pickle juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon paprika (optional)
Assorted toppings (see above list for ideas)
Instructions
Boil and peel your eggs (see note below for tips and tricks)
Set-up your food processor.
Cut the eggs in half, place white “boats” into a bowl of water to clean them. Place yolks into the food processor.
Add remaining ingredients to the food processor and blend until smooth and creamy.
Transfer yolk mixture to a piping bag with your preferred tip. I prefer plastic disposable piping bags which can be tied off for storage until ready to use.
You can store the white boats and hold the yolk mixture in a tied-off piping bag for a couple of days or pipe and serve right away. You want to pipe the eggs close to the time you are serving them as the yolk mixture will turn a bit orangey after prolonged exposure to air.
When ready to finish your eggs, gather all your toppings. Rinse, drain and dry your egg boats (the drier the shells, the less slippery they will be to transport).
Kids love making and eating these deviled eggs.
Pipe the yolk mixture into the egg white “boats”. Add your toppings. I like to do 3-4 different toppings per batch.
My daughter is especially excited about the deviled eggs topped with black olive.
Deviled eggs garnished with black olives, herbs and microgreens, miner’s lettuce, flower blossoms and saucisson.
Notes
Check out The Easy Way to Peel Hard Boiled Eggs.
If transporting these to a party, I recommend using 1 1/2 inch cupcake papers to cradle each egg and a tuperware container with a tight fitting lid (or well wrapped in plastic wrap) that fits your batch of eggs tightly so they don’t move around. You could also put mixed greens down under your eggs. This will help with sliding but is not as effective as the cupcake papers. Alternatively, you could bring your dry egg shells arranged on your serving platter, yolk piping bag and garnishes and assemble at the party location. It’s really fast and totally doable. I’ve piped and garnished hundreds of these at a time in the middle of wedding appetizer service.
If you don’t have a food processor, put your yolks through a food mill or garlic press into a mixing bowl and whisk in the other ingredients.
If you don’t have a piping bag, you can spoon the yolk mixture into the eggs. They’ll just look more rustic and take a bit longer.
May is simply lovely…..
What type of mustard do you like best?
Usually dijon.
Deviled eggs were the only craving I had when I was pregnant. I’d make one or two eggs every morning during my first trimester. I’ll have to try making these