Great Deviled Eggs Recipe (2024)

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The best deviled eggs are creamy, savory, punchy, and light, made with good Dijon mustard, homemade mayo, and good olive oil.

J. Kenji López-Alt

Culinary Consultant

Kenji is the former culinary director for Serious Eats and a current culinary consultant for the site. He is also a New York Times food columnist and the author of The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science.

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Updated September 25, 2023

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Why It Works

Using homemade mayo makes the dish stand apart from versions made with store-bought mayo.
Boiling the eggs until the yolks are perfectly done and shocking them in ice water prevents the egg yolks from developing off flavors.
Adding the oil in a steady stream while processing the filling makes for a light, fully emulsified deviled egg filling.

Growing up, I was never a fan of deviled eggs (or anything mayonnaise-related, for that matter). Then again, deviled eggs back then consisted mainly of overcooked, slightly sulfurous hard-boiled eggs, mashed up with Hellmann's mayo and a bit of yellow mustard and served too cold. They were the default "serve them anyway, someone will eat them after the guacamole's gone" option at the potluck. I thought I'd sworn them off forever.

Well, times have changed. Or, more likely, my ability to surround myself with people who know how to make awesome deviled eggs has changed.

To be precise, the first truly outstanding deviled eggs I tried as an adult were fromOleanain Cambridge, Massachusetts. I hadn't actually gone in intending to find the key to my devilish chastity belt, but as it happened, I was a poor college student at the time, and in way over my head pretending I could afford to be at a restaurant that I really couldn't. So I did what any well-intentioned but underfunded kid would do: I ordered a co*cktail and the cheapest dish on the menu. Both were outstanding.

For one thing, Chef Ana Sortun really knows how toproperly cook a hard-boiled egg.The key is starting them in cold water, bringing them up to a boil, then removing them from heat and letting them rest in the cooling water. Starting them cold helps them come up to temperature more evenly, preventing the whites from overcooking and, even better, preventing the dreaded green ring from forming around the yolk—a reaction between the sulfur in the egg white and the iron in the yolk, and a sure indication that your eggs are overcooked (and stinky).

At Oleana, Sortun combines these yolks with plenty of really good olive oil, tuna that's been slowly confited in more of that olive oil, along with some black olives and parsley. That's all well and good, and the tuna and olives are a nice addition to deviled eggs, but the real key to getting them to taste awesome is the perfect cooking, coupled with the great olive oil and plenty of acid and salt.Anythingtastes better with really good olive oil and more acid.

Since then, I've had plenty of great deviled eggs, and I like to boil more eggs than I need so that I can add extra yolks and overstuff each of the egg halves. (I eat the leftover whites with some Frank's RedHot—I also add a dash of it to the filling—or mix them into Hambone's dog food.) You can never have too much egg yolk. Chives or parsley, with some nice crunchy Maldon sea salt and a sprinkle of good paprika or crushed red pepper (Spanishpiment d'Espeletteif you're lucky, or a good planner) finish 'em off.

The only other bit to look out for is that, just like when you're making a mayonnaise, if you try to add too much olive oil to your egg yolks too fast, the filling will break, turning grainy and greasy.The key is to slowly drizzle the olive oil in while your food processor is running(or while whisking vigorously, if you like to go manual).

2:21

How to Make Deviled Eggs That Are Really Deviled

September 2011

Further extensive testinghas demonstrated that starting eggs in already-boiling water or steaming them is a superior method for easier peeling.

Recipe Details

Great Deviled Eggs

Active20 mins

Total20 mins

Serves16 deviled egg halves

Ingredients

12 large eggs, not too fresh (see notes)
2 tablespoons (30ml) mayonnaise, preferablyhomemade
1 tablespoon (15ml)Dijon mustard
Up to 1 tablespoon (15ml)white wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon (3ml) Frank's RedHot sauce
1/4 cup (60ml) extra-virgin olive oil, divided (see notes)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons (85g) thinly sliced chives
Crushed red pepper or hot paprika
Crunchy sea salt, such as Maldon

Directions

Add 1 tray of ice cubes to a large bowl and fill with water. Fill a large pot with 1 inch of water. Place steamer insert inside, cover, and bring to a boil over high heat. Add eggs to steamer basket, cover, and continue cooking over high heat for 12 minutes. Immediately place eggs in bowl of ice water and allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before peeling under cool running water. Slice each egg in half lengthwise.
Place all yolks in the bowl of a food processor. Select 16 of the best-looking egg white halves and set aside; reserve remaining 8 for another use. Add mayonnaise, mustard, 1/2 tablespoon (7ml) vinegar, and hot sauce to food processor and process until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary.
With machine running, slowly drizzle in 2 tablespoons (30ml) olive oil. Season mixture to taste with salt and remaining vinegar (if desired). Transfer to a zipper-lock bag. Filling and egg white halves can be stored in the refrigerator up to overnight before eggs are filled and served.
Cut off a corner of zipper-lock bag and pipe filling mixture into egg whites, overstuffing each. Drizzle with remaining olive oil and sprinkle with black pepper, chives, crushed red pepper or paprika, and sea salt. Serve immediately.

Notes

For the best results, use really, really good olive oil.

I like overstuffing the eggs, which leaves you with a few extra whites. Just eat 'em (or feed them to the dog). Eggs that are a couple of weeks old will peel more easily than very fresh eggs.

Special Equipment

Large pot with steamer insert, food processor

Make-Ahead and Storage

You can boil the eggs and make the filling one day ahead of time.

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Nutrition Facts (per serving)
96	Calories
8g	Fat
0g	Carbs
5g	Protein

Show Full Nutrition Label

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 16
Amount per serving
Calories	96
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 8g	11%
Saturated Fat 2g	9%
Cholesterol 140mg	47%
Sodium 192mg	8%
Total Carbohydrate 0g	0%
Dietary Fiber 0g	0%
Total Sugars 0g
Protein 5g
Vitamin C 0mg	2%
Calcium 23mg	2%
Iron 1mg	4%
Potassium 57mg	1%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

FAQs

Is it better to make deviled eggs day before or day of? ›

Prep deviled eggs too far in advance, and you'll have dried out filling and stinky boiled egg whites. For the best results, prep your deviled eggs up to two days in advance and keep the egg whites and filling separate until you're ready to serve. This prepping method also applies if you're not even leaving the house.

How do I get hard boiled eggs to peel easily? ›

Baking soda is said to raise the pH level of eggs and therefore make them easier to peel. Add 1 teaspoon baking soda to a pot of eggs, as in our Perfect Boiled Eggs recipe.

What is a fun fact about deviled eggs? ›

If we rewind time, we find deviled eggs in ancient Rome, where boiled eggs flavored with spicy sauces were so commonly served as an appetizer that a Roman saying, “ab ovo usque ad mala,” meaning “from egg to apples,” referred to the expected bookends of a meal.

Find Out More ›

What to use instead of mustard in deviled eggs? ›

Ingredients

6 large eggs.
3 tablespoons mayonnaise.
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar.
2 dashes Tabasco or other vinegar-based hot sauce, optional.
kosher salt to taste.
pepper to taste.
1 tablespoon snipped fresh chives.
paprika for garnish.

Mar 29, 2023

Do deviled eggs taste good the next day? ›

As long as you store them in the fridge, you can eat refrigerated deviled eggs (or any cooked egg dish) within four days, according to the USDA, but you should aim to eat them within two days for optimal freshness. Once you take them out of the fridge, you should serve them within two hours.

See Details ›

Can you make deviled eggs for the next day? ›

You sure can! Though many people think that deviled eggs are best when they're freshly made, they're also great made a little bit ahead of time. To make deviled eggs ahead of time, all you have to do is meal prep all of the components. In other words, boil the eggs, remove the yolks, and prepare the filling.