Jammy eggs — boiled eggs with yolks that are thick but not dry — often star in Instagrammed bowls of ramen, rainbow salads and atop rustic toasts.

They are the texturally ideal egg: The whites are just set and not yet rubbery; the yolks are not quite runny, but nowhere near crumbly. Although they’re delicious simply split and salted, they’re near perfection when turned into egg salad.

Classic egg salad starts with hard-boiled eggs that require lots of mayonnaise to soften the chew of tough whites and mitigate the dryness of powdery yolks. This salad needs only a touch of mayonnaise to get the same effect — the jamminess of the yolks functions as mayonnaise, but with a deeper, eggier flavor.


I find that tearing the eggs by hand gives a jammy egg salad an unexpectedly luxurious texture — the craggy edges make for a salad with organic smoothness. Bits of celery add crunch, as do pops of mustard seed.

This salad feels both satisfying and light, making it ideal for warm-weather meals. You can squish it between tender bread for sandwiches or taco it into lettuce leaves.

A few basic ingredients add lots of flavor to this easy egg salad recipe. (Pascal Shirley / For The Times / Prop styling by Kate Parisian)

Jammy Egg Salad

View this recipe in our California Cookbook »


20 minutes. Serves 4 to 6.

4 large eggs

2 celery stalks, finely diced

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

2 teaspoons whole-grain Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons picked dill leaves, plus sprigs

⅛ teaspoon cayenne, plus more

Kosher salt

Sandwich bread and lettuce, for serving

Bread and butter pickle slices, for serving

1 Put the eggs in a small saucepan. Add enough cold water to cover by 1 inch. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then cover, remove from the heat and let stand for 6½ minutes. Meanwhile, fill a small bowl with ice and water. When the egg timer goes off, immediately drain the eggs and transfer them to the ice water.

2 When the eggs are cool enough to handle, peel and cut in half. Place the celery, mayonnaise, mustard, dill, cayenne, and a quarter teaspoon salt in a large bowl. Using your fingers, tear the egg halves into half-inch pieces into the bowl. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold everything together until evenly mixed. Taste and add more salt and cayenne, if desired.

3 Divide the egg salad among bread slices with torn lettuce for sandwiches or scoop into lettuce cups. Top with pickle slices and more dill to serve.


Make ahead: The eggs can be boiled, cooled completely, and refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days. The egg salad can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 day.