Egg Salad with Olives
One of my all-time favorites in the Egg Salad recipe realm is Egg Salad with Olives. Served as a sandwich or cracker spread, atop a pile of leafy salad greens, or eaten straight from the bowl, egg salad with olives is about as Southern as you can get.
Back when the movie, The Help, came out, one of the characters Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan was having lunch at the local lunch counter in Jackson, Mississippi. When she entered the restaurant, one of the waiters asked her if she wanted her usual of Egg and Olive Salad. That movie, set in 1963 Jackson, illustrates how long it’s been a favorite around these parts.
Egg Salad, in all its forms, may not be the most popular of sandwich spreads in many places, but in the South it’s a staple. Some contain just egg, mayonnaise and mustard; some add onion, or celery, or pickle relish. On occasion, you’ll see capers or bell pepper in egg salad. While there are endless variations, one thing is certain: Everyone has their beloved version.
I consider egg salad with olives to be a variant, since it’s not the version I grew up eating. But I’ll say that I make it much more often than “standard” egg salad. I just love the briny flavor brought by the olives. Also, since I used pimento-stuffed green olives, the subtle sweetness of the pimento helps to offset the saltiness of the olives, as well as adding splashes of gorgeous red color to the salad.
Eggs, olives, onion, celery, mayonnaise and Dijon mustard are the ingredients. Because of the olives, no additional salt is necessary; I do add a titch of ground black pepper, though.
I hope you’ll give this a try. Egg salad is loaded with protein and makes for an excellent Meatless Monday meal.
P~
- 6 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and smashed
- ½ cup green pimento-stuffed green olives, diced
- ½ cup diced celery
- 2 tablespoons minced red onion
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
- ground black pepper, to taste
- Combine all of the ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and stir to combine.
- Chill before serving.
