Avocado Egg Salad Recipe

If at first blush "avocado egg salad" doesn't sound that appealing to you, you're not alone. In fact, chef and recipe developer Stephanie Rapone of Pantry to Plate wasn't sold on this dish when she first heard about, thinking it would be one she hardly cared for. But intrepid as ever, she made a batch anyway. And it's well she did, because as she told Tasting Table, "The first time I made it I was like: 'Oh, wow, it's really good!'" Which is how you'll feel too, when you sink your teeth into this tasty, filling, and energizing dish, which Rapone calls a "great dose of protein" that's perfect for breakfast, but welcome "any time of day."

Beyond the flexibility of when you decide to indulge, how you enjoy your avocado egg salad is up to you, too. It's great on toast, as the filler for a sandwich, in lettuce wraps, or in "any kind of wrap," Rapone says. Or, just eat the stuff as-is, enjoying bite after bite packed with protein, healthy fats, and lots of flavor.

To make a great, 4-serving batch of avocado egg salad, you'll need 4 hard-boiled eggs, 2 smallish ripe avocados, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ¼ red onion, the juice from ½ lemon, a couple tablespoons mayonnaise, 1-2 scallions, and a sprig of fresh dill.

"One of the things I love is that it's a very flexible recipe," Rapone says, adding: "You can taste it and add more mayo, add mustard, take something out — do what suits your palate."

First, chop the hard boiled eggs and add them to a medium bowl. 

Next, cut the avocados in half and pop out the pits, then remove the peels and dice the avocado. Add these pieces to the bowl with the eggs, then add the salt and stir gently with a spoon to combine these ingredients.

Then, finely mince the red onion and it add to a separate, small bowl. Juice half the lemon and add the juice to the onions, then add the mayonnaise to the onions and lemon juice. Stir well to combine.

Rinse and finely chop the scallions and dill, measuring out about a tablespoon of each before adding them to the onion and mayonnaise mixture.

Finally, add the onion and mayonnaise mixture to the eggs and avocado and stir until well-combined. That's it! Now, serve the avocado egg salad on your favorite bread or in large lettuce leaves.

While each batch is best eaten fresh, you can save some for a day if stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Rapone says, "The flavor is still good on the second day, but the avocados do start to brown a bit by then. The lemon juice helps slow down the browning."

If you're not sure how to make the "perfect" hard-boiled egg, no worries. Remember, perfection is subjective when it comes to hard-boiled eggs. Some like them with soft yolks, others like them cooked to where the yolks are nearly dry. For a good balance, though, follow these steps:

1. Remove the eggs from the fridge 20-30 minutes before you'll cook them.
2. Ease the eggs into steadily simmering water so they don't crack as the temperate change hits them.
3. Let the eggs cook, submerged fully in simmering water, for 9 minutes.
4. Quickly chill the eggs with an ice bath or cool running water.

That's it — they're ready to be enjoyed.