Deviled Eggs

Deviled eggs are my favorite party food and the perfect recipe to dedicate to my friend Camilla. At parties, I often eat too much random junk food and end up feeling gross. These eggs are a great antidote: festive and delicious without the empty calories. Although they’re a little fussy, they aren’t actually difficult to make. Here’s the formula: Make a basic deviled egg and add one of the 8 flavors (or create your own!).

  • 12 eggs
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 2 scallions, finely chopped (optional)
  • dash of paprika (optional)

Basic Deviled Eggs

Makes 24 half eggs

  1. Place a layer of eggs at the bottom of a pot that is large enough to fit them all with a bit of wiggle room. If you can’t fit all your eggs, don’t stack them—they might crack. Hard-boil them in batches instead.
  2. Cover the eggs with cold water. Place the pot over medium heat and bring to a boil. As soon as the water is boiling, turn off the heat and cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid. Set a timer for 10 minutes.
  3. When the timer goes off, carefully pour out the hot water and cover the eggs with very cold water. The cold water stops the cooking process so that you don’t end up with that slightly icky blue-green skin around your yolk.
  4. Peel the eggs. Everyone has his or her own technique, but I like to gently roll each egg across the counter to crack the shell. Roll the egg around until it looks like a cracked desert landscape, then peel it starting from the bottom (where the air pocket is). Once peeled, rinse the egg and set it aside. Repeat until you have peeled all the eggs.
  5. Slice each egg in half lengthwise. Pop the yolks out and put them in a medium-size bowl. Don’t worry if you leave a little yolk behind. Set the whites aside on a plate.
  6. Sprinkle the yolks with salt and pepper, then add the other ingredients of your choice to the bowl. Mash with a fork until you have a relatively smooth paste.
  7. Spoon the yolk mixture back into each egg. Pile the filling high! Alternatively, scoop the filling into a plastic sandwich bag. Cut off the corner of the sandwich bag and squeeze the yolk mixture into the whites.
  8. Sprinkle with the scallions and some paprika for color, if you have it.

Classic

  • 2 tablespoons mustard
  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons water, pickle brine, or lemon juice

Chile and Lime

  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons lime juice
  • 1 jalapeño pepper, finely chopped (remove seeds for less heat)

Ramen-Inspired

  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
  • chili sauce, to taste

Curried

  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 4 teaspoons curry powder, or 1 teaspoon each of turmeric, cayenne, coriander, and cumin

Tomato

  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 1/4cup finely chopped fresh or canned tomatoes or Best Tomato Sauce (page 127)

Chile and Cheese

  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons chopped green chiles
  • 2 tablespoons grated cheese

Chorizo

  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons cooked, minced fresh chorizo
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • Feta and Dill
  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons crumbled feta
  • 1 tablespoon chopped dill

Excerpted from Good and Cheap: Eat Well on $4/Day by Leanne Brown (Workman Publishing). Copyright © 2015. Photographs by Leanne Brown and Dan Lazin.