How to Make Healthy Egg Salad with No Mayonnaise

We put in a lot of effort to reduce the number of calories in all of our recipes while improving their flavors. However, making an egg salad sandwich that is healthy can be challenging since mayonnaise and eggs are key ingredients. Amy and I started experimenting with the recipe to reduce the calorie count while maintaining the deliciousness of the "traditional" egg salad.

Without a doubt, the first priority is to keep the eggs. After that, we focused on finding a suitable replacement for mayonnaise. Surprisingly, we came up with a fantastic substitute that is even better than mayonnaise. I never thought it would be possible, but it really is! We now use non-fat sour cream with lemon whenever we need mayonnaise in dishes like tuna salad, chicken salad, and so on.

 Enjoying Egg Salad on a Diet

When Amy and Josh were in school, I used to make egg salad for their lunches at least once a week. It was a super simple, inexpensive meal that they absolutely loved! In fact, they often snacked on it with some saltine crackers after a long day of studying.   Amy's go-to snack was cottage cheese with salt and pepper, while Josh couldn't get enough of mustard sardines. Yes, you read that right - mustard sardines! But hey, they turned out to be pretty cool adults despite their quirky tastes. So, let's get back to making that delicious egg salad!.....

Better than Mayonnaise

We absolutely adore full-fat mayonnaise (who doesn't, right?), and before we started our diets, we used to slather it on almost all of our sandwiches. We tried switching to Miracle Whip, which was good, but it still contained what Amy calls "wasted calories" - those calories that you end up consuming but don't really contribute to the dish's flavor. 

So, after trying out several different ideas, including one of Amy's that involved adding wine (which didn't work at all!), what she actually wanted was just a glass of wine (silly girl). But I don't want to tell her that wine is all wasted calories (she still thinks wine should count as her daily fruit requirement). Finally, after all the experimentation, we came up with a solution that cuts down on calories while adding tons of flavor. 

There are many homemade mayonnaise recipes out there, but most of them don't reduce the calorie content. We also use this mixture in other salads, like Chicken and Tuna Salad. And if you want, you can substitute the sour cream with plain Greek yogurt. The recipes are:

1. ½ Cup Fat-free Sour Cream
2. 2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
3. Tablespoon French mustard

Jazz Up the Egg Salad

I love a classic egg salad, but sometimes I feel like adding a couple of teaspoons of dill, depending on my mood and the time of year. Fresh dill gives the egg salad a light flavor. Amy, on the other hand, loves curry powder, which is also good, but I think it makes for more of a "winter egg salad" sandwich. I know I'm peculiar. Since I like my food spicy, I sometimes sprinkle cayenne pepper or add slices of fresh jalapeno on top of the egg salad. It adds a nice kick and slight smokiness to the salad. Another great combination is adding bacon bits and sweet red peppers, which add a nice crunch to the salad.

I know it would cut the calories to use the egg whites.  But I can't make an egg white salad!   I feel you should not cut out the key point of the recipe.  The key to the perfect egg salad is the flavor, and that can only be achieved by using the entire egg.  So, if you cut the yolk out, why even bother having egg salad!!   It would be like having a deviled egg without the yolk filling - the white would be an empty edible “bowl” with a spoonful of mayo in the middle!!. Soooooo, I’m gonna use the entire egg to make a delicious and flavorful egg salad.

The Foundation is in The Hard Boiled Eggs

Making the perfect hard-boiled eggs is the most important step in creating a delicious egg salad sandwich. While there are many ways to hard-boil eggs, my mother and grandmother used a method that always delivers the perfect egg.

Here are the steps:

1. Place the eggs in a pan.
2. Cover the eggs with cold water, ensuring there is about ½ inch of water above the top of the eggs.
3. Place the pan on the cooktop and bring the water to a boil.
4. Boil the eggs for 7 ½ minutes and set a timer to ensure accuracy.
5. Remove the pan from the heat and pour off the water.
6. Cover the eggs with cold water.
7. Crack the eggshells and peel them.

By following these steps, you'll be able to make the perfect hard-boiled eggs every time for your egg salad sandwich.

Other Salad recipes

For another low-fat salad recipe. Check out our Chicken Salad and Tuna Salad.

Here are a few other recipes you might like:

• Best Potato Salads - These are some of my Grandmothers recipes that we have reimagined.
• Tuna Pasta Salad - This Pasta Salad re-imagines the classic recipe and cuts a ton of calories while keeping the same flavor everyone knows and loves.
• Air Fryer Tuna Melt - Tuna Melt is a great way to enjoy a classic treat. Easy to make and really fun to eat. Lower in calories and full of flavor
• Tuna Cakes - Air Fryer Tuna Cakes are packed with flavor and are easy to make. Don't have an air fryer? Just pan fry for a fast dinner or appetizer.