Egg Salad has always been one of those things that has just been a bit… unappetizing. I’ve never had a bad egg salad when I’ve had it, but I would never seek it out. Something about hard-boiled eggs swimming in mayonnaise just seems like it could toe the line between good and being gross a little too closely. It’s just on the borderline of gross. And it’s certainly not glamorous. But Molly and I recently got lunch from the market at South Lyndale Liquors, and after my dad raved about their egg salad sandwich, I decided I needed to try it.
And my dad was right to rave about it! It really redefined what an egg salad sandwich can be. It had a bit of a kick, was well-balanced with mayo, egg, and other toppings. The focaccia of course didn’t hurt. I immediately decided I wanted to try and recreate it.
The menu just listed “Calabrian aioli, piperade, and lettuce,” and that is truly all the components that I could parse out. So I took to the internet to do some research.
Calabrian aioli is just a reference to Calabrian peppers, which explained the kick of spiciness it had. Calabrian peppers are a bit hard to find, but I ordered these off of Amazon, and then also found this spread at Target. If you want to make this, you can decide what lengths you’re willing to go to – both would work in this recipe. It’s flexible!
Piperade is a sort of stew with peppers, onions, and tomatoes, and it can be prepared a few different ways. In my research, I found that NYT Cooking says to include piment d’Espelette, and that’s yet another fancy spice you probably have to go out of your way to acquire. Which I did. BUT, Simple French cooking says you only need herbes de Provence and paprika, both of which you probably either already have, or can get at Target. So again, you can decide how much you want to commit to this recipe. The other important bit for this piperade is to cut your vegetables thinly. I cut them too large the first time, and they just did not fit on the sandwich, and it wasn’t really spreadable. I cut them down into diced-sized bits after I’d prepared the piperade with this little machine I impulse bought a while ago, and it was much easier to spoon and spread this on some bread.
The lettuce they used was a full leaf, like you get on a burger. I would have included this, but buying lettuce is one of the hardest things to do when you’re grocery shopping for a single person – that’s not the kind of lettuce I would use for a salad, and I was making enough for about 4 of these sandwiches, over the course of a few days. So I left it off. But I’m including it in the recipe, because it did add a nice texture to their sandwich.
And if you couldn’t tell from how difficult it is to get good photos of this… these sandwiches are messy. Even the one you get from the store is messy, despite all the parchment paper wrapping. I think there’s just no way getting around that with an egg salad sandwich, particularly when the bread you’re using is focaccia. It’s just going to slide around a bit. But it’s worth it. Just give into the messiness. Wipe your face after. Who cares. It’s delicious.
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PinIngredients
- Homemade or store-bought focaccia
- Egg Salad with Calabrian aioli (recipe below)
- Piperade (recipe below)
- lettuce (optional)
Instructions
If making from scratch, bake your focaccia.
Prepare your egg salad and piperade. This can be done a day in advance, or day of. They also keep and can be served cold, so you can be having these for a few days.
When ready to assemble, cut your focaccia in half. Spread with a generous amount of piperade. Add lettuce, if using, and then top with egg salad. Press down gently with the other half off your focaccia, cut into desired size, and serve!
Ingredients
1/2 cup high quality mayonnaise best quality
1–2 tablespoons of crushed Calabrian peppers, depending on how spicy you want it (you can also substitute this Calabrian chile spread from Target)
1 clove garlic pressed or minced
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp. finely chopped parsley
salt + pepper to taste
8 large eggs
¼ cup chopped green onion (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Hard boil your eggs, beyond soft boiled. Put into ice bath. Peel and chop your eggs, and then allow them to cool to room temperature.
Add mayonnaise, crushed peppers, garlic, and lemon juice to a bowl and whisk to thoroughly combine. Season with salt and pepper to your taste.
When ready to put everything together, chop your green onion if using, and put into a bowl with the eggs. Add all of the Calabrian Aioli, and mix everything together. Use immediately!
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour. You can prepare this in advance to use when you’re ready, or get started on the rest of it now.
Notes
Adapted from A Flavor Journal and All Recipes
Ingredients
¼ cup olive oil
1 red bell pepper sliced into thin strips, or diced
1 green bell pepper sliced into thin strips, or diced
1 medium yellow onion sliced into thin strips, or diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
3 medium tomatoes chopped and peeled if desired (or, 15 oz canned and diced)
1 tablespoon piment d’Espelette (or use paprika as a substitute)
2 tsp herbes de Provence
Salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
Heat the oil in a large pan to medium heat. Add the peppers and onion with a bit of salt to taste. Cook for 5 minutes to soften, stirring a bit.
Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute, or until the garlic becomes fragrant.
Add the tomatoes (if using canned, scoop out the tomato and don’t include all of the juice/liquid from the can), piment d’Espelette, herbs de Provence, and salt and pepper to taste.
Stir, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the peppers soften up to your preference. Simmer longer for a “saucier” sauce.
This can be kept in the fridge for a few days.
Notes
Adapted from Simple French Cooking and Chili Pepper Madness