Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Medium saucepan
• •Bowl of ice water for cooling eggs
• •Large mixing bowl
• •Broad spoon or spatula for folding

Instructions

1. 1

   Cook the eggs properly

   Place the eggs in a single layer in a pot and cover with cold water by about two centimeters. Set the pot over high heat and bring to a rolling boil. The moment the water boils, remove the pot from the heat, cover it, and let the eggs sit for exactly eleven minutes. Not nine, not fourteen. Eleven gives you a yolk that's fully set but still faintly golden in the center, not chalky and gray-green. A dry, overcooked yolk will make your whole salad taste sulphurous.

   Use eggs that are at least five days old. Very fresh eggs are nearly impossible to peel cleanly, and you'll tear the whites to shreds. Save your freshest eggs for Nockerln or Palatschinken.
2. 2

   Cool and peel

   Transfer the eggs straight into a bowl of ice water. Let them sit for at least ten minutes. The cold shock stops the cooking dead and makes the shells release without a fight. Peel them under gently running water, starting from the air pocket at the wider end. Pat the peeled eggs dry with a clean kitchen towel.

3. 3

   Prepare the dressing

   In a large mixing bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, yogurt, mustard, and vinegar until smooth. The yogurt lightens the dressing and gives it a clean tang that keeps the salad from feeling heavy. Austrian Eiersalat is not the thick, claggy egg salad you might know from deli counters. It should feel fresh, almost bright. Taste the dressing and adjust the salt. Kremser Senf is milder than Dijon, so if that's what you're using, add a little more.

   Estragonsenf (tarragon mustard) is a beautiful option here. The anise note of tarragon has a natural affinity for eggs, and it's a very Austrian pairing. Look for it in specialty shops or make your own by steeping fresh tarragon in mild mustard.
4. 4

   Cut the eggs

   Cut the eggs in half, then into rough chunks, about one to two centimeters. You want pieces large enough that you can see and taste distinct pieces of egg, not a mush. A few smaller crumbles from the yolk are fine. They'll dissolve into the dressing and enrich it. This is a salad where the main ingredient should be visible and recognizable on the plate.

5. 5

   Add crunch and freshness

   Dice the Essiggurkerl (sour gherkins) finely. Peel and dice the apple to roughly the same size. The gherkins bring salt and vinegar. The apple brings sweetness and a clean snap. Together they keep the salad from becoming one-note. Fold the gherkins, apple, and most of the chives into the dressing, reserving a tablespoon of chives for the top.

   Use proper Essiggurkerl, the small sour pickled cucumbers, not sweet gherkins and not dill pickles. Austrian pickles are preserved in a vinegar brine with mustard seed and dill, and the sourness is what the salad needs. Cornichons are the closest substitute if you can't find them.
6. 6

   Fold and rest

   Add the egg pieces to the bowl and fold everything together gently with a broad spoon or spatula. Don't stir it. You're folding, not mashing. The eggs should be coated but still holding their shape. Cover the bowl and let the salad rest in the fridge for at least thirty minutes. The flavors need time to get acquainted. An hour is better. The dressing will settle into the eggs and everything will taste more like one dish and less like ingredients that just met.

7. 7

   Serve at Jause

   Spoon the Eiersalat into a bowl or onto a plate. Scatter the reserved chives across the top and dust with a pinch of sweet paprika for color. Serve cool, not ice-cold. Pull it from the fridge ten minutes before serving so the flavors open up. Put good bread alongside: a crusty Bauernbrot or a Kornspitz if you can find one. This is Jause food. It belongs on a board with bread, maybe some radishes, maybe some sliced ham. Mahlzeit!

Chef Tips

• •White pepper, not black. This is a pale, elegant salad and black pepper specks look like something went wrong. White pepper also has a sharper, more direct heat that works better with eggs. Gretel always said black pepper in Eiersalat is how you spot someone who hasn't been taught properly.
• •The apple must be tart. A sweet apple like Fuji or Gala will make the whole salad taste muddled. You want Boskop, Granny Smith, or any firm cooking apple that pushes back against the richness of the egg and mayonnaise.
• •If you're serving this at Easter, make it the morning of and let it sit in the fridge until the afternoon Jause. The salad needs that resting time, and the flavors at four hours are noticeably better than at one. Don't dress it with extra chives until you're ready to serve.
• •Spread it generously onto dark Bauernbrot for open-faced sandwiches. The bread should be sturdy enough to hold the salad without going soggy. A Kornspitz, split and toasted lightly, is also beautiful.

Advance Preparation

• •Eiersalat improves with time. Make it at least one hour ahead, and up to 24 hours. The flavors meld and the dressing settles into the egg pieces.
• •If making a day ahead, hold back the apple and fold it in two hours before serving. It stays crisp enough overnight, but adding it later keeps the texture brighter.
• •Hard-boiled eggs can be cooked and peeled up to two days ahead, stored in a covered container in the fridge.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 170g)