Protein Egg Salad

This High Protein Egg Salad recipe is an easy make-ahead lunch recipe with 30 grams of protein per serving – that’s double the protein and half the calories of classic egg salad! It’s the perfect healthy recipe for meal prep the whole family will love!

 

Estimated reading time: 8 minutes

Protein is having a moment right now and rightly so! It’s great to see so many people prioritizing their health and thinking a little more about what they’re putting in their bodies and feeding their families. For those of us who cook at home almost every single day of the year, it’s not a huge stretch to increase our protein intake, and here at The Busy Baker we love to do that by modifying our favourite foods – like this high Protein Egg Salad recipe!

It’s one of our go-to meal prep lunch recipes (and we’ve even been known to enjoy if for breakfast from time to time!), and it’s as easy to make as it is delicious. And with double the protein (30 grams per serving!!) and about half the calories of regular egg salad, we KNOW you’ll love it as much as we do!

Egg salad is a classic spread or sandwich filling typically made from hard boiled eggs, chopped or mashed, and combined with salt, pepper, mayonnaise, mustard, and sometimes fresh herbs (like chives) and seasoning (like paprika or garlic powder).

This egg salad recipe is a creamy, high protein twist on the beloved classic egg salad, combining hard boiled eggs with our favourite secret ingredient – cottage cheese! Adding cottage cheese amps up the protein, giving you a nutrient dense dish that makes for a perfect make-ahead lunch, an awesome meal prep salad for busy days, or even a light dinner.

Egg salad is generally naturally high protein because of the eggs but our recipe adds even more protein by using cottage cheese in addition to the eggs, instead of adding mayonnaise. The cottage cheese adds a creaminess to the egg salad that’s similar to the creaminess mayonnaise would add, but cottage cheese contains far less fat and a lot more protein than mayonnaise does.

1. It’s PROTEIN PACKED: The eggs and cottage cheese are the hero ingredients that bring this recipe to a whopping 30g of protein per serving.
2. It’s QUICK AND EASY: You’ll only need 5 ingredients and about 15 minutes!
3. It’s MEAL PREP FRIENDLY: This egg salad keeps well in the fridge for 3-4 days and can be used for meal prep lunches.
4. It’s VERSATILE: Serve it on toast, our classic high protein bagels, in a wrap, or even with crackers. It works as a snack or for lunch in sandwiches or wraps.
5. It has NO MAYONNAISE: A lighter version of the classic egg salad, this recipe is made with no mayonnaise so it’s lower in fat and higher in protein!

Here’s a list of our favourite PRO tips and tricks for making this protein egg salad the best it can be!

Make sure you mash your eggs to be the same size as the cottage cheese curds. This ensures your salad will be well mixed and every bite will be the perfect.

This is a recipe that gets better as it sits in the fridge because the flavours have time to mix. You can enjoy it right away, but if you let it sit for at least 30 minutes in the fridge before serving it will be nice and flavourful, especially with your favourite pickles!

Don’t skip the salt, pepper, Dijon mustard, and any other seasonings you like (we sometimes add garlic & onion powder, sometimes thyme or dill, and even smoked paprika). Treat this recipe like a canvas and build your favourite flavour profiles.

Do you like smoother egg salad? Use whipped cottage cheese and mash the eggs finely. Looking for a chunkier egg salad? Don’t mash the eggs as much. You can adjust the texture to your preferences.

If your nutritional goals permit, use full fat cottage cheese for the creamiest egg salad possible. Low fat cottage cheese also works well, but as always fat adds flavour so go for a higher-fat cottage cheese if possible.

If you’re having trouble with this egg salad recipe, check out our troubleshooting ideas below:

Make sure you remove any excess moisture from the cottage cheese before you use it.

Add some extra salt, a splash of pickle juice, or even some sriracha.

Stir in a tablespoon of Greek yogurt and a splash of pickle juice.

If you’re after a creamier egg salad, separate your whites and yolks and mash the egg yolks thoroughly so they mix well with the cottage cheese for an even creamier egg salad mixture.

Here’s a list of the basic kitchen equipment you’ll need to make this homemade protein egg salad recipe (paid links):

• mixing bowls
• Silicone Spatula
• knife
• chopping board
• measuring cups and spoons
• medium pot
• Slotted spoon

Here’s everything you’ll need to make this homemade egg salad recipe (paid links):

• 12 hard boiled eggs
• 1 1/2 cups cottage cheese
• 1 tablespoon mustard
• 3 tablespoons chives
• Salt and pepper to taste

Looking to take this Protein Egg Salad recipe to the next level? Here’s a list of our favourite flavour variations!

1. FRESH & CRUNCHY: Stir in diced celery, red onion, or pickles.
2. SPICY: Add a dash of Sriracha or cayenne pepper.
3. HERBY: Add fresh herbs like chopped dill, parsley, and green onion.
4. TANGY: Add a dash of pickle juice.

Feel free to add a dash or two of paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, or any of your favourite seasonings to make this recipe your own.

We hope you love this easy egg salad recipe as much as we do! Let us know in the comments below, what’s your favourite easy high protein lunch? We’d love to know!

• Protein Bagels
• French Omelette
• Bruschetta Chicken Salad
• Protein Pancakes
• Chicken Salad
• Air Fryer Eggs
• Low Carb Italian Chopped Salad
• Protein Smoothie
• Egg Bites