My husband calls me Queen of Lunches. I can’t wait until my theoretical kids are in school so I can regale them with fresh fruit slices, colorful veggie sticks, delectable dips, and savory sandwiches.
For the time being, I just make lunches for the two of us. My grandmother used to make egg salad sandwiches in pita bread triangles for parties. I started making them lately and Marc commented on how pitas make the perfect vehicle for egg salad. They are chewy and hearty, yet the egg salad doesn’t squish out the other end when you bite into them.
Being a designer, my husband has strong feelings about the design flaws of two pieces of bread putting inordinate pressure on the egg salad and ejecting it out the back. He even made a handy diagram to illustrate this very important point.
So, here is my recipe for a tasty, relatively mess free, portable sandwich.
“Recipe” serves 2 (best if all or at least most of your ingredients are organic, seasonal and local)
4 eggs
1-2 heaping Tbs. (soy or regular) mayo
6-8 tiny cornichon pickles diced
1 Tbs. chopped fresh herbs of choice (dill, chives, parsley, tarragon)
2 large multi grain or whole wheat pitas cut in half and toasted
salt and pepper to taste
First hard boil the eggs to your liking. I usually put them in a small pot with cold water on high heat, and once the water boils, turn them off and let them sit for 20 minutes in the hot water. Run the eggs under cold water to cool them off, and then peel them.
Into a roomy bowl, put eggs, mayo, pickles and herbs. Mash the eggs into the mayo with a fork until the eggs are a more even texture. Season with salt and pepper.
Fill the pitas with the egg salad and add any other veggies you want for color and texture (cucumbers, sun gold cherry tomatoes, lettuce, sprouts, avocado, pepperoncini). I like to round out the plate with fresh grapes and some roasted pistachios. Great for a party, kids lunches, or just hanging out.
16 thoughts on “Egg Salad in Whole Wheat Pitas”
Hehe. I chuckled at your husbands diagram. 🙂
WC – Glad ya liked the diagram.
who does your husband design for? and is that a target plate?
Eric – My husband is an industrial and graphic designer, and illustrator. His clients have been Porsche, Boeing, Mattel, and Mesa Boogie Amplifiers. You can check out his web site at: http://brownlowdesign.com/
Actually the plates are from Bed Bath and Beyond. They make an interesting though neutral back round for our photos.
Great diagram… I’d like to get one of those done for me trying to eat a kebab!
loved the diagram!
at our house, we get fussy if the eggs are TOO finely chopped. i have found that the perfect texture can be acheived by putting the hardboiled egg through an egg slicer gizmo once, then turning it 90 degrees and slicing it again. you get a sort of julienned arrangement, which of course falls apart between the white and yolk. it works for us!
I have long complained about this flaw with many an overstuffed sandwich–particularly my favorite, the turkey club. Yeah, that one toothpick is really gonna hold three layers of sandwich together, pal. I’ll have to give pitas a try!
Jonathan – Thanks! My husband is available for freelance…
jasoneats – Thanks, I’m glad to know the diagram sparked fires in the sandwich eating world. Yes, everyone has their preferences when it comes to egg salad. Some find it too dry, some find it too mayo-y, too finely chopped, too chunky…Oh the possibilities. I bet the egg slicer thing works out pretty well. For years, I would cut the eggs by hand with a knife, and found it tedious. One day I just mashed them with a fork and liked the uneven texture. It’s a good thing there are no hard and fast rules.
Jim – It’s true, the toothpick is no match to a big, many tiered sandwich. Pitas can be very versatile that way.
You do make the best egg salad I have ever had!
This article literally made my mouth water. I will have to give this recipe a try!
Great artwork by Marc as well!
Thanks EJ! In my opinion, the fresh herbs and cornichons really make it. You can add a little mustard if you are so inclined or a little celery is also good. Yay egg salad!
How genius! And I’m not gonna lie, I like the pita pocket better! Your pictures are gorgeous, and awesome illustration!
Thanks Hillary! I’m glad you are enjoying the pictures and my husband’s illustration. I’m trying to get him to do a few more for some ideas I have.
Brilliant diagram!
Thanks Su-Lin! It’s fun and something universal.
That looks wonderful! And I love the diagram as well. Do the pitas ever get soggy if you pack the lunch in the morning and take it with you to work? I’ve always hated the white bread getting a little too moist. I will definitely try this recipe! Thanks!
Jeanne – Thanks so much for stopping by. I haven’t packed a lunch with this combo recently, but my first thought, is that if you toasted the pita in the morning, that would help. Also, if you just brought all the ingredients for the sandwich (pita, pre-made egg salad, lettuce, etc.) in little containers, you could just assemble everything when you wanted to eat it. That way there is no risk of soggy bread or wilted greens. Just a thought. Let me know what you do, and how it works out. 🙂