There are deviled eggs, and then there are these Million Dollar Deviled Eggs. This is my favorite, best recipe, and it includes a secret ingredient that notches up the filling to the next level. Top everything off with paprika and bacon (if you feel so inclined) and enjoy!
The Best Deviled Egg Recipe
Let’s start the week off with a classic. While Monday morning might have you reaching for a peach bellini kind of classic, I have something slightly different for you today: the best deviled egg recipe that I have in my repertoire.
It’s also a little different from the classic deviled egg recipe that you might have stowed away, scribbled on a scrap of paper in the back of your kitchen cabinet, and that’s largely due to my addiction to secret ingredients.
That’s right, there’s a secret ingredient in these deviled eggs. Can you spy it below?
What Ingredients Do I Need for Deviled Eggs?
- Hard Boiled Eggs
- Mayo
- Butter. This is it, the secret ingredient! We’re going to talk a little bit more about why we add butter below, but this is what makes these “Million Dollar” Deviled Eggs.
- Mustard (you’ll need yellow and dijon mustard)
- Sweet pickle juice
- Sugar (just a pinch!)
- Salt & pepper
- Tabasco sauce (optional, just a dash of heat is a great addition, though!)
- Optional toppings: paprika, sweet pickle slices, crumbled bacon.
The Secret Ingredient
Do you see it? Right there ⬆️⬆️, at 11 o’clock. That’s one tablespoon of pure, delicious, sweet cream butter.
Have you ever made deviled eggs with butter before? It’s a sneaky secret ingredient, nearly imperceptible except that the filling is just a touch creamier, just a tad more velvety, there’s just something about it that you probably won’t quite be able to put your finger on…
Something really, really good, but not overpowering. Just a little bit extra without being overwhelming, subtle, but so important.
In addition to preferring my deviled eggs with a spoonful of butter, I also prefer them to be slightly on the sweet side of things. To this end I’ve added a splash of sweet pickle juice and a sprinkling of sugar.
I’m told sweeter deviled eggs are a southern thing (while sweeter cornbread is a northern thing, go figure), but I happen to live just a notch above the Mason Dixon Line and can vouch for their deliciousness here, too.
I topped off about half of these eggs with bacon (mostly for my Zach’s benefit, he prefers deviled eggs with bacon) and cross-sections of sweet pickles, and all of them got a sprinkle of Paprika.
How Far In Advance Can I Make Deviled Eggs?
For best results, you should not assemble your deviled eggs more than a day in advance. If you’d like to make them two days in advance you can boil, cut, and remove the yolks from the whites. Make your filling and then store the eggs and the prepared filling in separate airtight containers in the refrigerator. When you’re ready to serve the eggs, give the filling a quick stir and everything can be quickly assembled.
Deviled Eggs should always be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container.
Let me know what you think!
And if you happen to have some really amazing tricks for peeling fresh eggs, I want to hear them! My parents have chickens so I’m lucky to have a constant flow of farm-fresh eggs BUT those eggs cling to their shells like they were laid by hens with superglue diets. We’ve tried the baking soda trick, the ice bath trick, the spoon trick… none of it has worked here! I’ve heard great things about using an Instant Pot, though, and am considering getting one solely for this purpose!
Other Recipes You Might Like:
- Broccoli Salad
- Macaroni Salad
- Ramen Noodle Salad
- Corn Salad
- Pulled Chicken
- If you appreciate secret ingredients, check out my “Worst” Chocolate Chip Cookies!
Million Dollar Deviled Eggs
Ingredients
- 12 large eggs
- ¼ cup (55 g) mayo
- 1 Tablespoon butter softened to room temperature
- 2 teaspoons yellow mustard
- 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons sweet gherkin pickle juice
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon pepper
- dash Tabasco sauce optional
- paprika for sprinkling
- bacon pieces optional
Instructions
How To Hard Boil Eggs
- Place eggs in a large saucepan and cover with water.12 large eggs
- Transfer to stovetop over high heat until water begins to boil.
- Boil for one minute, cover with lid, and remove from heat. Allow to sit for 17 minutes and then drain and transfer to an ice bath.
- Peel eggs and set aside.
How To Make Deviled Eggs
- Slice eggs in half lengthwise.
- Remove yolks and transfer to a medium-sized bowl.
- Add mayo, butter, mustards, pickle juice, sugar, salt, pepper, and Tabasco sauce. Use a fork to mash well.¼ cup (55 g) mayo, 1 Tablespoon butter, 2 teaspoons yellow mustard, 2 teaspoons dijon mustard, 2 teaspoons sweet gherkin pickle juice, 1 teaspoon sugar, ⅛ teaspoon salt, ⅛ teaspoon pepper, dash Tabasco sauce
- Spoon filling into each egg white. Sprinkle with paprika and bacon (if using) and serve.paprika, bacon pieces
- If desired, top with a small slice of sweet gherkin pickle, as seen in pictures.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
This Million Dollar Deviled Egg recipe was originally published 07/24/2017. Recipe remains the same but post has been updated as of 05/08/2019.
Megan
Did anyone else have trouble with the consistency of the filling. It’s not very creamy. It’s sort of like tomato paste. I tried adding a little more Mayo and it didn’t help.
Old Grey Mare
Try crumbling up the cooked egg yolks as much as you can before adding the other ingredients, maybe even forcing through a sieve or something. Then smoosh them with the rest of the ingredients. (Also, make sure they are fully hard-boiled. For eating a boiled egg as is, I like them still glossy in the center, but that part will not crumble or mash as well as the “dry” centers of a truly hard-boiled egg will.)
JBean
Sticky shells??? Nope…cook your eggs in a steamer rather than boil…the shells won’t stick ever!!
Dana
What kind of butter are you using? Salted or unsalted, is there a name brand? Thanks.
Sam
Hi Dana! Since it’s only a tablespoon you can use whatever butter you have on hand. 🙂
Kiwi Rose
Looks delicious – will try.
Chris
I have found that newer eggs are harder to peel than ones that have been in the fridge for a week or so . But all the ideas are wonderful. I use the emiril lagasse pressure cooker air fryer ( up to 12 eggs ) pressure cook for 8 minutes on the chicken setting. Takes about 8 minutes to build the pressure . Then , they come out and I rinse them in cold water and crack away !
Kim
In InstantPot I only cook for 3 minutes then wait 3 minutes for depressurization then ice for 3 minutes. Perfect eggs every time and peels so easy!!!
Craig
I feel like I am an instapot evangelist over this one. I would keep my instapot even if the only thing it did was boil eggs. something about the pressure cooking makes them practically jump out of their shells!
Sheila cantrell
This is by far the best eggs ever. Thank you so much for recipe. Can’t wait to surprise my family today on Thanksgiving and for them to ask hey what’s different..
Chris
I made these today and they were very good! Who knew about the butter 🤣. I added a little celery seed and topped each off with a candied pecan on some and sugar bacon on some others. Looking forward to making them for Thanksgiving this week to take to my sons!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Sounds divine, Chris! We hope they’re a hit this week too 😊
Denise Price
You asked for tricks to peal eggs.
Works every time: place egg in a drinking glass, cover with your palm, shake egg around in the glass about 30 seconds, the shell will fall off!! 😊
Beth Coleman
When is this done? When the eggs are still hot or after they’ve cooled?
Old Grey Mare
I cannot swear I am correct as I have not tried the “glass” method, but I do know that rolling a boiled egg around with the palm to crush the shell helps, but doesn’t guarantee ease of peeling and I know that others have posted here that the hotter the egg still is, the easier it is to peel, so I am thinking that you put it in the glass still pretty hot and the biggest plus to this method is that you CAN do it with a still hot egg because you don’t have to touch it. However, that would mean NOT having used an immediate ice bath which is also recommended to do. I hope by now you have experimented and can reply which approach to the “glass” method works best.
Reyna V
I made these last year for thanksgiving and my family and friends absolutely loved them! Thank you for this recipe.
Steve
I highly recommended trying to cook your eggs in an air fryer, I’ve foind they cook absolutely perfect and peel way easier than other methods I’ve tried.
Kimber
How long in air fryer?
Steve
I do extra large eggs for 17 minutes, they come put absolutely perfect 6 at a time on one side of my dual air fryer. Not sure how many fit in a larger single basket fryer, maybe 8 to 12? Large eggs would be 15 to 16 minutes and make sure to have them spaced aparf.
Michelle
Just two quick comments. 1- I found over the yrs that putting cold water in pot, place eggs and then heat to boiling. As soon as boiling starts, turn the heat off and allow the eggs to cook until the water cools. They always make the eggs more tender. I have tried many trick but the one that alwasy seems to work is use a lot of plain table salt in the water when boiling eggs. Dries out the shells enuf so they pull away from the cooked egg. If u boil them hard they r not as tender as the first suggestion but with the salt and slow cool method I find them perfect !
Kim
Have you tried instant pot? They peel like butter!!!
Reed
Try Miracle Whip and malt vinegar instead of the sugar and gherkin juice…
Touch of milk and mix w hand mixer till creamy…
Suzanne Croft
Steaming eggs is the easiest way to get easy to peel eggs. Remove eggs from fridge and bring them to room temperature, about 30 minutes. I use my metal steaming basket in a lidded saucepan or lidded frying pan. Add water to below the basket. Add eggs, bring water to boil. Cover and cook 12 to 14 minutes. Move eggs to cold water with ice cubes for 10 minutes. Peel eggs immediately.
Cathy
Boil eggs when done put them in ice water until cold, The egg shrinks making it easy to remove the shell.
Mariester
This is the absolute most easiest way to peel an egg, my life has changed since I learned this. I don’t know if somebody else has already posted it I didn’t have time to read all the comments but get a little orange juice glass or those little cocktail glasses whatever just a small little glass put the egg in there put your hand over the top and shake it shake it shake it shake it!! The shell basically will fall right off!!! You can peel a dozen eggs in under five minutes that way. Just don’t forget to put your hand over the top of the glass or you’ll throw your egg lol! It has been a life changer!!!
Shera
Great Recipe. I have what I think is the best way to cook and peel eggs, Get your pot and eggs. On each egg that you are going to put in the pot you want to find the round end of the egg (not the pointy one) Then yo want to gently tap the round end on the counter to make a small crack. Put the eggs in the pan and fill with cold water. Put on the stove on med/high. Bring to a boil. Once boiling cover and turn off the heat, leaving the eggs on the hot burner. Leave for 12 min. Then out the eggs in ice bath or cold water for 5 mins and peel. shells come off like butter and the eggs are perfectly cooked (No gray around the yoke. ) 🙂
Kathy Hicks
A chicken farmer in Illinois told me to boil the eggs, drain them and let them cool down (without the ice bath or rinsing in cold water). Roll them to crack the shell, and peel as soon as they are warm enough to handle. Works every time for me even with fresh eggs.
Barbara Hurford
A friend taught me to put my eggs in a plastic container with a tight fitting lid and shake them up. I don’t shake them up aggressively. It works everytime and the eggs are still intact when you open the lid.
Mareed.
Been making deviled eggs for years and tried your recipe. It was delicious!! LOVED the idea of adding melted butter. Fabulous!!