Cottage cheese Egg Salad

This creamy cottage cheese egg salad is an elevated take on the classic egg salad. Featuring cottage cheese for added protein and as a substitute for mayo, it's creamy, tangy, and crunchy. Enjoy it as a sandwich, wrap, salad, dip, spread, or simply on its own.

If you have leftover cottage cheese try this: egg and cottage cheese flatbread recipe this cottage cheese pizza with 2 ingredients and this cottage cheese taco dip.

I love eggs and I am always trying to find fun ways to incorporate them in my diet for their high protein content and other nutrition benefits. This lusciously creamy and fresh salad is a great answer to the variety while keeping up with my daily protein intake.

Jump to:

• Why I love this recipe
• Ingredients needed
• How to make cottage cheese egg salad
• Hanaa's tips
• Variations
• Storage instructions
• Frequently asked questions
• Recipe card

Why I love this recipe

Satiating: It's a salad that can be eaten on its own with a slice of sourdough or your favorite toast that will keep you fuller for longer.

High protein: With 4 eggs providing 24 grams of protein plus the cottage cheese, you won’t have to worry about how to boost your intake—it's all sorted for you.

Meal prep-friendly: you can double the batch and have more of it the next day or the day after.

Fun and easy: It's your usual eggs but with a different flavor profile. It comes together so quickly especially if you have hard-boiled eggs ready.

Ingredients needed

Eggs: the main ingredient in this recipe. This recipe calls for whole large hard-boiled eggs. You can use the egg whites only. I like to pick the highest quality I can get my hands on. Pasture-raised being the best.

Cottage cheese: this recipe is mayonnaise-free thanks to the unflavored full-fat cottage cheese. I use small curds if I don't want to whip it. If you have the time and energy or if you're not a fan of the texture you can blend it. It can be replaced it with Greek yogurt or sour cream.

Dijon mustard: It has a sharp flavor that balances the richness of the eggs and complements the tanginess of the cottage cheese. You can use yellow mustard or stone-ground mustard instead.

Chives: They add a fresh, mild onion flavor that goes well with the creaminess of the eggs. They also provide a pop of color.

Dill: It is a non-negotiable in this recipe. But if you don't have it you can replace it with Italian flat-leaf parsley.

Capers: They bring a briny, tangy flavor to this cottage cheese egg salad. They also provide a pleasant, slightly crunchy texture. you can replace them with finely diced pickles.

Red onion: a staple egg salad ingredient is red onions they have a crisp texture and a mild, slightly sweet yet sharp flavor. It provides a bit of crunch and a pop of color. You can replace them with sweet onions or scallions.

Lemon juice: I use fresh lemon juice for a touch of tanginess. You can replace it with white vinegar or apple cider vinegar. You can add lemon zest if using fresh lemon fore extra flavor.

Salt: To taste.

Ground black pepper: To taste.

How to make cottage cheese egg salad

Enjoy straight away or refrigerate.

Hanaa's tips

• Watch your eggs for the perfect cooking time. I used boiling water and boiled the eggs for exactly 10 minutes.

• Peel the eggs as soon as they are boiled to stop them from overcooking under a low stream of running water from the tap.

• Cool the eggs before dicing or grating them. This prevents the yolk from becoming mushy and sticking to the cutting board.

• Refrigerate the salad to enhance the flavors and allow the eggs to absorb them fully.

Variations

Mashed eggs: You can either grate the eggs in a cheese grater or mash them with the cottage cheese before adding the other ingredients for a more creamy dip egg salad served with crackers, veggie sticks or flatbread.

Avocado cottage cheese salad: You can add diced avocado or on top of avocado on toast.

Extra-protein: Chicken, tuna, smoked salmon ..etc

Smokey flavor: You can either add smoked paprika or roasted bell peppers -similar to what I've done in this eggplant dip- or both.

Low fat: use egg whites only and low-fat cottage cheese.

Extra-veggies: Like mixed frozen vegetables, coleslaw mix or cucumbers, tomatoes, celery ..etc

Pasta egg salad: Add boiled pasta and season to taste.

More herbs: Increase the number of herbs or add different ones such as parsley.

Spicy cottage cheese egg salad: Add a heat kick with your favorite hot sauce, chili flakes, or jalapeños.

Salad leafy greens: Serve on a bed of lettuce, arugula or mixed salad greens.

Storage instructions

For optimal freshness, store this salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. For the best flavor, I recommend adding the dressing just before serving.

As part of meal prep you have half meal prep this recipe and by that I mean boil a bunch of eggs and store them and then dice them and add the rest of the ingredients.

Frequently asked questions

Recipe card