Creole Shrimp Egg Salad

Made with crunchy bacon, smoky Creole shrimp, creamy hard-boiled eggs, fresh greens, and a spicy mustard-based sauce, my Cajun Egg Salad is here to change the game!

Ingredients

2 thick cut bacon slices

1/2 lb shrimp deveined and peeled

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp cajun seasoning

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp lemon zest

kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste

1/3 cup avocado oil mayonnaise

1 tbsp yellow mustard

1 tsp fresh lemon juice

1 tsp bacon grease

3 hot sauce dashes up to 4

6 eggs hard boiled and diced

1/2 avocado diced

1/2 cup red onion or shallots diced

1 tbsp fresh parsley chopped and more for garnish

1/2 cup mixed microgreens optional

Instructions

Heat a cast-iron skillet to medium-high heat. Once hot, place the bacon in the pan and cook until deeply brown and crisp. Remove from the skillet and add to a paper towel-lined plate. Cool the bacon to room temperature, set aside.

Prepare the shrimp by removing their tails, rinsing, and drying with a paper towel. In a small bowl, combine the shrimp, olive oil, Cajun seasoning, smoked paprika, and lemon zest. Add a pinch of kosher salt and black pepper, then toss to coat. Cover the bowl and let the shrimp marinate for 10 minutes.

Bring the cast-iron skillet (with the bacon grease still in it) back to medium-high heat, then carefully toss in the shrimp. Be sure to spread out the shrimp a bit. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side or until plump and pink. Remove from heat and transfer the shrimp to a small heat-safe bowl. Set aside.

As you wait for the shrimp to cool down, make the egg salad binder. Add mayonnaise, yellow mustard, lemon juice, bacon grease (remaining from cooking), and hot sauce to a bowl, whisking to combine. Cover the bowl and refrigerate until needed.

Once cool enough to handle, chop the cooked shrimp into smaller pieces if desired. I cut each one into 3-4 chunks.

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, avocado, shallots or red onion, and parsley. Crumble the bacon over the top of the bowl, pour in the sauce, and gently toss to combine – then finally, carefully fold in shrimp. Season to taste with salt and pepper and sprinkle with microgreens and any additional parsley for garnish.

Serve in a big bowl as a side or pile onto your bread of choice!

Notes

Because this recipe contains both eggs and avocados, storage is a bit tricky. Avocados oxidize quickly and eggs need to be kept refrigerated. At most, this egg salad will keep overnight if secured in an airtight container.

If you’d like the salad to keep for longer, I’d recommend adding in the avocado as desired, rather than mixing it in with the eggs. Egg salad will keep for up to 3 days in the refrigerator .