3 Ways to Devil Your Eggs — Brooke Courtney (2024)

FAQs

Why the name deviled eggs? ›

In the 19th century, the adjective "deviled" came to be used most often with spicy or zesty food, including eggs prepared with mustard, pepper, or other ingredients stuffed in the yolk cavity. Similar uses of "devil" for spiced foods include deviled ham and fra diavolo sauce (from the Italian word for "devil").

"Deviled" goes back to the late 18th century as a way to refer to something that's spicy or grilled with spice. Deviled eggs are "deviled" because they're generally made with paprika and black pepper.

The term likely comes from the connection between spiciness and the presumably hot temperatures in hell. Since the word “devil” does have negative connotations, though, some groups of people prefer to call the dish “stuffed eggs,” “salad eggs,” or “dressed eggs.”

While proper cooking techniques are the first step to avoiding weeping, experimenting with certain deviled egg ingredients, unfortunately, can result in a watery, sloppy appearance on the plate. Ingredients with a high water content, like tomatoes or cucumbers, can help create this wet scenario.

Growing up, Perry and her siblings were not allowed to eat the cereal Lucky Charms as the word "luck" reminded their mother of Lucifer, and were also required to call deviled eggs "angeled eggs". Perry primarily listened to gospel music, as secular music was generally discouraged in the family's home.

In some regions of the South and the Midwest, deviled eggs are also called salad or dressed eggs when they are served at a church function, to avoid the term "deviled."

Disney Springs' Chef Art Smith's Homecoming Church Lady Deviled Eggs are a Southern-inspired delight, boasting creamy yolks blended with tangy mustard, mayo, and a sprinkle of paprika, offering a nostalgic and flavorful twist on a classic appetizer.

If we rewind time, we find deviled eggs in ancient Rome, where boiled eggs flavored with spicy sauces were so commonly served as an appetizer that a Roman saying, “ab ovo usque ad mala,” meaning “from egg to apples,” referred to the expected bookends of a meal.

According to The History Channel, deviled eggs go all the way back to ancient Rome, where eggs were boiled, seasoned with spicy sauces, and then served at the beginning of meals. In the 13th century, stuffed eggs began to appear in the southern, Andalusian regions of Spain.

In the Deep South, deviled eggs are sometimes called 'dressed eggs.

What did the Romans call deviled eggs? ›

For National Deviled Egg Day, we're taking it back to Ancient Rome…. where serving deviled eggs was often referred to as “ab ova usque ad mala.”

Deviled eggs are hard-boiled eggs that have been peeled, cut in half, then stuffed with a paste made from the yolk and other ingredients. Basic deviled egg filling is made with egg yolks, mayonnaise, relish, mustard, salt, and pepper. The eggs are often seasoned with spices like paprika or cayenne pepper.

But when you're heavy-handed with this ingredient, not only will it overpower the taste of the filling, but it can also make for a loose, runny filling that's tough to pipe into the egg white. Follow this tip: Having just the right amount of mayonnaise in the filling makes for good flavor and good texture.

The paprika will determine the depth of flavor of each bite. You can garnish with any kind (hot or sweet Hungarian, or hot or sweet smoked), but the better the quality, the more complex the flavor.

How do you make deviled eggs creamy, not lumpy? Get out your food processor: If you mix the yolks in your food processor with the mayonnaise and mustard, it will make the filling light and fully emulsified, like a mousse.

(British English) (US English deviled) ​cooked in a thick liquid containing hot spices. Oxford Collocations Dictionary. egg.

According to the Oxford Companion to Food, the word “devil” first appeared in a culinary context as far back as the 18th century. It refers to cooking something “with fiery hot spices or condiments.” Deviled eggs get their name because they're typically made with the spices paprika and black pepper.