Martha Stewart’s Secret Ingredient for "Rich" Deviled Eggs Is Probably in Your Fridge
The Yes, Chef! star also loves adding a bit of caviar on top of her deviled eggs.
From appetizers to entrées, Martha Stewart has a foolproof recipe for all the classics. Over the years, for instance, she’s shared how to make pancakes extra fluffy and taught Snoop Dogg her expert tips for creamy mashed potatoes. So it’s really no surprise that the culinary icon also has a simple hack that’ll make it even easier to devour a whole plate of deviled eggs.
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Stewart, who’s starring in NBC’s new cooking competition series Yes, Chef! with José Andrés, is truly an egg expert. She’s stated on her website that her kitchen is “never without freshly laid eggs” from her farm and she’ll eat one or two every day. But for a more special occasion where deviled eggs are in order, Stewart’s secret ingredient is truly a game-changer. Read on for all the details.
Martha Stewart takes deviled eggs to the next level with a secret ingredient
Believe it or not, deviled eggs have been served as an appetizer since the days of ancient Rome. And while the most classic recipe involves mayonnaise and mustard, Stewart has shared her tips to really zhuzh up a batch of boiled eggs, ranging from adding a touch of spice with wasabi or turning the whole dish into a potato salad. But her most universal and simple tip is to add butter to the yolk mixture.
Stewart’s recipe for “Rich Deviled Eggs” on her website starts with boiling the eggs for “exactly eight minutes.” Once the eggs are peeled, cut in half, and the yolks are removed, you’ll need some softened butter to really amp up the flavor. “Whir butter into the yolks in the food processor to ensure pillowy creaminess and pipe the filling into the whites,” Stewart’s recipe explains. For a classic flavor, the recipe also uses mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, and salt and pepper.
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In a 2011 video on her YouTube channel and in a 2024 appearance on TODAY, Stewart also suggests adding “melted butter” to your yolk mixture. “It's so easy," she told Craig Melvin on TODAY after pressing the yolks through a strainer for ultra creaminess. "And top with a piece of tarragon or a piece of smoked salmon or some radish or some capers. Ohh, or some caviar! I love caviar on [deviled eggs]."
Butter not only “adds flavor and richness to a recipe,” it also “develops texture” in a dish, the Institute of Culinary Education explains. And unsurprisingly, Stewart has tons of tips to use it. For example, in a quick tutorial video on her YouTube channel, Stewart breaks down how clarified butter is the secret behind “making excellent egg dishes” so they don’t burn in your pan.
Martha Stewart’s tip for “perfect” boiled eggs begins with the water
Before you can make a batch of extra decadent deviled eggs, you need to successfully boil and peel the main ingredient. In a 2017 appearance on TODAY, Stewart explained to Al Roker that the trick is to place the eggs in cold water.
“For hard-boiled, you can put the eggs into cold water, bring them to a raging boil. And when they are boiling, cover, turn off the heat, and put your timer on,” Stewart told Roker. “For a small medium egg, 12 minutes. For a large, extra large, it’s 13 minutes. Take them out of the water… There’s no green, they’re perfect and a little bit soft in the middle.”
And don’t worry, Stewart also has a very handy video on how to peel hard-boiled eggs.
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Watch Stewart share even more of her culinary expertise when Yes, Chef! premieres at 10/9c on Monday, April 28 on NBC.
