19 Ingredients That Will Make Deviled Eggs More Delicious

Deviled eggs are a classic party appetizer with a long history of being gleefully gobbled down by guests. Traditional deviled eggs have a yolk mixture consisting of hard-boiled egg yolks, mayonnaise, mustard, salt, pepper, dry dill, pickle juice, and paprika. The creamy mixture is then piped into the hard-boiled egg whites. While the classic deviled egg recipe will always be loved, there are endless ways to spice up your deviled eggs, and I have some ingredient suggestions that will make them heavenly.

I've made countless deviled eggs in my life and even gone off the rails experimenting with funky flavors. While not every unorthodox ingredient is a home run, some unusual additions to this beloved recipe can create astonishingly delicious eggs.

I selected the following ingredients because they bring a punchy and robust flavor to the deviled eggs, creating unique, bold, and creative versions of this yummy dish. The list is diverse to cater to those who may not want a spicy egg or someone who wants to avoid animal meat. Try one or more of these intriguing ingredients to wow your friends and family with your imaginative culinary skills.

As one of the hippest ingredients of the 21st century, avocado is a brilliant addition to numerous dishes. If you adore fresh Hass avocados' buttery and grassy flavor, bring this distinct ingredient into your deviled eggs.

The soft texture of the avocados melds perfectly with the smooth yolk and mayo mixture, making them even more luxurious and satisfying. With a hint of lime, this avocado deviled eggs recipe takes on a mild guacamole-like flavor that will excite any fans of Mexican food.  For superior creaminess, use an immersion blender to make the mixture unbelievably velvety and lush. And consider adding more guacamole ingredients — like cilantro and diced red onions — to lean into this inspiration.

This underrated ingredient doesn't get much love outside Caesar dressing, but it can be a dynamite addition to deviled eggs. Anchovies bring a salty and fishy flavor that transforms the deviled eggs into a toothsome appetizer. The tiny fish has an oily texture that creates a silky feeling in your mouth.

Deviled eggs can be a heavy or light dish, but anchovies make them undeniably rich and filled with umami. If you want to avoid creating those that feel too sweet, anchovies will create a definitively savory flair. This recipe for deviled eggs with anchovy also includes horseradish, Dijon mustard, and a hint of cayenne pepper. These eggs are unapologetically sharp and pungent.

Buffalo sauce has a bold, peppery taste and sinus-clearing property that makes it addictive. Enthusiasts can bring their favorite sauce to their deviled eggs and create a decadent flavor that rivals even the best chicken wings. This deviled egg recipe is inspired by Buffalo chicken — wings or dip — with rotisserie chicken, but you can omit the chicken and still have a flavorsome and fiery dish.

Not only does Buffalo sauce bring a feisty flavor, but it also makes the eggs a dazzling shade of orange. Be careful not to add too much, as the thin sauce can lead to a loose yolk filling. Buffalo chicken deviled eggs are superb for a game day get-together or summer barbecue.

Ginger offers a unique type of spice to foods, delivering a biting and strong flavor that isn't hot in the same way as hot sauces, jalapeños, or other peppers. This sharpness can bring many ingredients to life, including egg yolks and mayonnaise. Alex Guarnaschelli totes dry ginger as a marvelous deviled egg ingredient because it brings a slight tingle without overpowering your taste buds.

While some people can't get enough spice, too much heat can ruin your deviled eggs, annihilating the other ingredients' flavors. But ginger has a cleverly mild and quick heat that allows the other flavors to shine. Fresh ingredients are usually the way to go, but ground, dried ginger is best in this situation.

While pepper may seem like a simple and obvious ingredient, you can elevate your deviled eggs with different varieties and even use a combination of them. One of the masters of making recipes supremely delicious, Alton Brown uses four kinds of pepper to make his deviled eggs wholly irresistible, including white, black, green, and pink. This mix brings a compelling balance of mild spiciness and robust sweetness.

White peppercorns are picked when fully ripe, while black peppercorns are picked earlier. Green peppercorns are the same as black, but they're freeze-dried. Pink peppercorns come from a completely different plant and are actually a type of berry. Experiment with these varieties to create rich and complex deviled eggs that tickle the taste buds.

Adding blue crab meat to deviled eggs takes the appetizer to the next level, turning it into a luxurious seafood appetizer that tastes fresh and slightly sweet. The briny and succulent flavor brings an oceanic element that melds with the pastoral egg taste, creating a sumptuous appetizer. Eggs and crabs may not run in the same circles, but they're best friends when they meet in deviled eggs.

Gently folding the lump crab into the yolk mixture retains the flaky and meaty texture, adding a welcomed hearty element. This recipe for blue crab deviled eggs features Old Bay seasoning and hot sauce, creating a tasty appetizer that captures the spectacular flavors of the Maryland coast. 

If mayo doesn't appeal to you or can't be used because of dietary restrictions, tahini is the answer to your prayers. This dense Middle Eastern condiment made from sesame seeds can take mayo's place in your deviled eggs and bring a luscious mouthfeel. It's heartier than mayonnaise, with a thick and pasty texture that will make you want to savor every egg slowly. 

The nuttiness and toasted taste you get when you swap mayo with tahini in deviled eggs makes the appetizer earthier and gives the yolk mixture a mellow and warm profile. If you love the flavors of the Middle East, you can make them even more prominent by adding Middle Eastern seasonings, like za'atar.

Fresh herbs bring a magical freshness to every dish, and they're particularly perfect for deviled eggs. Parsley brings brightness to the dish, while rosemary has an earthy boldness. Chives will deepen the flavor with a light onion flavor, but dill brings a lovely tanginess. Thyme is simultaneously light and earthy with a hint of lemony goodness.

As exemplified in this herbed deviled eggs recipe, using fresh herbs will create a gourmet taste and fresh flavor profile that awakens all the other ingredients. Play around with different varieties and consider choosing ones in season so the flavors coincide with the time of year. They can be finely chopped to disappear into the mixture, or left in whole leaves for a garnished look.

Many deviled egg recipes feature some sort of acid, such as apple cider vinegar or lemon juice. Pickle juice can be a wonderful acidic addition to your eggs, but a bright, crunchy sweet relish is even better. It has more sugar in the brine, which gives deviled eggs a bright and tangy flavor.

For a super vibrant deviled egg, try bread and butter pickle relish, which is one of the sweetest varieties. Aside from pickle relishes, sweet bell pepper or onion relish are also tasty options to amp up your deviled eggs.

Bring the decadence of barbecue to your deviled eggs with a hint of liquid smoke in the yolk mixture. Smoking deviled eggs is time-consuming but you can create that distinct and burning taste with liquid smoke. This ingredient makes the flavor deeper and woodier with a rustic vibe.

This smoked deviled eggs with shrimp poke recipe is extravagant, but even the most basic deviled egg recipe will feel gourmet with a few drops. Be careful though, as a little goes a long way. This ingredient is ideal if you're making deviled eggs for a barbecue, where the eggs accompany aromatic and smoky meat.

For those who love spice, green jalapeños are the magic ingredient. There are several ways to add this spicy kick to your eggs, from green hot sauce to pickled peppers to fresh jalapeños.

You can create a subtle spiciness with a reserved dab of green jalapeño hot sauce in the egg white before you pipe the yolk mixture into it, such as in this green jalapeño deviled eggs recipe. Or, you can emphatically embrace the pepper and top each egg with a raw slice, creating an explosion of fresh and spicy flavors. Pickled jalapeños will be slightly milder than those that are raw, as the vinegary and slightly sweet brine mellows the heat. 

Beets bring acidity and organicity for a fully developed flavor profile that feels thoughtful and balanced. While beets tend to be toted as boring or even dirty-tasting, they actually have a robust flavor profile with notes of florals, herbs, and earth. They offer a piquant richness that contrasts deviled eggs' light creaminess and add a colorful flair to the plate.

This drunken deviled eggs recipe with pickled beets is unique because the beets enhance the egg whites, not the yolk mixture. The typically unimpressive and tasteless egg whites become the star of the show, with an earthy, acidic flavor and vibrant pink color. You could also mix some diced beets or beet juice into the yolk mixture, creating a colorful filling with a robust taste.

Truffle is having a moment right now, so impress your guests with your fancy ingredients by making delicious truffled deviled eggs. The truffle gives the eggs a lavish and gourmet taste without overpowering the classic yolk flavor.

Don't worry; you don't need to shell out a fortune for real truffles, as you can use oil. Just a few drops will infuse your yolk mixture with the garlicky and woody taste. Of course, if you can access genuine truffles, a few shavings on top of the yolk mixture are splendid and sumptuous. The beauty of this ingredient is that it does so much for the eggs that they hardly need anything else beyond a little salt and pepper.

Smoked salmon is a distinct ingredient that pairs beautifully with eggs! Both cold- or hot-smoked salmon work; hot-smoked is typically earthier, while cold-smoked tastes fresher. The smoky and bright flavor gives the eggs a saltiness that balances well with the creamy yolk mixture. It also brings a meaty and silky texture that complements the smoothness of the yolks and mayonnaise.

Fold small pieces of salmon into the yolk mixture or nestle a fat piece on top of the mixture, creating a colorful work of art. You can use bagels and lox as inspiration, adding diced red onion, capers, fresh dill, and sliced tomatoes. Swap out the mayo for whipped cream cheese to complete the flavor profile.

Turmeric is a zesty and potent spice that will transform your deviled eggs. It offers a musky and peppery flavor with a current of cozy earthiness. On its own, it can be overpowering, but when paired with the soft mildness of the lush yolk mixture, it's in perfect harmony.

This turmeric deviled eggs recipe calls for curry powder and cumin, leaning into the Indian spices. However, turmeric can also spice up the dish just fine on its own, offering a mustard-like richness and a striking orange color. Mixing the turmeric into the yolk mixture is the best option, but a sprinkle of dried ground turmeric on top in place of paprika is also tasty.

Deviled eggs are traditionally savory, but you can create a dynamic flavor profile by adding honey to the yolk mixture. The sticky texture makes the mix more luscious and delectable, resulting in exceptional deviled eggs that wow everyone.

This addition pairs well with spicy ingredients, exemplified by this honeyed jalapeño deviled eggs recipe. Some additional flavor combinations to consider are Sriracha-honey, bacon-honey, mustard-honey, lemon-honey, and thyme-honey. Any honey will enhance the dish, but varieties like manuka, orange blossom, wildflower, and buckwheat offer different levels of warmth and hints of florals.

Adding a squirt of mustard to the deviled egg mixture isn't unheard of, but different mustard varieties bring their own flair to the dish. Classic yellow mustard can make the yolk mixture bright and saturated with flavor, while honey mustard can create a sweet and tangy flavor. Try whole grain mustard for a sultry taste and palatable texture, spicy brown mustard for a little kick, or amp up the heat with hot mustard.

There are over 40 types of mustard seeds and far more mustard condiment varieties, so the possibilities are plentiful. If you already use mustard to make your deviled eggs punchy and toothsome, experiment with a new mustard variety and see how this one ingredient can substantially alter the flavor profile.

Bring the spirit of a cocktail party to your deviled eggs by infusing them with a literal spirit — gin. The liquor brings a funky cocktail flavor to the dish, elevating the egg whites to make them as interesting as the yolk filling. The potent herbal flavor and bite of alcohol transform the dish into a punchy adult-only treat. Keep in mind that gin varieties taste different; some are floral, while others are earthy.

To make dirty martini-inspired eggs, soak the egg whites in gin and garnish with an olive. And while the dirty martini flavor profile is fun, you can try different garnishes and ingredients that go with gin, such as cucumbers, radishes, pomegranate, and more. Let your favorite gin cocktail inspire you!

Horseradish has a distinct and robust taste and brings an interesting flavor to deviled eggs. While horseradish can be overpowering for some, the intense flavor is tamed by the mayonnaise and yolks, so you get a hint of heat but not a heavy-hitting punch. The horseradish flavor shines without hiding the buttery egg flavor and toothsome seasoning.

Not everyone enjoys the coarse and somewhat stringy texture of ground horseradish, which can compromise the creaminess of the yolk mixture. But horseradish cream has a smooth texture that seamlessly blends with the yolk filling, so you don't lose the stunning silkiness of your mixture.