Oeufs Mayonnaise with Capers, Pickled Onions, and Rustic Mustard

Recreating a stunning snack from my trip to Paris

If you’ve eaten out in a large city or browsed food-focused socials recently, you’ve probably noticed that the classic French starter oeufs mayonnaise is having a moment. Of all the things coming out of the protein-maxing era, I hope this is the dish that sticks. It’s filling, delicious, and endlessly versatile. The simplest versions are just what the name says: eggs topped with a blanket of homemade mayonnaise—basically eggs topped with more egg (and oil). But beyond those two ingredients, you can add all kinds of other toppings. (The food writer David Lebovitz calls oeuf mayo deconstructed deviled eggs.)

A couple weeks ago, while I was in Paris (planning for a potential upcoming project), I came across this stunning version, which a friend ordered at Joli, the restaurant at the Musée Carnavalet. It was so delightful that I decided I had to recreate it at home. The ingredients are simple enough, and I already had most of the, in my refrigerator: the eggs are topped with good mayonnaise, a healthy spoonful of chopped capers, a slice of radish (which adds a nice fresh crunch), and rustic whole-grain mustard. The eggs were also served with pieces of steamed potatoes, some pickled onions, and a bit of cilantro.

The inspiration: the oeufs mayonnaise at Joli

For my version, I skipped the potato and played with the amounts of each topping. While homemade mayo is the key to the dish in France, I decided that with this many toppings, I could take a shortcut and use Kewpie (which is richer and more flavorful that other store-bought options) mixed with just a touch of lemon and olive oil. My final version had a bit more caper and mustard, too. The final eggs were so good that I ended up eating way more of them than I’d intended to—and when my family got home, they gobbled up the rest and asked for more.

Oeufs Mayonnaise with Capers, Pickled Onions, and Rustic Mustard

Serves 1

⅛ red onion
½ teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Granulated sugar
2 eggs (leave in the refrigerator)
2½ teaspoons capers
1 radish
1 teaspoon cilantro leaves
4 teaspoons Kewpie mayonnaise
Wedge of lemon (optional)
Extra virgin olive oil (optional)
¼–½ teaspoon whole-grain mustard (such as Maille “Old Style” Dijon)

1. Fill a medium pot with around 3 inches of water and set it on the stove to boil.

2. Cut the onion into thin slices (¼-inch thick or just slightly thinner) and put them in a small bowl with the salt. Massage the salt into the onion for a minute, then leave the onion slices to soften for 5 minutes. When the onion has softened, rinse off the salt briefly (draining the water), then add the vinegar and 1 tablespoon of water to the bow. (If the onions aren’t covered by liquid, add more vinegar and water, maintaining their 2:1 ratio.) Set the onions aside to pickle for about 15 minutes.

3. When the water comes to a boil, take the eggs out of the refrigerator and gently put them into the boiling water (I like to use a slotted spoon to slide them right onto the bottom of the pot so they don’t crack). Boil the eggs for 10–12 minutes, depending on whether you prefer the yolks to a touch jammy or very dry. While the eggs are boiling, make an ice bath in a large bowl; when the eggs are done, use a slotted spoon to transfer them to the ice bath to cool for at least 5 minutes.

4. While the eggs are cooling, finely chop the capers, cut the radish into thin slices (about ⅛-inch thick), and roughly chop the cilantro leaves. You can also doctor the mayonnaise if you like: mix the may with a tiny squeeze of lemon and a few drops of olive oil to add flavor, but don’t add so much that the mayonnaise becomes thin and won’t hold a dollop.

5. To serve, make a small pile of pickled onions in the center of a plate. Peel the eggs and cut them in half lengthwise and nestle the halves against the onion (cut side up). Top each egg with a quarter of the mayonnaise and a quarter of the chopped capers. Lay a radish slice on top of each egg, pressing gently so it sticks to the mayonnaise, then top each slice with some mustard. Pile the cilantro on top of the pickled onion.
   

Photos: Georgia Freedman