Egg Salad
Egg salad — hard-boiled eggs mashed or chopped and folded with fat and herbs — is one of the most faithful items on Çorum’s village breakfast tables. It is the egg at its simplest and most satisfying, made from a handful of things every farmhouse already has.
Two Versions
Two forms are common on Çorum breakfast tables:
- Buttery egg salad: Hard-boiled eggs are mashed with a fork and folded with hot butter and salt. It is the classic of winter mornings — butter and egg together warm the table alongside tea.
- Onion and parsley egg salad: Chopped eggs are tossed with finely chopped onion, parsley and olive oil. Fresher and sharper, it suits summer mornings; the onion balances the softness of the egg.
At the Village Breakfast
In Çorum, breakfast follows the “serpme” (spread) village tradition: cheeses, curd cheese (çökelek), clotted cream, honey, tahini-molasses, butter and homemade jams line the table, and egg dishes are its hot heart. Together with beans with egg, eggy bread and boiled eggs, egg salad stands at the head of this table.
The egg’s place in Çorum’s food culture is echoed even in the Çorum dialect, where proverbs and sayings tie eggs to the daily life of field and henhouse — and to the table every single morning.
🍳 How to make it
Ingredients
- 6 eggs
- 2 tbsp butter (for the buttery version)
- 1 small onion, very finely chopped (for the onion version)
- Half a bunch of parsley
- Salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes
Method
- Hard-boil the eggs, cool them in cold water and peel.
- Buttery version: mash the eggs with a fork and fold in hot melted butter, salt and pepper.
- Onion version: dice the eggs and mix with finely chopped onion, parsley, salt and olive oil.
- Pile onto a breakfast plate and finish with red pepper flakes.
💡 Tips
- Free-range village eggs, with their deep-yellow yolks, make all the difference.
- The buttery version should be eaten warm, straight from the pan.
A traditional recipe; quantities and times are approximate and vary by household.