Essays from West of 98: a Deviled Egg Tribute
If you don’t follow me on Twitter (and if you have Twitter, check me out @jamesdecker2006), you missed my Thanksgiving morning adventure of live-tweeting the preparation of 38 deviled eggs for my family’s Thanksgiving. Our family is small, but we tend to eat a substantial number of deviled eggs. They have something of a special importance in our family, so I hope you’ll permit this foray away from rural revitalization into an icon of American food culture, particularly in the South.
Deviled eggs have been a staple for years at our family gatherings. Whether it is Thanksgiving, Easter, someone’s birthday, or just a random gathering, there is a decent chance that we will have deviled eggs. Sometimes, my dad would prepare them, but usually, it was his father and my grandfather, Jerry Decker.
My grandfather was a baker by trade—he was a baker in the U.S. Army (he served in Puerto Rico during the Korean War) and then he operated a bakery in Rule, Texas for several decades, first with his own father and then on his own after his father’s death. There, they made a regionally famous fried pie (which deserves its own future essay). In my grandfather’s old age, deviled eggs were his “thing” for the family. He would bring around 48 deviled eggs and I would always meet him at the car to “help carry them in.” It was a thinly-veiled excuse to swipe a couple. I would put them in the refrigerator in my parents’ garage and then my sister Rebecca and I would inevitably sneak back out to the garage to grab a few more. It was my deliberate policy to eat 4-6 eggs before the trays got to the table because a) I really like deviled eggs and I may or may not have a problem and b) my grandfather found it hilarious to see how many eggs would turn up missing and to see my parents’ annoyance at my utter disregard for the rules of society.
My grandfather passed away in October after a long illness, so I offered to make the deviled eggs for Thanksgiving. This was partly a tribute to him and partly because I wanted the opportunity to experiment. Some may deride deviled eggs a cliché of family gatherings and church potlucks, but they are a simple, tasty appetizer that can be made by anyone and everyone. Like potato salad and a few other of America’s finest culinary creations, there are an infinite number of variations on the deviled egg. In the right hands, they are all excellent. There are simple recipes and complicated ones. Celebrity chefs are experimenting with them. Nowadays, you can find deviled eggs on the menu at any number of famed Southern restaurants, from the likes of Yardbird in Las Vegas to Husk in Nashville. Simple or complicated, I will eat it.
My grandfather and father historically prepared a “classic” deviled egg recipe: Miracle Whip, yellow mustard, relish, and onion. Without question, I had to make that recipe, but I also wanted to try a couple of other variations. I tried a variant with Duke’s mayo, Louisiana hot sauced, spicy brown mustard, lemon juice, and turmeric, based on a recipe from award-winning Mississippi chef Jesse Houston, whose recipe can be found here: https://gardenandgun.com/recipe/jesse-houstons-fine-deviled-eggs/. Then, I prepared a pimento cheese deviled egg recipe from Atlanta celebrity chef Hugh Acheson (found at https://patch.com/georgia/midtown/hugh-acheson-offering-new-take-deviled-eggs-easter-dish), starring pimento peppers, cheddar cheese, Duke’s mayonnaise, and yellow mustard.
In the end, my deviled egg experimentation was a success. The Jesse Houston recipe turned out a bit too runny, which was my fault in poor yolk-whipping technique. I learned proper technique and the consistency in the other two recipes was much better. It was a glorious adventure, both in tribute to my grandfather and in exercising my own creativity in the kitchen. Without question, you might find me publishing more deviled egg recipes and creations on my website in the future.
If you have your own special recipe for deviled eggs, what is it?
James Decker is the Mayor of Stamford, Texas and the creator of the “West of 98” website and forthcoming podcast. Contact James and subscribe to these essays at westof98.substack.com.