Why You Should Think Twice About Using Miracle Whip In Egg Salad

Egg salad is a favorite dish that's easy to make and rich in protein. Cleveland Clinic lists eggs as one of the top four sources of protein along with wild salmon, beans and legumes, and Greek yogurt. Eggs, according to the renowned hospital, are also a source of vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids, and B vitamins.

Eggs are versatile and can be consumed for breakfast, lunch, or dinner but one favorite way to enjoy eggs is in a creamy egg salad sandwich. If you Google "egg salad," you will apparently come up with more than 8 million search results. And, while egg salad can be as simple as combining chopped hard-boiled eggs, mayonnaise, and seasonings, the ingredients you use can change the taste — and the texture — of your meal.

Take a trip to the mayonnaise section of any major market and you're sure to find a wealth of different brands and ingredients, like olive oil. Look closely at the labels, though. If you're hoping that a product like Miracle Whip will live up to its name when making egg salad, you might be unpleasantly surprised. There are actually several considerations you should know of before you use Miracle Whip in egg salad.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has strict guidelines for what can be called mayonnaise. And according to the FDA's Code of Federal Regulations, "mayonnaise contains not less than 65 percent by weight of vegetable oil." That's the reason Miracle Whip, while sold in the mayonnaise section of your grocer, is labeled as a "dressing." Kraft Heinz Foodservice, which manufactures Miracle Whip, also notes that its product has "half the fat and calories of mayonnaise."

The condiment was developed in 1933 as a budget-friendly dressing and sandwich spread, according to Taste of Home. It's popular for its additional sugar and spices, which bring out flavors in a classic BLT and jazz up a turkey or ham sandwich. Miracle Whip doesn't have enough oil to meet the FDA's classification of a true mayonnaise. That lack of fat could lead to the separation of ingredients and add a greasy texture to your food. So while it may be a preferred alternative to mayo if you're looking to reduce your intake of fat and calories, it may also reduce the quality of your egg salad.

While the classification of Miracle Whip separates it from mayonnaise, there are more differences between the two than the amount of fat. According to Duluth News Tribune, Miracle Whip has more added sugar. The sweeteners include sugar and high-fructose corn syrup. Overconsumption of high fructose corn syrup has been linked to some pretty serious health complications, such as fatty liver disease, according to Healthline. 

That's something to keep in mind for parents who feed their children hard-boiled eggs (and possibly use some of those eggs for egg salad) to reap the health benefits. A study with 41 child subjects dealing with obesity found that lowering high fructose corn syrup consumption while keeping overall calories constant cut their liver fat almost in half in a little over a week. But even if you are a grown-up looking to cut back on sugar in your diet, you might need to switch to mayo, which has very low or no sugar. The added sugar in Miracle Whip gives you two grams of carbs per serving. So mayonnaise might be the better option if you are looking to follow a high-fat, low-carb diet such as the keto diet.

The prospect of a sweeter, greasier egg salad might not sound very appealing to a lot of people. Still, the best egg salad is the egg salad that your family craves, so feel free to experiment. Some people would even recommend Miracle Whip as a way to take your egg salad to the next level. If you just love Miracle Whip so much that you don't want to part with it for your egg salad, there are certainly ways you can work with it. 

According to Foodie Crush, egg salad can keep for three to five days. However, if it does separate, you can just give it all a good stir in the bowl before using it to make fresh sandwiches. You can even add in other ingredients to your egg salad that will play off of Miracle Whip's added sweetness too. Consider chopping bread and butter pickles and tossing them in for added tang. To add more of a salty hint, consider adding green olives for an egg salad spin on egg and olive. The options are endless, so make what you and your family enjoy.