Daredevil is the comic that got me into comics, way back in 1998, and I’ve been reading it ever since. I love reading about Matt Murdock’s adventures, which usually involve mobsters, ninjas, relationships that fall apart spectacularly, Catholic guilt, and occasional legal drama. Many of his problems are driven by his own ego and his compulsion to fight crime in his neighborhood. Matt is the kind of person I enjoy spending fictional time with, but like many of the most interesting characters, he would be terrible to have to deal with in real life. Even Foggy Nelson, his best friend and law partner, would agree.
I also love deviled eggs. There are a lot of different ways to make them. Every family seems to have a slight variation on the recipe, some more exotic than others. To “devil” a food means to spice it. An egg white has very little flavor on its own, so spicing up the yolk is important. Also, deviled eggs can smell a wee bit sulfurous, just like the devil! And probably Matt Murdock after he’s been fighting ninjas in the alley puddles of Hell’s Kitchen while wearing a hard-to-clean costume!
An advantage you have when making deviled eggs is that it’s easy to make multiple types within one big batch. Even if you only boil a dozen eggs, you could make three different varieties and make a lovely presentation for a party. I recently made a big batch with two filling recipes for a large family gathering. One recipe was a traditional type, and the other was wild and crazy by my family’s deviled egg standards. (Spoiler: they liked both.)
Daredeviled Eggs Two Ways
Ingredients
- 2 dozen medium eggs
- great big pot of water
- salt (optional)
Directions
Gently place the eggs in the bottom of the pot, preferably in one layer (putting a few in a second layer will be okay). Put enough cool water into the pot to just cover the eggs. Sprinkle in some salt if you like. Turn on the heat and bring the water to a boil. Once it hits a rolling boil, turn off the heat and DO NOT remove the lid. You want to trap the heat. Leave them in the boiling-hot water for 10 minutes. In the meantime, prepare a bowl or pot of cold water (throw some ice in, if you like!) large enough to hold all the eggs. When the 10 minutes are up, drain off the hot water and plunge the hot eggs into the cold water. Then begin peeling them immediately.
I have never found a completely fool-proof method of peeling eggs. I always have a few that shred themselves because the world is an imperfect place. But I have good news: even if a few of the egg whites aren’t usable, the yolks are fine. The yolks are the good part anyway, so this just means you have a few extra yolks to make extra filling!
Once the eggs are all peeled, begin slicing them in half lengthwise. If you’re making two yolk recipes, set out two bowls to pop the yolks out into. Place the white halves onto a platter or—if you’re a serious enthusiast like me—into the cavities in your special, stackable, deviled egg transport containers, of which you obviously own several.
Once the eggs are sliced and the yolks divided, it’s time to devil them. I decided to make avocado-wasabi deviled eggs because of a scene from Netflix’s recent Daredevil series. There’s a scene where law students Matt and Foggy have a giggle over an attempt to say “abogados” (Spanish for “lawyers”) that comes out “avocados” because they are a couple of tipsy gringos. And Matt’s life is frequently spiced up by ninja interference (because the definitive Daredevil stories were written in the ’80s), so I added wasabi because it’s hot, tasty, and a great counterpoint to the mellow avocado. I also made a traditional recipe, which is also below.
Avocado-Wasabi Deviled Eggs
Ingredients
- 12 egg yolks
- flesh of 1.5 to 2 small avocados
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1/4 tsp wasabi powder (to start, add more in tiny increments to taste)
- salt to taste
- black sesame seeds
-OR-
tobiko (the tiny orange caviar often found in sushi)
Directions
Put the egg yolks, avocado, lemon juice, and wasabi powder in a bowl. Mash to combine. Taste the mixture to determine whether you want to add salt or more wasabi powder. A small amount of wasabi will impart a subtle afterburn, but if you want more kick, go for it. But add it slowly!
When the yolks have been seasoned to your taste, put the mixture into a ziptop bag.
Snip off one corner of the bag and gently squeeze the bag to fill the cavity of the egg. Repeat for the other 23 egg halves.
When the eggs are filled, sprinkle black sesame seeds and/or tobiko on top of each. The saltiness of the tobiko adds a nice dimension, but it’s not always easy to find in grocery stores.
Cover and refrigerate until serving time.
Traditional Deviled Eggs
Ingredients
- 12 hard-boiled egg yolks
- 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1/3 cup sweet pickle relish
- 1/4 tsp hot smoked paprika (plus more to sprinkle on top, if desired)
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- Miracle Whip (or mayo, but Miracle Whip is preferable here)
- salt
- cayenne pepper (optional)
- Green olives with pimentos
Directions
Put the mustard, relish, paprika, and garlic powder into the bowl with the yolks. Mash them together until well-combined. Then add Miracle Whip 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing it in until you reach the desired consistency. Give it a taste to see if it needs more salt or anything else.
When the yolks have been seasoned to your taste, put the mixture into a ziptop bag. Snip off one corner and fill the eggs as described above.
Slice the olives in half. Garnish each egg with an olive half, putting the cut side up and the rounded side down in the yolk. Sprinkle the eggs with more paprika–or cayenne pepper, if you want a little more kick. Or do half with paprika and half with cayenne. You can customize these easily to fit your guests’ varied tastes.
Cover and refrigerate until serving time.
When it’s time to serve, arrange your deviled eggs on a platter however you like and serve.
So next time you’re having a party or attending a potluck, put on your best “I’M NOT DAREDEVIL” shirt and bring some of these crowd-pleasing deviled eggs!
I’m gonna need to know more about your transport containers — and also try out those avocado-wasabi eggs!
The avocado-wasabi eggs sound amazing. *_*
They’re definitely worth a try! People who aren’t big fans of egg yolk might like them a lot more than the traditional style.