Read This Before Freezing Your Egg Salad
Whether you are meal prepping or looking to pack some leftovers from a delicious meal you made at an intimate dinner party, there is no denying that freezing your leftovers can help you extend the shelf life of certain foods. According to Taste of Home, when done properly freezing your food can help it maintain a lot of the nutrients that might otherwise escape the food. It is good to note that if the food has already gone bad you shouldn't freeze it in hopes that it will kill the bacteria. Per Taste of Home, freezing would only make that bacteria inactive. So what food does freeze well?
The publication notes that things like fruit, blanched veggies, butter, cookies, and meat (both cooked or raw) do well in the freezer (as long as they are properly stored). Taste of Home suggests wrapping the food that has completely cooled down tightly and keeping it away from the fridge doors as temperatures fluctuate and could harm the food. But what happens when you have egg salad leftovers from dinner and want to have it some days later? Simply Healthy Family cites that you should steer clear of freezing it all together.
Freezing egg salad will change the texture once thawed out
Simply Healthy Family notes that the reason that egg salad doesn't freeze well lies within two of its main ingredients — the eggs and the mayonnaise. The publication explains how hard-boiled eggs have a much shorter shelf life than raw eggs. Real Simple explains how once frozen, the texture of the eggs changes and becomes hard and rubbery. Simply Healthy Family explains the reason mayonnaise doesn't hold well is because of its status as an emulsion. When emulsions thaw out, they break down because they have separated (and you'll have to mix it again to combine).
So, when you go to pull out the egg salad from the freezer and thaw it out, you'll be greeted with rubbery eggs that are essentially swimming in separated mayo, oil, and vinegar. Regardless of how you store it, egg salad (under normal conditions) doesn't last longer than three to five days, per Simply Healthy Living. With that in mind, it might be safe to assume that frozen egg salad won't fare that much better in terms of shelf life when compared to fresh egg salad.