This genius egg salad trick makes chopping eggs so much easier

It’s my go-to trick for evenly chopped eggs without chasing pieces across the cutting board.

If there's a faster way to do something in the kitchen, I want to know about it. Between managing a packed schedule with full-time work, activities, packing school lunches, prepping after-school snacks, and trying to have something nutritious ready for dinner, I’m always short on time.

Hard-boiled eggs are one of my most reliable staples, and I almost always make a double batch of egg salad because it keeps well and gives me easy lunches for days.

Chopping the eggs, though, is tedious—especially when I’m working with a bunch. So when I learned that I could press my eggs through a cooling rack and get an instant, even chop, I had one of those, “Why didn’t I think of this?” moments. Now it’s my go-to trick for evenly chopped eggs without chasing pieces across the cutting board.

The Easiest Way To Chop Hard-Boiled Eggs

Place a grid-style wire cooling rack on top of a cutting board or over a large bowl. Use a rack with both horizontal and vertical wires, not straight, parallel bars, which will only give you slices.

If you’re using a bowl, make sure it’s wide enough for the rack to sit securely on top. Then place a peeled, cooled egg on the rack and press down firmly with your palm.

Cooled eggs will give you more consistent results, while warm eggs are softer and will smear instead of cutting cleanly through the wires. For the cleanest chop, let the eggs cool completely before starting.

I primarily use this trick to make big batches of egg salad, but it also works well when you want evenly chopped eggs for things like potato salad, Cobb salad, and breakfast bowls. If your kids like avocado toast with egg, chopping the egg first makes it easier to eat. The smaller pieces of egg cling to the avocado better, which makes it a cleaner, easier option for little hands.

Why This Is the Only Way I Chop Eggs Now

It’s faster and more efficient. Chopping a few eggs isn't hard, but when I’m chopping 10 to 12, it can start to feel like a project. This method is designed for high-volume prep—I can "chop" a dozen eggs in under a minute. And the pieces come out roughly the same size every time.

For egg salad in particular, this makes the finished salad more cohesive. It’s also helpful for deviled egg fillings. Because the rack can break the yolk down in one fell swoop, the filling is much easier to mix and work with afterward.

Plus, it solves the annoying "sticky yolk" problem, where the yolks stick to the sides of the knife, forcing me to scrape them off every few seconds.

I also love that it uses something I already own, which means one kitchen tool is pulling double duty—always a win in my book. It’s a small shift, but sometimes the small shifts matter most. In this busy stage of life, I’ll happily take anything that saves me a few minutes.