Gribiche is the sauce that can do it all. Photo for The Washington Post by Rey Lopez

If you’ve been reading this column with any regularity over the past few years, you may have noticed that, among other things, I embrace and encourage a broader definition of dinner. The last main meal of the day doesn’t have to feature a meaty protein and two or three side dishes. It doesn’t have to be heavy or large. It can be served on individual plates or bowls or a large platter. It can be dip! It can be composed of a selection of snacks. It might be hot, it might be cold. It might even be a little sweet, as in the seared squash and plum bowls I featured last summer.

Today, I’m going to stretch the concept again. I believe that the French sauce known as gribiche can, and in some cases should, become a main course.

The French encyclopedia of gastronomy, the “Larousse Gastronomique,” defines gribiche as “a cold sauce based on mayonnaise in which the raw egg yolk is replaced by hard-boiled (hard-cooked) egg yolk. Capers, fines herbes and the chopped white of a hard-boiled egg are added.” The book also says the sauce is to be served with calf’s head or cold fish.

Essentially, the traditional recipe for this sauce, a cousin of tartar sauce and hollandaise, goes something like this: Hard boil a few eggs. Cut them open and pop out the cooked yolks. Mash the cooked yolks in a bowl and then slowly whisk in some neutral oil until a mayonnaise forms. Stir in the chopped egg whites along with a little vinegar, salt, pepper, capers and chopped parsley, chervil and tarragon. Many versions include chopped pickles, too.

The sauce can be light and runny as a vinaigrette or thick as aioli. I fell for it years ago at a now-closed restaurant in Paris. When I lived in New York, I ate it with the pork Milanese at Wildair.

When I got a copy of chef Jeremy Fox’s “On Vegetables,” I tried his version, which is admittedly a bit of a cheat. Rather than use the hard-boiled egg yolks as an emulsifying agent, Fox simply chopped up hard-boiled eggs and adds them to mayonnaise, along with the other ingredients. It’s a faster way to gribiche.

By altering the amount of mayonnaise, you get to decide whether you want a runny sauce – for, let’s say, dressing a bunch of blanched asparagus – or a thick and lively egg salad. Photo for The Washington Post by Rey Lopez

In the recipe I make these days, I use store-bought mayonnaise and I soft-boil the eggs. I like that this speeds things up and gives the sauce thin streaks of golden yolk. (You could hard-boil the eggs if you prefer.) By altering the amount of mayonnaise, you get to decide whether you want a runny sauce – for, let’s say, dressing a bunch of blanched asparagus – or a thick and lively egg salad to serve open-faced on slices of bread for a main meal.

The crunchy chopped cornichons are my favorite part, but I also love the bits of capers that go pop-pop-pop in each bite. There’s lots of ways to play with this one: For starters, try it with lemon juice instead of Dijon mustard, green olives instead of capers, and basil and thyme instead of parsley and tarragon.

Gribiche

3 to 4 servings (makes 2 cups)

A creamy French sauce of soft-boiled eggs, mayonnaise, mustard, chopped cornichon pickles, capers and herbs, gribiche also makes a great sandwich filling. It can fill soft brioche rolls for egg salad-like sandwiches, or use it as a sauce for blanched asparagus or snap peas; steamed broccoli or cauliflower; roasted or grilled summer squash; crunchy lettuces; or grilled or baked potatoes. If you prefer your eggs more well done, cook them for 7 to 8 minutes, for fully set yolks.

Storage: Refrigerate for up to 4 days.

4 large eggs

1/2 cup mayonnaise, plus more as needed

10 cornichons, finely chopped

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons capers in brine, drained and chopped

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley, preferably flat-leaf

1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon

Fine salt (optional)

Freshly ground black pepper (optional)

Bring a medium pot of water to a low boil over high heat. Using a slotted spoon, gently ease the eggs into the water. Cook for 6 minutes, then remove from the heat. Drain the pot, return the eggs to the pot, fill it with cold water and let the eggs cool.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, cornichons, mustard, capers, parsley and tarragon.

When the eggs are cool enough to handle, peel them and then rinse off any bits of shell. Dice then add the eggs into the mayonnaise mixture and stir until well combined. If it is too thick, add more mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon at a time until it reaches desired consistency. Season to taste with salt and pepper, if desired. Serve immediately, while slightly warm, or cover and refrigerate until needed.

Nutrition | Per serving (1/2 cup): 277 calories, 1g carbohydrates, 196mg cholesterol, 27g fat, 1g fiber, 7g protein, 5g saturated fat, 686mg sodium, 0g sugar