Here is my chicken salad recipe that you see featured in SUWYC from time to time. I call it a baseline because it is a good starting point for all sorts of variations and hacks. This works great with any chicken, but I usually make it with poached, especially in the winter.
Ingredients:
Chicken:
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Directions:
1. Poach the chicken with 1 cup of chicken stock and poultry spice to an internal temperature of 160F
2. Remove the chicken from the liquid and allow to cool in the refrigerator
3. Mix all Dressing ingredients in a large bowl, except the chicken
4. Chop the chicken to your preferred consistency
5. Combine the chicken and dressing until mixed well
6. Sprinkle with some paprika for some added color and flavor
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Pics: These are from different cooks, but same recipe.
Poaching: I do it in a pressure for speed and fuel efficiency
Dressing ingredients at the top, chicken (and maybe celery?) at the bottom:
Dressing left; chicken (smoked in this case) to the right:
Finished Product:
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Cook's Notes:
Hacks:
SUWYC:
Ingredients:
Chicken:
- 2 Chicken Breast Halves
- 1 Cup Chicken Broth or Stock
- 1/2 tsp Poultry Spice
- 1 Cup Mayonnaise
- ¼ Tsp Citric Acid
- ½ Tsp Lemon Juice
- ½ Tsp Garlic Powder
- ½ Tsp Onion Powder
- ½ Tsp Paprika
- ½ Tsp Mustard Powder
- 2 Ribs Celery, chopped fine
- ¼ Tsp Celery Seed Ground (not celery salt)
- 1 Tbsp Dijon Mustard
- 2 Dashes Cayenne Pepper
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Directions:
1. Poach the chicken with 1 cup of chicken stock and poultry spice to an internal temperature of 160F
2. Remove the chicken from the liquid and allow to cool in the refrigerator
3. Mix all Dressing ingredients in a large bowl, except the chicken
4. Chop the chicken to your preferred consistency
5. Combine the chicken and dressing until mixed well
6. Sprinkle with some paprika for some added color and flavor
~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~
Pics: These are from different cooks, but same recipe.
Poaching: I do it in a pressure for speed and fuel efficiency
Dressing ingredients at the top, chicken (and maybe celery?) at the bottom:
Dressing left; chicken (smoked in this case) to the right:
Finished Product:
~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~ + ~
Cook's Notes:
- I could not find a chicken salad recipe that I loved, so I created this one. This is the result of several years of fine-tuning.
- This recipe is very forgiving and can be tweaked to your liking.
- I chop my chicken fine in a food processor, which is my preferred texture.
- You can substitute fresh onion for onion powder if you want more crunch; try 1/4 cup of chopped onion, but be mindful that this adds more liquid to the chicken salad and can make it too wet
- Any chicken can be substituted for the chicken breast. Use 2 cups of chopped chicken.
- Smoked chicken is amazing with this recipe.
- I recommend making the dressing in advance and set aside, while the chicken poaches; this allows the spices to reconstitute
- You can add salt if you like, but there is enough salt in the mayonnaise and chicken (from the stock). I recommend adding salt only after the flavors have had a chance to settle in or to individual portions.
- The liquid from poaching is great for reuse in other recipes. I use mine as a soup base.
- Salted water, bullion, or chicken base works well if you don't have chicken broth
- This is good over greens, on bread or rolls, by itself, and on crackers
- Paprika file is attached to this post.
Hacks:
- Smoked or other cooked chicken in place of poached chicken
- Lime juice in place of lemon juice
- 1/4 - 1/2 cup of fresh chopped onion in place of onion powder
- Sliced green onions or chives
- Smoked paprika in place of regular paprika
- Add some chopped nuts, like pecans or pistachios for added crunch and flavor
SUWYC:
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