Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Revised Chicken Salad

I know I have already posted a Chicken Salad recipe before...but this one is far superior. I used mayo this time (yes, yes, I generally have an aversion to mayo, but when using the homemade stuff and applying it the right way, it works extremely well), and adding a few other simple ingredients makes it absolutely delicious. I promise to try to stop posting similar stuff but I cannot guarantee it...

Ingredients:
1-2 cups cubed chicken breast (I used chicken that had been boiled previously)
2 tbsp homemade mayonnaise (store bought is fine too, but then add about 2 tsps mustard to it)
1/2 or 1/3 bunch of fresh cilantro
2 tbsp shelled pistachios (raw or roasted)
1-2 tsp Curry Powder
Pepper
Salt

Utensils: spoons, a bowl, a knife, a cutting board, salad spinner (optional)

Prep Work: 1) Fill a bowl of water and add the cilantro, washing it of any dirt or dead leaves. Spin it dry in the salad spinner, or use towels to pat dry.

Instructions:
Take the cubed chicken and add it to a bowl, along with the mayonnaise, and stir gently to incorporate. Add the curry powder, a small pinch of salt, and a few grinds of pepper. Cut the cilantro leaves from the stems by gathering the cilantro in a bunch, and angling the bunch downwards, take your knife and "scrape" the leaves off quickly (if you prefer, you can also just cut the leaves off from the stems, or pick them off). Chop them up on the cutting board, as fine or as rough as you like (I prefer more texture myself), and add to the bowl with the chicken. Chop up the pistachios as finely or as roughly as you prefer as well. Mix everything together, taste, and add any spices/condiments as you see fit.

Let the salad stand at room temperature for a couple of hours (no, you will not get salmonella or food poisoning or whatever, don't get your panties in a twist). Serve by itself or spoon the salad into lettuce leaves, onto toast, on a bed of spinach...the options are limitless.

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