Simple Curried Chicken Salad
Chicken salad is such a southern thang. This curried version is not.
If you know anything about southern food culture, you probably know about three things.
Deviled eggs
Sweet tea
Chicken salad
Honourable mentions go to ham biscuits, cheese straws, pimento cheese, hummingbird cake, and those crusty meringue cookies that Boopie (my grandmother) seemed to have in her cupboards by the boat-load in the early 2000s as her “good treat” when she was watching her weight.
Those things were so gross. Anyway.
Midtown Market is a deli/ food goods store in Danville, Va which happens to make their own chicken salad in- house. We grew up on the stuff, and Dad always brought a few containers home when he would travel down to the Danville area either to see my Boopie, or to see one of his many valued clients in the area. This chicken salad was the BOMB because it didn’t have grapes or pecans in it (which was also potentially a southern thing…gross). It’s just delicious. This past Christmas, my siblings and I ventured down to Danville and our agenda absolutely included stopping by Midtown Market for their famed chicken salad.
It’s a core memory for me. Another core memory is anything Ina Garten- particularly her curried cous cous salad.
So, I combined the two. Took a basic chicken salad recipe, gave it a curried flair, and had a zingy lunch option last week that it would be rude of me not to share.
Curried Chicken Salad
Makes four to six servings
Ingredients:
115g/ .5 cup light mayonnaise
2-3 tsp curry powder (I used a medium madras curry powder, and like a STRONG curry taste so opted for 3 tsp)
1 tbsp lime juice
350g/ 2 cups cooked chicken, cooled and diced
1/2 medium red apple, diced (no need to peel, the fibre is so good)
1 stalk of celery, finely chopped
30g red onion, finely chopped
50g/ .25 cups raisins
50g/ .25 cups cashews, roughly chopped
small handful fresh cilantro, chopped
Method:
In a medium bowl, mix together your: mayonnaise, curry powder, lime juice, and season with salt/ pepper to taste.
Next, stir in your: chicken, apple, celery, onion, raisins, cashews and cilantro until everything is thoroughly incorporated with your dressing.
Store covered, in the fridge, for up to four days.
Serving suggestions:
Wholegrain wrap with lettuce, avocado, and beetroot.
On crackers as part of an afternoon snack plate
On celery stalks for a snack/ part of a low carb lunch option (if your dietary preferences require so).
Between two slices of your favourite toasted bread (I always opt for sourdough)
Let me know if you make the recipe, and feel free to tag @be.ufitnessandnutrition on Instagram when you share your lunch/ snack time snaps with your own loyal following!