curried chicken salad — Spice & Hutch

You’ll find a thousand chicken salad recipes on the internet, but I must (biasedly) say that this one is my favorite– it’s the curry. Gives it a little somethin’ extra.I grew up on curried chicken salad. It was a go-to meal in my household for weeknight suppers and large parties because you can make big batches in advance and the medley of flavors is a crowd pleaser. It’s definitely a multi-seasonal kinda dish, but I’m sharing it with you now because there is something about the apples and raisins that captures the essence of autumn eating. This recipe includes a foolproof way to poach chicken breast. I encourage you to try it, but if you already have a preferred method, then feel free to skip ahead to step #2.Enjoy!recipefor the chicken salad:4 cups poached chicken breast, pulled into bite-size pieces1 cup apples, diced1 cup celery, thinly-sliced crosswise 1 cup seedless green grapes, halved½ cup pecans, broken into pieces½ cup golden raisins½ cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped2 tablespoons fresh tarragon, choppedSalt and pepper to tastefor the curried mayonaise: 1 cup homemade mayonnaise1 ¼ teaspoon curry powder2-3 tablespoons freshly-squeezed lemon juiceDash cayenne pepperSalt and pepper to tasteTo poach the chicken breasts (or skip ahead to step 2 as per my note above), dissolve 2 tbsp kosher salt in six cups of cold water. Submerge three boneless, skinless chicken breasts and cook on medium heat until the water registers 165°F. Immediately remove from heat and cover with a tight-fitting lid. Allow to sit covered for 15-17 minutes. Drain and pat dry with paper towels.Have all the ingredients chopped, measured out and ready to go. Put the ingredients for the chicken salad in a large bowl. Mix several times with a spatula to combine.In a medium bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the curry mayonnaise until evenly blended. Scoop the mayo mixture onto the chicken salad and toss together the ingredients with a spatula until evenly coated/combined.If you make this recipe, hashtag a pic to #spiceandhutch and post to Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. I’d love to see your culinary creations!