Chicken Salad is a fresh and tasty dish ideal for the summer season but always a staple among appetizers and aperitifs, perhaps served on bread toasts and crackers.
Cooked chicken combines with crispy lettuce creating a fantastic contrast of textures. There are many variations of chicken salad and I propose a rather light one, because mayonnaise is added only after seasoning the dish with salt, vinegar, and oil. This allows to add just the right amount of mayonnaise needed to enhance the flavor of this salad.
This salad, besides being a pleasure for the palate, is also a healthy and nutritious option. Chicken provides essential proteins for our body, while fresh lettuce is rich in vitamins, minerals, and fiber. If we consume this salad with bread or boiled rice, we have an excellent single dish, fresh and balanced, to eat at work or on the beach.
Chicken salad is a complete dish that fills you up without weighing you down, perfect for a light lunch or a refreshing dinner. It can be customized with the addition of dried fruits, cheese, or avocado, making it always different and appreciated by everyone.
For more ideas on complete dishes to enjoy as light yet substantial meals, I also recommend other recipes like
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 6
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Energy 121.62 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 5.01 (g) of which sugars 1.50 (g)
- Proteins 18.69 (g)
- Fat 3.35 (g) of which saturated 0.58 (g)of which unsaturated 0.45 (g)
- Fibers 1.27 (g)
- Sodium 428.20 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 125 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breast (whole)
- 1 qt water
- to taste coarse salt (for broth)
- 1 carrot (small for the broth)
- 1/2 stalk celery (for the broth)
- 3 piccadilly tomatoes (or tomato paste)
- 1/2 onion (for the broth)
- 9 cups lettuce
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- to taste salt
- to taste pepper
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
Tools
To cook the chicken breast, I recommend a pot with high sides, a large bowl to dress the salad well, and a good smooth-bladed knife to cut the salad into strips.
- 1 Pot
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Knife
- 1 Cutting Board
Preparation
The first step is to prepare the chicken by boiling it in water. Place the chicken breast in the high-sided pot along with water, coarse salt, onion, celery, carrot, and chopped tomatoes. Bring to the heat and keep on high until the water boils, then lower it a bit but not too much, to prevent the water from overflowing during cooking keep the lid slightly raised with the help of a ladle placed on one edge of the pot. Let it cook for at least an hour, it should be nice and tender when you pierce it with a fork. Then remove it from the broth to let it cool.
While the chicken cools, prepare the salad, clean it, and wash it whole leaves. Dry it well with the help of a clean towel to remove all excess water. Then on the cutting board, cut the leaves into strips.
When the salad is all cut, place it in the large glass bowl and take the chicken breast which in the meantime will have cooled down. Crumble the chicken over the salad with your hands, you will see that it is a very easy operation and using your hands will allow you to easily remove any nerves and bones present in the boiled chicken breast.
Try to shred the chicken with your fingers.
When you have shredded the entire chicken breast over the salad, adjust with fine salt, add pepper, oil, and vinegar and mix well. Personally, I always mix the salad with my hands as this allows me to make everything really homogeneous, taste it, it should already be perfect in flavor, otherwise adjust with salt and pepper. You can store the salad in the fridge like this, covered with plastic wrap, if you decide not to consume it immediately.
When you decide to eat the chicken salad, add the mayonnaise and use two spoons to mix it well to make everything fairly homogeneous.
After dressing it with mayonnaise, you can choose to serve it all together in a salad bowl possibly decorated at the base with other whole lettuce leaves, or you can serve it in individual bowls, but it will also be well appreciated on bread toasts, crackers, or as a filling for sandwiches and focaccias.
NOTES
Chicken salad, besides being an excellent complete meal, light and fresh, allows us to prepare it in advance and have it ready when needed, it keeps well in the fridge for 2 or 3 days always well covered with plastic wrap or in airtight containers.
As mentioned earlier, it is an excellent complete dish perfect for filling your lunchbox, also ideal in buffets to fill sandwiches and club sandwiches.
If you liked the recipe or if you have questions, do not hesitate to comment here or on social media Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and X.
