Curried Chicken Salad

A lightened up version of the classic curried chicken salad.

Curried Chicken Salad

Curry powder really shines in this Curried Chicken Salad, which is just right on a warm day when you want something cooling and flavorful with a little punch of spice. Rather than the traditional mayonnaise-based salad, the recipe below uses mostly yogurt with a little mayo added for flavor and texture, drastically reducing the fat content of the recipe. And curry flavors and yogurt are meant to be together -- just think of how great an Indian curry is when topped with a creamy yogurt raita.

This salad also incorporates some currants plumped in red wine vinegar, for a little punch of sweet and sour, some crunchy celery for texture, and a little honey in the sauce for sweetness. It’s all finished off with some sliced scallions, which add that perfect amount of green, onion-y flavor. Enjoy!

Spices used in this recipe


Curry, Hot
Curry, Mild
Cayenne Pepper
Salt, Kosher

Ingredients

  • 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 1 carrot (optional)
  • 1 stalk celery (optional)
  • 3 cloves garlic, peeled (optional)
  • ¼ cup currants or raisins
  • ¼ cup red wine vinegar
  • ½ cup whole milk yogurt
  • 2 Tbs. mayonnaise
  • 1 ½ Tbs. Vanns Mild Curry Powder (or Vanns Hot Curry Powder, depending on your preferences)
  • ¼ - ½ tsp. Vanns Cayenne, to taste
  • 1 ½ Tbs. honey
  • ¾ tsp. Vanns Kosher Salt
  • 3 stalks celery, finely diced
  • 3 scallions, white and light green parts finely sliced, darker greens of 1 scallions thinly sliced and reserved for serving

Preparation

  1. First, poach the chicken breasts. Put the breasts in a pot with enough room to cover them both with water. Add some aromatics if you like — a peeled carrot cut into pieces, a stick of celery, some peeled garlic cloves are good. Definitely add some salt — about 1/2-1 tsp. is good. Cover the chicken with water to cover by an inch or so. 
  2. Place the pot on the stove over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Skim off any white foamy scum that comes to the top — it generally will. Quickly reduce the boil to a gentle simmer and partially cover the pot. Begin checking the temperature of the chicken at its thickest portion at about 8 minutes — you’re looking for an internal temperature of 165°F. After 10-15 minutes, the chicken should be cooked. But do check with the thermometer to make sure!
  3. Remove the chicken from the poaching liquid and allow it to cool. You can also remove any aromatics from the poaching liquid and use it as the base for a soup, or anywhere else you’d use chicken broth! This version will be more mild-tasting, but still delicious.
  4. Now, the raisins. Bring the red wine vinegar to a simmer in a small pot. Add the raisins, stir, and remove from heat, allowing them to plump for 10 minutes or so.
  5. Combine the yogurt, mayonnaise, curry powder, cayenne, honey, salt, celery, and scallions in a bowl. Stir until evenly combined. Sprinkle with reserved scallion greens and serve in a bowl, or tucked into pitas, or however you like!

Serves 6.

 

 

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