All right, so let’s talk about Coronation Chicken Salad. It was developed by a couple of Cordon Bleu VIPs, for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953 (source: wikipedia)
Basically it’s a chicken salad with curry powder added. But as with most protein salads (or pretty much anything you can find a recipe for) there’s plenty of variations and tweaks to be found on the great wide web. What I love about it is the little hint of sweetness that it gets from the dried fruit – classically sultanas which I think are larger, golden raisins, but you can use dark raisins, dried dates, dried currants, whatever you like.
Basically, start with chicken, mayo, and curry powder – and here’s two variations I’ve made recently. Naturally, no measurements were made, because that’d be like, being smart. Pfft. For both of these versions, I just picked up a precooked rotisserie chicken from the local megamart. They’re just so darned convenient!
Version One:
Chicken, shredded. Add: mix of chopped dried dates and currants, soaked in water or orange juice until a bit softened, and drained (discard liquid). Add mayo, curry powder, slivered almonds, a splash of lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste.
Version Two (pictured)
Chicken, shredded. Add: reconstituted dates, mayo (I actually used homemade garlic aioli, because I had extra time), finely diced celery, lime juice, curry powder, cumin, garam masala, salt and pepper to taste. Not pictured: sunflower seeds, which I added after deciding that the salad needed more crunch.
I’ve heard the first version referred to as “genius” – which, that’s pretty high praise, so I’m quite pleased. The second version I haven’t shared with anyone else so the only feedback is my own – and I like the extra texture and crunch of the celery quite a lot.
Serve on: crackers, tortillas, celery sticks, bread, I mean – whatever you like! Straight out of the bowl is fine too, I certainly won’t judge. =)
Enjoy!
Vickie's Food Ramblings 