Chicken Salad Recipes | Great chicken salad starts with great chicken

Great chicken salad starts with great chicken

The star of the chicken salad recipe is the chicken. (Well, duh!) While you can overcome plain or mediocre chicken with clever spices and setting the batch overnight to “soak”, you’ll get the best tasting chicken salad if you start with great-tasting chicken. Trust me!

Choosing your chicken

The chicken you use will depend on your family’s preferences. If you always buy free-range, organic-fed chicken, then use that. If you like keeping a freezer of chicken to pull out when you need it, use that. If you have chickens out in the barnyard ready for slaughter, by all means, start from scratch if you like!

The important thing about the chicken at this point in the process is not so much what type of chicken it is, but how you prepare it for including in your selected chicken salad recipe.

You can use a whole chicken or just cook the parts you like best (chicken breast for white meat or chicken thighs for dark meat).

Cooking the chicken

I’ve always had the best results from slow baking or slow cooking (crockpot) the chicken for my chicken salad. If you’re not sure what sorts of spices you’ll choose to include, or if you intend to use part of the chicken for one recipe and part for another recipe, then keep your spices relatively neutral. A good sprinkling of salt and black pepper is the minimum. I usually add some garlic and onion powder (or even better, some fresh crushed garlic rubbed over it and sliced onions draped over the carcass).

Definitely add a little water to the baking dish and be sure to cover it securely to keep as much moisture in as possible.

A whole chicken will take about 2 to 2 1/2 hours at 350 degrees F.

Chicken parts (breasts or thighs) may only take 1 1/2 to 2 hours at the same temperature.

The thing to look for during the cooking process is to see the meat starting to sag and fall off the bones very easily. As long as you keep moisture in the dish and keep it covered, you almost cannot overcook the meat.

Taking the meat off the bones

Take the chicken out of the oven and let it cool with the cover still on (remember, we’re keeping the moisture in — you don’t want dry chicken in your chicken salad recipe!). You can put it in the refrigerator to cool faster, just be sure to put a hot pad or folded towel under the hot baking dish so it doesn’t hurt your fridge shelf.

Caution: Of course if you do not put it in the refrigerator, be mindful not to leave it out at room temperature for too long. You don’t want to risk food poisoning.

When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones. Remove any fat, skin, or gristle that you find.

Chopping the perfect chicken salad meat

How do I chop the perfect chicken salad meat? By instinct, of course! Okay, okay, maybe you want more detail than that. Well, as always, it comes down to your personal preference, and that of your family.

I usually chop the meat into chunks or shredded bits no bigger than half an inch square. Some people prefer a smoother spread on their chicken salad sandwich. In that case, make it a quarter-inch or smaller. Or put it through the blender or food processor for a paté-like consistency.

Now your chicken is ready to be put into your selected chicken salad recipe.

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