Friday, June 06, 2014

Bon Appétit: Smoked Chicken Salad


I have been looking for what feels like forever for a decent chicken salad recipe.  You would think this wouldn't exactly amount to Homer's Odyssey, but you would be surprised.  I'm not a big fan of fruit in my chicken salad (grapes?  pineapple??), so any sweet-ish recipe is out.  Plus, I'd like my chicken salad to have a little flavor to it, instead of just being some mash of mayonnaise and boiled chicken.  Luckily I came across this little gem.

You definitely get some flavor in this recipe.  The chipotle chiles add spice and interest, but if you're not a big fan of spicy food, you might want to cut them back a little.  I also like all the different colors and crunches going on.  I was tempted to just keep adding different veggies (green onion?  green bell pepper?).

Smoked Chicken Salad
Adapted from Bon Appétit magazine, December 1998

6 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons chopped canned chipotle chiles
½ teaspoon ground cumin
1½ cups finely chopped smoked chicken (about 12 ounces)
½ cup finely chopped yellow bell pepper
½ cup finely chopped seeded tomato
¼ cup finely chopped red onion
¼ cup finely chopped parsley leaves
⅓ cup pecans, toasted and chopped

Mix first 4 ingredients in small bowl to blend. Mix in chicken, bell pepper, tomato, onion, parsley, and pecans. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.

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