- Time
- 15 MIN
- Serves
- 4 (ONE WHOLE CHICKEN)
- Skill
- PARING KNIFE
- Tools
- KNIFE, BOARD, BOWL
- Heat
- Mild
- Protein
- Bring your own
Plain, creamy, a little crunchy, and good on anything. The trick is contrast: soft chicken against crisp celery, rich mayonnaise against lemon and mustard. Use both the white and dark meat from the chicken; the dark meat is what keeps it from tasting dry. Every other chicken salad in this chapter starts here.
The lineup
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 rotisserie chicken, meat pulled from the bone (about 4 cups)
- 2 celery ribs, diced small
- 2 scallions, sliced thin
- 1 handful fresh parsley, chopped (optional)
- Salt and pepper
The chop
- Whisk the mayonnaise, mustard and lemon juice in the bottom of the bowl.
- Rough chop the chicken into bite-size pieces.
- Add the chicken, celery, scallions and parsley to the bowl.
- Stir until everything is coated.
- Taste, then add salt and pepper until it tastes right to you.
The extras
Dodge the Carbs
Already there. Serve it in lettuce cups, on cucumber rounds, or in half an avocado.
Future You
Keeps 3 days in a covered container in the fridge. It firms up overnight; loosen it with a spoonful of mayonnaise.
Show Off
Add a handful of halved grapes and chopped toasted pecans.
Flavor Bomb
Swap half the mayonnaise for hummus or Garlic Aioli, or stir in 1 tbsp of sweet relish.
Heat Dial
Mild: as written. Warm: 1 tsp of sriracha or a pinch of cayenne. Hot: swap the mayonnaise for Spicy Mayo made with 2 tbsp of sriracha.
Psst
Pull the chicken while it is still a little warm from the store. The meat comes off the bone far more easily.
