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Chicken Salad Exotique

Source of Recipe

From "Southern Living Recipe Revival"


Recipe Introduction

"During the heyday of department-store tearooms, the makings of old-fashioned chicken salad took an adventurous turn. Innovative cooks stirred in fruits and nuts or curry and chutney. Recipes labeled exotic, glorified, and Polynesian came with a most popular addition: canned pineapple tidbits. Inspired by the many recipes from spiral-bound community cookbooks, we created four new cosmopolitan favorites of our own."

List of Ingredients

◦ ½ cup mayonnaise
◦ ½ cup sour cream
◦ 2 tablespoons minced shallots
◦ 1 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
◦ 4 cups diced cooked chicken
◦ 2 cups halved seedless red grapes
◦ 1 cup diced celery
◦ 1 cup toasted slivered almonds
◦ Garnish: fresh tarragon sprigs


Recipe

Whisk together the first four ingredients in a large bowl; stir in the chicken and next two ingredients. Add salt and ground black pepper to taste. Chill 3 hours.

Stir in the almonds just before serving.

Serves 4 to 6






❧ Variations:

• Curried Chicken Salad: Omit shallots, tarragon, grapes, and almonds. Whisk ¼ cup finely chopped green onions, 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger, and 2 teaspoons curry powder into mayonnaise mixture. Stir ¾ cup each golden raisins and diced yellow bell pepper into chicken mixture. Stir in ¾ cup toasted sweetened flaked coconut, and top with ½ cup chopped lightly salted roasted peanuts just before serving.

• Poppy Seed Chicken Salad: Omit tarragon and grapes. Whisk 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil, 1 tablespoon orange zest, 3 tablespoons honey, and 1 teaspoon poppy seeds into mayonnaise mixture. Stir 1 cup sweetened dried cranberries into chicken mixture. Stir in 1 cup chopped toasted pecans just before serving.

• Mango Chicken Salad: Omit shallots, tarragon, grapes, and almonds. Whisk ¼ cup diced red onion, 2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and minced; 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro; and 1 tablespoon lime zest into mayonnaise mixture. Stir 1 ½ cups diced fresh mango into chicken mixture before serving.