Chicken salad is a simple lunch staple for me. It is easy to make and tastes great the longer it sits in the refrigerator. For Labor Day this weekend, I made a chicken salad for lunch served over butter lettuce. There are many variations of chicken salad out there, but I prefer my chicken salad with fresh and dried fruit mixed into it. The mixture of the fruit brings a nice texture and wonderful sweetness to the chicken salad. I mixed up all of the ingredients in a large bowl the night before and served in for lunch today. I typically like to sandwich the chicken salad between two toasted pieces of baguette, but I had some leftover butter lettuce in the refrigerator so I served the chicken salad over it.
Chicken Salad
· 2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
· ¼ cup dried cranberries
· 1 small Granny Smith apple, cored and diced
· 1 stalk of celery, diced
· ½ teaspoon kosher salt
· ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
· 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
· ¼ cup mayonnaise
Directions:
1) In a large bowl, combine the cooked chicken breasts, cranberries, apple, celery, kosher salt and back pepper. Add in the Dijon mustard and mayonnaise. Mix well.
2) Wrap the top of the bowl with plastic wrap and place the chicken salad in the refrigerator. Let the chicken salad sit in the refrigerator for at least an hour, or overnight for the best flavor.
Takeaways: Chicken salad is a very versatile dish. You can easy swap out ingredients to suit your taste. It tastes great on the same day it’s made, but it tastes even better if you let it rest in the refrigerator overnight.