Curried Chicken Salad

Growing up my parents never made chicken salad, and so I didn’t really discover it myself until my early twenties. This might be a throw back to the eighties, but seeing as I missed the first wave, I love making all kinds of different chunky chicken salads. In my signature chicken salad I add apples, and grapes, slivered almonds, celery, and tarragon, which is delicious. I love the interplay of the textures and flavors. Here the volume is turned up even further with curry powder. I never really use a recipe as it all depends on how much chicken and other ingredients I start with. I combine roasted chicken (store bought is perfectly acceptable), fuji apples, celery, scallions, raisins, cilantro, and toasted cashews, and toss them in a dressing made from a cup and a half or so of mayonnaise, a splash of apple cider vinegar, a generous amount of curry powder (3-4 tablespoons or to taste), a third of a cup or so of Major Grey’s Chutney, salt, and freshly ground black pepper (à la Ina Garten, with a few of my own touches thrown in). You can be very casual with this recipe, all of the ingredients can be added to taste and cut to size depending on how you plan on serving. This salad is sweet, and spicy, crisp, crunchy,  creamy, chewy, and tangy. It makes for a delicious lunch served over a bed of butter lettuce leaves, in a wrap, or on a sandwich roll or croissant. Enjoy!