This fall chicken salad is a perennial favorite at several of my restaurants. It’s full of great flavors and isn’t too heavy with mayonnaise. I really like to serve it at parties on endive as an appetizer. For a more filling portion at a plated lunch or dinner I’d recommend serve it on a bed of lettuce, or a toasted roll.
The beauty of chicken salad is that you can make it easy on yourself and start with leftover chicken from a meal the previous night. Sometimes I even buy a rotisserie chicken and pick it apart for the fresh meat to use in my salad. The rest of the ingredients are easy to access in my pantry, and the mayonnaise is always in the fridge.
There isn’t too much that goes into assembling a chicken salad. The key is folding each ingredient in well so that it’s evenly incorporated. I’m pretty flexible on what I add to my chicken salads. It’s okay to substitute whatever you’d like – no two salads are the same!
To serve it attractively as a passed appetizer I scoop it into endive so that it can be eaten in two bites. This looks very pretty on a platter that is passed around at party. For a plated meal I might serve it in avocado, on a bed of lettuce, or on a toasted slice of country bread. It’s also easy to pack in a container or a grab-and-go lunch or a child’s lunchbox.
This a great, classic chicken salad recipe that will serve you well. Once you get used to making it you’ll find your own favorite spin on it and will make it yours. Let me know if you have any questions, and please let me know how your chicken salad shapes up. I love to hear the variations everyone comes up with!
Fall Chicken Salad
We serve this salad in a lot of my restaurants, and it is extremely popular. The flavors are perfectly balanced with savory and sweet. If I’m serving it as an appetizer, I scoop small amounts into endive leaves and place it on a platter.
4 to 6 servings
5 Cups Shredded Chicken
1 tsp tarragon
½ cup dried craisins
¼ cup shredded carrot
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
4 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped
1 spring fresh rosemary, chopped
1 cup of red grapes seedless, cut in half
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
1 cup Mayo
Endives for serving
Assemble of your ingredients and place the chicken in a large bowl.
Add the tarragon, craisins, carrot, celery, thyme, rosemary, grapes, salt and pepper and stir everything together with a wooden spoon.
Add the mayonnaise to the chicken and mix all the ingredients together well so everything is evenly distributed and bound together.
Scoop the salad into endive and place on the platter to serve. Alternatively, this can be served on a bed of greens or a slice of toast.
Nikki Glekas is the owner of Nikki Glekas Events, a full-service catering and events company located in Stamford, CT.. To discuss further please contact team@nikkiglekascollective.com or call 203.658.8659.