This curry hen salad takes the idea of a traditional hen salad and offers it a singular, spiced-up twist! It options candy raisins, crunchy cashews, and crisp celery tossed in a creamy, curried dressing with recent cilantro.
If this recipe is your form of jam, you’ll additionally love my Avocado Hen Egg Salad and this improbable Hawaiian Macaroni Salad!
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Right here’s a narrative about how I jazzed up a traditional hen salad into one thing actually spectacular. I used to be excited about how a lot we like to shake issues up within the kitchen right here, at all times including a little bit twist to our favorites. Thus, one afternoon, I used to be within the temper for one thing acquainted but with a little bit of a kick, so I added some daring spices to my regular hen salad recipe and got here up with this curried hen salad!
It has all of the classics—succulent hen, crisp celery, and crunchy nuts—however I threw in some candy raisins and spiced all of it up with curry powder and a splash of turmeric within the creamy mayo dressing. It’s severely tasty!
You may slap it on some bread, scoop it into lettuce cups, or seize some do-it-yourself naan and dig in. Any manner you serve it, this curried hen salad is a enjoyable and flavorful twist on a great outdated traditional that you simply’ve obtained to attempt. Belief me, it makes lunch something however boring!
Why You’ll Love This Curry Hen Salad Recipe
A novel twist on a traditional. Everybody loves a great old style hen salad. This recipe takes the much-loved traditional and provides an Indian-inspired spin with curry powder, turmeric, and cilantro.
Versatile. There are such a lot of alternative ways to serve a hen salad. Between two slices of sandwich bread, on a salad, in lettuce wraps, with Lavash bread—you title it!
Customizable. Within the temper to get artistic? This recipe is a superb canvas for experimentation. Swap out the hen for chickpeas, attempt completely different nuts or dried fruits, or go along with a very completely different taste profile. It’s all as much as you.
What You’ll Want
Take your procuring cart and wander the aisles whereas grabbing all of the components you’ll must make a curry hen salad recipe. Scroll to the recipe card beneath for exact measurements.
For the hen
- Boneless skinless hen breasts – Boneless skinless hen thighs or hen tenders would additionally work.
- Salt and black pepper – To season the hen for taste.
- Olive oil – To coat the hen.
To make the dressing
- Mayonnaise – Not a mayo individual? Use plain or Greek yogurt as an alternative.
- Greek yogurt – If you wish to skip the yogurt and use simply mayo, that’s Ay-Okay.
- Honey – Agave would work simply as properly.
- Spices – Curry powder and turmeric. The turmeric is non-obligatory, however it does convey a fairly yellow/orange colour to the salad.
For the salad
- Veggies – Celery and pink onion.
- Raisins – You can swap the raisins out for cranberries or chopped dried apricots if you happen to’d like.
- Apple – I used a Honeycrisp apple, however you need to use any varietal you’d like.
- Dry roasted cashews – Be happy to make use of walnuts or pistachios as an alternative.
- Contemporary chopped cilantro – Not a cilantro individual? Parsley will work simply effective.
- Salt and pepper – Used to reinforce the flavors of the salad.
How To Make Curry Hen Salad
This not-so-classic hen salad brings a scrumptious twist to your desk. Observe these easy steps to create a curried hen salad that’s full of taste and textures.
- Prep. Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
- Roast the hen. Rub the hen with salt, pepper, and olive oil till well-coated. Bake for 20 minutes or till an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest a part of the most important breast reads 165°F. Take away the hen from the oven and relaxation for five to 10 minutes earlier than slicing it into cubes.
- Make the dressing. Whisk collectively the mayonnaise, yogurt, honey, curry powder, and turmeric in a small mixing bowl.
- Assemble the salad. Mix the hen, celery, onion, raisins, apples, cashews, and cilantro in a big bowl. Add the dressing and toss to coat.
- Season. Style the salad and season it with salt and pepper. In case you’d like so as to add some further curry powder, you are able to do that too.
- Chill. Let the hen salad cool to room temperature, then cowl it with plastic wrap and chill it within the fridge for a few hours or in a single day.
- Serve. Serve it chilly in lettuce wraps or between two slices of bread.
Suggestions for Success
- Let it relaxation. Give the hen about 5 minutes to relaxation after roasting and earlier than slicing into it. This can give the juices an opportunity to redistribute all through the meat, leaving you with extra tender, flavorful bites.
- Gown it whereas it’s scorching. It’s finest to decorate this hen salad whereas the hen continues to be scorching. The meat will take in the flavors of the dressing higher that manner.
- Don’t skip the coolness. When you might eat this hen salad instantly, it’s finest to let it cool to room temperature after which chill it within the fridge for a few hours (or in a single day) to present the flavors an opportunity to meld.
Enjoyable Variations
- Save a while. Use rotisserie hen as an alternative of roasting your individual. Simply take away the meat from the carcass, dice it, and toss it with the dressing and components for the salad.
- Make it vegetarian. As an alternative of roasted hen, attempt toasted chickpeas or cubed tofu or tempeh. The meat eaters in your life will like it too.
- Totally different nuts. I like cashews, however you would swap them for walnuts or pistachios. Macadamia nuts or sunflower seeds can be enjoyable too.
- Dried fruit choices. As an alternative of raisins, attempt chopped dried apricots. Cranberries are another choice.
- Go conventional. The curry and turmeric are so nice on this salad however, if you would like a extra “conventional” hen salad, you possibly can go away them out. Possibly combine in some Dijon mustard and swap the cilantro out for chopped recent parsley and dill.
Serving Options
My favourite method to get pleasure from this hen salad is between two slices. Seize your favourite loaf of bread from the shop or make your individual gradual cooker bread. I’ve even been recognized to serve it wrapped up in a flour tortilla or go away the bread behind and scoop it up with lettuce wraps.
A hen salad sandwich pairs properly with cajun fries (they’re SO good!) or with a aspect of lemon rice, too! In case you want one thing lighter, attempt my berry avocado salad or every other salad. For a tasty twist, substitute the hen in my well-known cobb salad with this curry hen salad.
Methods to Retailer & Reheat Leftovers
Seal any leftover hen curry salad in an hermetic container. You may retailer it within the fridge for as much as 4 days or within the freezer for as much as 3 months. Permit it to thaw within the fridge earlier than diving again in.
Extra Straightforward Salad Recipes
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Prep. Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
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Roast the hen. Rub the hen with salt, pepper, and olive oil till well-coated and organize it on the ready baking sheet. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or till an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest a part of the most important breast reads 165°F.
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Relaxation. Take away the hen from the oven and permit it to relaxation for 8 to 10 minutes earlier than slicing it into cubes.
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Make the dressing. Whereas the hen is baking and resting, whisk collectively the mayo, Greek yogurt, honey, curry powder, and turmeric in a small mixing bowl.
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Assemble the salad. In a big mixing bowl, mix the hen, celery, onion, raisins, apples, cashews, and cilantro. Add the dressing and toss to coat all the components.
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Season. Style the curry hen salad and season it with salt and pepper to style. You may as well add further curry powder.
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Chill. Permit the hen salad to chill to room temperature earlier than masking it with plastic wrap and chilling it within the fridge for a few hours or in a single day.
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Serve. Serve it chilly in lettuce wraps or between two slices of bread.
Serving: 8 ounces | Energy: 436 kcal | Carbohydrates: 24 g | Protein: 15 g | Fats: 32 g | Saturated Fats: 6 g | Polyunsaturated Fats: 14 g | Monounsaturated Fats: 11 g | Trans Fats: 0.1 g | Ldl cholesterol: 50 mg | Sodium: 1146 mg | Potassium: 544 mg | Fiber: 3 g | Sugar: 8 g | Vitamin A: 244 IU | Vitamin C: 5 mg | Calcium: 54 mg | Iron: 2 mg
Dietary data is an estimate and supplied as courtesy. Values could range in response to the components and instruments used. Please use your most well-liked dietary calculator for extra detailed data.