Spring is in the Air
While this hopeful statement may vary depending on where you are in the world, here in the UK, it’s starting to feel like spring is coming soon. The days are getting longer, the sun is out a bit more, and I even heard birds chirping this afternoon! I live near the center of Birmingham and on a canal, so it’s super lively and fun when the sun is out. Honestly, I also like the quiet of winter, but being in the somewhat dreary depths of February makes you miss the sunshine. And while I’m in the UK, where I just can’t wait for the gloominess of winter to be over, I know Sofie is enjoying warm and sunny 80+ degree (F) days of “late winter” weather over in Austin – such is the nature of different climates! 😂
Today’s Recipe
In case you couldn’t guess from the paragraph above, the recipe we’re posting today was inspired by the slightly warmer weather coming our way, as it’s a perfect dish for a spring or summer meal. It’s a classic dish, not just in Scandinavia but throughout the world, especially on the lunch table. Scandinavians in particular love sandwiches, and this is the ideal sandwich filling – chicken salad! We make ours with some celery and apple for crunch and prefer more sour cream (or crème fraiche) than mayonnaise. The addition of a touch of curry powder, though, is what makes this stand out, as it just adds that extra bit of flavor that complements the chicken and vegetables perfectly.
Serving and Eating Kyllingesalat
As we mentioned above, this is ideal for the lunch table. Serve it with other smørrebrød toppings for a lovely Danish-inspired luncheon that has something for everyone. Or, if it’s just you, make your own open-faced sandwich with some kyllingesalat and lettuce/greens for a little crunch. If you prefer a less Scandi sandwich, you can put the chicken salad between two slices of sandwich bread, which turns out equally as tasty! I love a bit of tomato or even pickles on my chicken salad sandwich, for an added hit of freshness to balance the creamy filling. Other favorite toppings of ours include cucumber, shredded lettuce, or avocado! This is also a wonderful way to use up any leftover chicken you have, or even turkey, as you get to repurpose it into a delicious meal!
Ingredients
We make our chicken salad with a base of chopped chicken, celery, apple, green onion, and parsley, which is a lovely blend of flavors and textures. You can replace these with similar vegetables or herbs that you like, such as bell pepper, chives, cilantro, pickles, etc. To be honest, this recipe is very customizable to whatever you have on hand. For the dressing, you’ll need mayonnaise and sour cream, but you can use yoghurt or crème fraiche instead, or adjust the mayo/sour cream ratio if you like. The seasonings are curry powder, garlic powder, and salt and pepper. Optionally, you can add mustard or mustard powder. A bit of paprika would also be delicious, or you could even add hot sauce for a bit of extra spice. Change things up however you like, it’s guaranteed to be tasty either way!
Instructions
To make this curry chicken salad, the first step is to cook the chicken. You may have leftover cooked chicken already, but if you don’t, all you need to do is pan-fry, boil or roast it until it’s cooked through. You can prepare it however you like and with whatever seasonings you like. We tend to just use salt and pepper if the chicken is for this chicken salad specifically but I think a cajun seasoning mix would be very yummy too. While your chicken cools, chop the celery, apple, green onion, fresh parsley, and mix together in a bowl. Chop the chicken and add it to the veg. Add mayonnaise, sour cream, curry powder, garlic powder, and salt and pepper along with a squeeze of lemon juice. Mix until you have the consistency that you like. Then it’s ready to serve!
Kyllingesalat (Curry Chicken Salad)
Ingredients
- 454 grams chicken breast (you can also use rotisserie chicken or leftovers for this!)
- 75 grams celery
- 85 grams apple
- 20 grams green onion
- 3-4 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
- 3 tbsp mayonnaise
- 130 grams sour cream
- 1 tsp curry powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp mustard (optional)
- Squeeze of lemon juice
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook your chicken breast however you would like – in the pan, in the oven, or boiled/poached. We like to roast ours with salt, pepper, and a little olive oil for around 20 minutes in a 425F (218C) oven, then set aside to cool down while we prepare the rest of the ingredients. This recipe is also a great way to use leftover chicken you may have in the fridge!
- Finely dice the celery, apple, and green onion.
- Add the chopped ingredients to a medium sized mixing bowl.
- Finely chop parsley and add it to the bowl. Feel free to substitute for other herbs such as cilantro or dill.
- Once the chicken has cooled down, chop the chicken as well. We try to cut it into small chunks so the texture matches the chopped vegetables. Add it to the bowl with the rest of the ingredients.
- Add sour cream and mayonnaise (and mustard if you'd like to add it) and give it an initial mix. The sour cream and mayo should coat everything evenly – if you feel like you need to add a little more, feel free to do so to your taste!
- Add curry powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper and mix to combine.
- Add in a squeeze of lemon juice for a little more acidity if you would like. Taste and adjust for any seasoning!
- Use this chicken salad on open faced sandwiches, sourdough bread, or even in wraps! Keep for a few days in the fridge.
This was fantastic! I just made it and am trying to not eat all of it before serving it for my family for lunch. Five stars for taste and ease of making! (Og tusinde tak for en opskrift til kyllingesalat som jeg kan huske fra min barndom 🇩🇰😊).
Amazing to hear that it turned out delicious 🙂 og selv tak, hvor er det dejligt at det vækker minder hos flere af os – det er jo derfor vi elsker at dele vores opskrifter!