curried chicken salad

You'll find a thousand chicken salad recipes on the internet, but I must (biasedly) say that this one is my favorite-- it's the curry. Gives it a little somethin' extra.

I grew up on curried chicken salad. It was a go-to meal in my household for weeknight suppers and large parties because you can make big batches in advance and the medley of flavors is a crowd pleaser. It's definitely a multi-seasonal kinda dish, but I'm sharing it with you now because there is something about the apples and raisins that captures the essence of autumn eating. 

This recipe includes a foolproof way to poach chicken breast. I encourage you to try it, but if you already have a preferred method, then feel free to skip ahead to step #2.

Enjoy!

recipe

for the chicken salad:

• 4 cups poached chicken breast, pulled into bite-size pieces
• 1 cup apples, diced
• 1 cup celery, thinly-sliced crosswise 
• 1 cup seedless green grapes, halved
• ½ cup pecans, broken into pieces
• ½ cup golden raisins
• ½ cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh tarragon, chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste

for the curried mayonaise: 

• 1 cup homemade mayonnaise
• 1 ¼ teaspoon curry powder
• 2-3 tablespoons freshly-squeezed lemon juice
• Dash cayenne pepper
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. To poach the chicken breasts (or skip ahead to step 2 as per my note above), dissolve 2 tbsp kosher salt in six cups of cold water. Submerge three boneless, skinless chicken breasts and cook on medium heat until the water registers 165°F. Immediately remove from heat and cover with a tight-fitting lid. Allow to sit covered for 15-17 minutes. Drain and pat dry with paper towels.
2. Have all the ingredients chopped, measured out and ready to go. 
3. Put the ingredients for the chicken salad in a large bowl. Mix several times with a spatula to combine.
4. In a medium bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the curry mayonnaise until evenly blended. Scoop the mayo mixture onto the chicken salad and toss together the ingredients with a spatula until evenly coated/combined.

If you make this recipe, hashtag a pic to #spiceandhutch and post to Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. I'd love to see your culinary creations!

tuna niçoise tartine

If I could pick one thing to eat for lunch for the rest of my life, it would be tuna niçoise tartine. The confit garlic aïoli goes beautifully with a medley of fresh herbs as well as the salty acidic punch that you get from the olives and cornichon. 

A tartine is an open-faced French sandwich with savory or sweet toppings. This variation is basically a tuna sandwich on steroids, and it doesn't disappoint. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do! Recipe is below.

recipe

for the confit garlic aïoli:

• 3 cloves garlic, peeled
• 8 oz extra virgin olive oil
• 5 oz canola oil
• 1 large brown egg
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

for the tuna salad:

• 8 oz canned tuna in oil, drained
• 1 tbsp chives, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp cornichon, finely chopped
• 2 tsp flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
• 2 tsp chervil, finely chopped
• 2 tsp capers, finely chopped
• 2 tsp shallot, minced
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp fresh lemon juice, or more to taste
• salt and pepper 

to serve:

• 4 thick slices sourdough or pain de campagne
• 4 romaine or butter lettuce leaves
• 12 Niçoise or kalamata olives, sliced in half
• 2 hard-boiled eggs, thinly sliced
• 4 radishes, thinly sliced
• 1 tbsp chives, minced
• 8 whole cornichon

1. To make the confit garlic aïoli, pour half of the olive oil into a small saucepan and add the garlic. Cook on low heat for about 20-30 minutes until the garlic becomes soft. Keep a close eye on it - the garlic browns and burns very easily!
2. Remove the garlic and set aside. Combine the garlic oil with the remaining half cup of olive oil and the canola oil. Stir to combine.
3. Run the three garlic cloves, the lemon juice, and the egg through a food processor for 1-2 minutes until smooth. Then, with the motor running, pour in the combined oils very, very slowly. You want a tiny thread of oil pouring from your spout. The aioli won't emulsify properly if you pour too quickly, so be patient with it. Once you have added the combined oils and the mixture has thickened, turn off the machine and season to taste, if needed. 
4. In a medium-sized bowl, add the chopped herbs, capers, cornichon and shallot, the strained tuna, the lemon juice, the paprika, a half cup of the aïoli, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix together until nicely combined. Season to taste. 
5. To assemble the tartines, spread a dollop of the aïoli on each of the four slices of bread. Add 1-2 leaves of the romaine or butter lettuce leaves and a couple heaping tablespoons of the tuna salad to each slice of bread. Top each tartine with the radishes and boiled eggs and olives, and garnish with the minced chives and smoked paprika and whole cornichon. Serve immediately.

Adapted from the Bouchon by Thomas Keller

If you make this recipe, hashtag a pic to #spiceandhutch and post to Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. I'd love to see your culinary creations!