On second thought, that blog title is just too cute and cliche. The truth is, I came to a realization today that when my kitchen is stocked with good ingredients and homemade basics, putting together a delicious dish can be quick and absolutely effortless. This chicken salad is a classic example. I was brainstorming for ideas to use up a batch of homemade mayonnaise and saw drumsticks on sale at the store. Making a chicken salad seemed almost inevitable at that point. All other ingredients in this recipe are pantry staples. What makes it special is the use of mint to bring out the sweetness of apples. It adds such a refreshing and unexpected touch.
My preference is to poach the chicken myself instead of using precooked chicken (supermarket rotisserie anyone?). Poaching is such a gentle way of cooking that getting juicy tender meat is guaranteed. 10 chicken drumsticks yield just over 1lb of dark meat. This cut is easy to poach and debone, not to mention quite reasonably priced. Don't waste the bones either! I like to use them to make a quick stock and freeze it for soupmaking later. I highly recommend that you use a mustard with some kick. I happen to have a bottle of freshly made orange ginger mustard. It worked beautifully with this recipe.
Minted Chicken Salad with Apples, Cranberries, and Walnuts
makes 5 servings
nutritional information available
Ingredients
- 10 chicken drumsticks
- 1 small crispy apple such as Fuji, diced to 0.5cm pieces
- 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1/2 cup walnut halves, toasted and chopped
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 2 tbsp finely chopped mint leaves
- 2 tbsp finely chopped shallots
- 4 tbsp mayonnaise, homemade is preferable!
- 4 tsp dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Method
- To poach the drumsticks, bring a large pot of water to boil. Put drumsticks into the pot and return to boil. Put the lid on and turn the heat down to low. Simmer for 15 minutes until chicken is just cooked. Remove drumsticks onto a plate and cool until you can handle them. Discard skin and debone. Tear the meat into small bite size pieces and put into a large mixing bowl. Chill until ready to use. In the mean time, I like to return the bones to the pot and simmer with some aromatics such as carrots, onions, celery, and thyme to make a quick stock for other uses.
- Toss diced apples with vinegar to prevent browning. Put both apples and vinegar into the mixing bowl with the chicken.
- Add all remaining ingredients to the mixing bowl. Toss until evenly coated with dressing. Adjust seasoning if necessary.
- This salad tastes great on its own on a bed of lettuce but it also makes great filling for sandwich or wrap.
