Since cleansing, I have been eating a lot more salads. This chicken salad was packed with flavors in a creamy avocado/mayo dressing which satisfies even the most skeptical salad eater. This recipe serves 2 people, a proper portion of salad. I was perfectly full!
Chicken Salad with Grapes & Celery
200 g shredded chicken (recipe link)
1 celery stick sliced super thin (60 g)
30 g sliced green onion
100 g halved red grapes
15 g sliced toasted almonds
100 g red oak lettuce
60 g roughly chopped spinach
5 g finely chopped parsley
Avocado Dressing
1/2 an avocado 70 g
50 g mayonnaise
1 1/2 T red wine vinegar
s&p
2 T water
I must begin by saying to make this salad extra yummy, use the technique that I use for cooking boneless, skinless chicken breasts if you want your chicken to have a super yummy flavor and texture. I marinate them for 24 hours in lemon juice, olive oil and s&p to give it an extra layer of flavor. But if you have leftover roasted chicken chilling in your fridge, you can of course use that too.
Prep all of your ingredients according to the recipe above. I like to have all my salad ingredients small and bite size because to me, salads always taste better when you get close to all the ingredients in one bite. In California we call these a "chopped salad" meaning most of the ingredients are chopped up small. It becomes a more balanced bite when the sweet, sour, salty, spicy, bitter, and umami can all come together in one spoon or fork.
To make the dressing, I use a small food processor that is half the size of the standard one most chefs/people use. In the large version, it can have a harder time puréeing the ingredients together if the quantity of ingredients is smaller. You can also use a deep container and a stand mixer as well.
Place the avocado, mayonnaise, red wine vinegar and s&p in the machine and purée until super smooth. Take 50 g of this and add it to the 200 g of shredded chicken. Then, add a small handful (around a tablespoon) of the celery, almonds, grapes, green onions and all of the parsley to the chicken. Mix this together and set aside.
Tear or cut your lettuces in pieces. I like to roughly chop my spinach because truthfully, I love the health it gives me, but not so much the texture of it when raw, so I disguise it a bit by cutting it smaller. Add 2 T cold water to the remaining dressing and mix again. Toss this over your lettuce and mix until well coated. Season your lettuce with salt & pepper as well. It's important, Do it!
Plate your lettuce in the bowls. Set the chicken on top, dividing it between the bowls. Sprinkle the remaining celery, grapes, green onions & almonds around the top of the salad and eat it! Feel the health people!