My son Brennan has been on a chicken salad kick. So, I decided to whip some up last week! I would rather he take some chicken on his sandwich than revert back to processed deli meats, which we could all do without.
I have to say, my German Dad was a huge cold cut man. He loved them and as such, I grew up with ham, bologna and liverwurst pretty regularly. But, I really do try to minimize this processed stuff as we all know it’s full of salt, preservatives and chemicals.
I make chicken salad typically with a whole breast of chicken simmered in a stock pot with carrots, celery stalks and leaves, a bit of sea salt and pepper and a splash of white wine, if I have it. I just had the boneless skinless breast handy so used them up for my recipe.
I cook the chicken in this mixture, strain the broth and freeze it as a nice natural and inexpensive (and low FODMAP) broth to use later in the week or month.
My mom taught me to boil up the chicken just until about fork tender and then shut off the heat and let the mixture sit, covered for about 90 minutes-no more! This allows for a gentle slow cook. The chicken is so tender and perfect for my chicken salad!
I chopped up the cooked chicken, add a bit of fresh lemon juice, light mayo and some dill. I just had dried dill but fresh always is best if you have it! Certainly you could vary this recipe and skip the dill and add some tarragon OR make a sweeter version and add some sliced red grapes. (FODMAPers limit to 20 grapes per sitting–which really is a nice BIG amount!)
YUM! We all enjoyed this chicken salad over winter break and hope you make some to enjoy too!
Ingredients
- 2 medium whole chicken breasts or 6, 3 oz boneless breasts
- 8 cups of water
- 2-3 carrots, chopped
- 2-3 celery stalks with leaves, chopped
- Splash of dry white wine, optional
- Sea salt and pepper as desired
- 1/3 cup light mayo or as desired ( I used Hellman's light)
- 1 TB fresh lemon juice
- Sprinkle of dill
- Sea salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add chicken, water, carrots, celery, wine (if using), salt and pepper to large stock pot over high heat.
- Bring mixture to boil until chicken fork tender-time varies depending on what type of chicken you use 5-20 minutes.
- Shut off heat and cover stock pot. Let sit for about 90 minutes to finish cooking.
- Remove chicken at that point, and chop into bite size chunks.
- Add remaining ingredients and refrigerate.
- Strain broth into ice cube tray or freezer bag and freeze for later use.
Jen
HI Kate…Just wanted to drop a note and let you know… love your blogs…the Giovanella home has continued with all your ideas you have given us for healthy eating. Keep them coming!
Always,
Jen
katescarlata
Hey Jen!! I just thought of the Giovanella family this week!! Great to hear from you! My best to you and yours!!
EA-The Spicy RD
So easy and delicious, I want to make some for my lunch today! I am a fan of pecans in my chicken salad, so would add those in too, plus maybe some dried cranberries 🙂 I only started “boiling” chicken last year, but it really does make for a nice moist meat. Great idea to save the broth too!