The story behind this recipe: once upon a time I went to the Bahamas and had this amazing curried chicken salad at a restaurant on the beach and have been trying to recreate it ever since. This version is the closest I’ve gotten to the original, but the two biggest factors that really affect the final product are:
1. The quality of spices you use
2. How long you let the salad sit before serving. The longer the flavors have to marry, the better. Patience is a virtue and thou shalt be rewarded.
PS: If you’re ever on Grand Bahama Island, check out Banana Bay – it’s a great spot for a casual lunch or sunset dinner, and they even provide lounge chairs on the beach for your inevitable food coma. Enjoy!
Healthy(ish) Curried Chicken Salad
6
servings15
minutes15
minutes30
minutesIngredients
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 small red onion
2 stalks celery
1/4 cup raisins (I used a mix of regular and golden raisins, but do you)
About 3 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp salt
2 tsp black pepper
2 tsp curry powder
- For the curry “dressing”
1 cup plain greek yogurt ( I used full fat yogurt, but you can sub for a lighter version if you’re into that kind of thing)
1 tbsp curry powder
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp turmeric
1 1/2 tsp honey
Juice from 1/2 of a lemon
Directions
- Preheat grill or grill pan to high heat.
- While the grill/pan is heating, combine greek yogurt, curry powder, ground ginger, turmeric, honey and lemon juice in a small bowl. Let sit in the fridge for about an hour.
- Drizzle chicken breasts with olive oil and season/rub with salt, pepper, and curry powder until they are well coated.
- Place chicken breasts on the hot grill/grill pan and cook about 6 minutes on each side (or until internal temp is at 165°F).
- Remove chicken from grill and set aside to cool.
- While chicken is cooling, dice the red onion and celery stalks and add to a large bowl.
- Once chicken has cooled, cut into small bite-size pieces and combine with the onion, celery, raisins, and curry dressing in the large bowl.
- Once all ingredients are combined, let sit in the fridge for at least a few hours, preferably overnight, then serve!