Homemade Chicken Salad

Chicken salad is a fantastic dish, especially for meal prepping. We made this on a Sunday and it was a perfect lunch all week! The best part is you can make it however you want and normally you have all the ingredients in your fridge already. This is my version of chicken salad.

A few things to note before you begin:

• I sous vide my chicken, do not feel like you have to do that - I will describe a couple ways

• Celery is what adds that fresh crunch, so if that is your favorite part of chicken salad, feel free to add more

• When tasting, remember which ingredient is adding which flavor: too savory or eggy = too much mayo, too acidic = too much lemon, not enough punch = add salt, for extra freshness = add celery. Mix and match the ratios to get the flavor you want.

How to cook your chicken

I prepared 3 pounds of chicken, which seems like a lot.. and it is, but I use this for meal prep to feed two people for a week.

Sous Vide

Get your water to 140F (60C), bag up the chicken in your sous vide bags and place it in the water to cook for 2 hours. Now, this temperature will not reach 165 so the question is how is it safe? 165F is for the purpose of ensuring any bacteria is dead, however, keeping chicken at 140 degrees for 20 minutes will also kill bacteria. Searing or baking is very difficult to maintain the temperature and also not cook out all the moisture, but sous vide can keep the temperature consistent.

Pan Sear

To pan sear your chicken it is as simple as it seems; heat a pan, oil in, and then lay your chicken breast down. Cook it on one side for 4 minutes, then flip. Let that sit for a minute and then add some water to the pan to create some steam. Cover it, and cook for ~6 minutes or until temperature is 165F.

Bake

Heat oven to 450F, season chicken and place on a sheet tray. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the internal temperature is 165F.

Homemade chicken salad

Ingredients

• 3 lbs cooked chicken breast

• 1 cup mayonaise

• 1 tablespoon mustard

• 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice

• 1/2 cup dill

• 1/4 cup onion, sliced thin

• 1 cup celery, sliced

• 1/2 cup green onion tips, sliced

Instructions

1. Shred chicken or slice it into small chunks

2. Add remaining ingredients to a bowl and mix!

It really is that easy. I would recommend a big bowl and using a scooping method to mix all of the chicken together.

Enjoy on a sandwich with hearty white bread, homemade pickles, fresh tomatoes and a cold beer :)