Conference turris::cooks

    4 c. cooked chopped chicken			Chicken broth
    1/2 c heavy creaml, whipped			1 c. mayo (pref homemade)
    2 c. chopped celery				1 c. slivered blanched
    						     almonds
    
    Chicken will be more moist if cut from bones the day before you
    make the salad, covered with broth in which it was cooked, then
    chilled until ready to use.
    
    Remove chicken from broth; scrape away the jellied broth and use
    it for another purpose.  Combine whipped cream with mayo, then blend
    all ingredients together, adding more mayo if needed.  If desired,
    a few drops of fresh lemon juice may be addedto spark up the flavor;
    taste it and see.
    
    from Southern Living

			
    
    2 Chicken breasts, with skin removed
    White wine or white wine worcestershire
    Thyme
    Garlic (powder or crushed)
    Paprika
    
    1 finely shredded carrot        )  A food processor would 
    1 finely diced onion            )  be useful here 
    1 finely diced green pepper     )  
    1-2 finely diced celery stalks  )
    
                                
    *If time permits, marinade the chicken for a few hours or overnight
     in the wine, thyme, garlic and paprika.
    
    *If time does not permit, bake the chicken with the wine and herbs.
    
    Cool the chicken pieces, dice and combine with vegetables.  
    
    Add additional garlic, paprika and thyme.  Toss with mayonnaise.

    I've been on a chicken salad kick for a few weeks now, and I've
    added minced radishes for some zing.  Also, Dijon mustard is nice,
    and a slash of liquid from the dill-pickle jar.  That way, you can
    use lo-cal mayo will no discernable difference.
    
    I like hard-boiled eggs, but would rather avoid the cholesterol;
    can tofu be used to add volume?  So the salad would last more than
    two days??
    
    TW
    

    Yes, you can use tofu, but it's really not very good.  You can try
    pressing it for a bit and then marinating in some flavoring (spicy
    stuff seems to work best, with lots ofcayenne or Szechuan peppercorns).
     That seems to work best.  A delicately-flavored salad is just
    underwhelmed when you add tofu.
    
    Add some lobster or even that fake crab-like stuff, and use a
    lemon or lime mayonnaise with fresh basil.  
    
    Chicken salad just doesn't last more than two days.  Even if it
    doesn't get nasty-tasting, the chicken gets hard and chewy.  
    

    
    I hate to disagree, but tofu salad can work very well.  In fact,
    I made a really good tofu salad last night.  I saute it for a little
    while and then cool it before adding the other ingredients so that
    it doesn't have that "raw" flavor.  I used mayo., mustard, black
    pepper, dill, fresh parsley, celery, onion, shredded carrots, and
    diced red peppers.
    
    -Leslie

    Sauteeing tofu, especially if you use a stir-fry sauce, can make
    it much more tolerable.  It gets rid of that raw taste, as -.1
    says, and the sauce gives it a spicy taste.  You can use any
    marinade you like for the stir-fry sauce or
    
    	combine:
    		1/2 cup chicken broth or water
    		a few tablespoons of soy sauce
    		a tablespoon of cooking sherry or vinegar
    		a teaspoon or two of sugar or honey
    		ginger, garlic, hot-sauce to taste

    	use this to sautee the tofu.  When you're done, mix
    		1/2 tsp cornstarch
    		a few tablespoons of water
    	into a smooth pourable sauce.  Add it to the liquid
    	in the pan.  Cook until thickened.
    
    	This keeps your salad from getting too watery, but retains
    	all that flavor.
    
    --Louise

    
    
    			Sesame Turkey Salad
    
    	3 T vinegar
    	1 T soy sauce
    	1-1/2 tsp sesame oil
    	1/4 tsp ginger 
    
    	Combine above ingredients to make the dressing.
    
    	3/4 Lb diced turkey
    	1 cuke, peeled and diced
    	1 red pepper, diced
    	
    	Don't dice too small.  Toss turkey, cuke, and pepper.  Just
    	before serving, toss with dressing.
    

    2 whole medium chicken breasts, skinned, boned and cut into bite-size strips
    spicy lime marinade (recipe follows)
    5 1/2 oz spinach
    1 sweet red pepper, seeded and chopped
    1 1/2 cans jalapeno chili peppers, seeded and chopped
    8 oz cheese-filled egg tortellini
    1 T cooking oil
    
    Marinate chicken in Spicy Lime Marinade, covered for 30 minutes
    at room temperature. In a large mixing bowl, toss together spinach
    and peppers.
    
    Cook tortellini according to package directions. Cook until tender
    but still slightly firm. Drain and keep warm.
    
    Drain chicken, reserving marinade.
    
    In skillet heat oil over high heat. Stir-fry chicken 3 to 4 minutes
    or until done. Add to tortellini.
    
    AAdd reserved marinade to skillet. Cook over high heat 1 minute.
    Remove from heat. Add spinach mixture to skillet; toss 1 minute
    or until spinach wilts slightly.
    
    Combine spinach mixture, tortellini and chicken; toss. Serve
    immediately.
    
    Yield: 4 servings.
    
    Spicy Lime Marinade: In a mixing bowl combine 1/2 t. finely shredded
    lime peel, 3 T. lime juice, 2 T. cooking oil, 1 t. chili powder
    and 1/4 t. salt.
    
    

    1/4 C. safflower oil
    1 T. sesame oil
    1 T. sesame seed
    1/2 C. packed brown sugar
    1/2 C. rice vinegar
    1 T. red wine
    1 t. hot chili oil
    1/2 t. salt
    6 oz. fresh won ton skins
    peanut oil for deep-fat frying
    3 whole cooked chicken breasts, skinned and boned
    1 bunch green onions
    1 large head lettuce, coarsely shredded
    4 large stalks celery, cut into thin strips
    1 small bunch cilantro, chopped
    
    To prepare dressing, combine safflower oil, sesame oil, and sesame
    seed in a small skillet. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly,
    until seeds are golden brown. Let cool slightly.
    
    Combine with brown sugar, vinegar, wine, chili oil, and salt and
    blend well. Refrigerate.
    
    Slice won ton skins into 1/4-inch strips and fry, several at a time,
    in hot oil. Drain on paper towels. (Fried won tons can be stored
    in an airtight container at room temperature overnight.)
    
    Shred chicken. Cut green onions into 1-inch pieces. In a large bowl
    toss together chicken, onions, letuce, celery and cilantro. Add
    dressing and toss again. (Salad can be refrigerated briefly at this
    point , if necessary.) At serving time, add fried won ton strips
    and toss gently. Do not let stand ot won ton strips will lose their
    crispness. 
    
    Yield: 8 to 10 servings.
    

    It's a bit late in the year for chicken salad, but I've been making
    this one since I first tried the recipie in August.  It's delicious
    and simple.  Also, the method provided for poaching chicken breasts
    is reliable and results in very tender meat.  
    
    
    Thai Chicken Salad
    
    4-1/2 to 5 oz. cellophane noodles (bean threads, available at Oriental
    markets and supermarkets)
    3 lbs. chicken breasts, poached, skin and bones discarded and meat
    torn into thin shreds (about 4 cups)
    1 cup finely grated carrot
    2 cucumbers, peeled, seeded, and chopped
    
    	Dressing:
    
    	4 large garlic cloves
    	1/2 tsp. salt
    	1/4 c. soy sauce
    	1/2 c. FRESH lime juice
    	1 Tb. sugar
    	1 Tb. peanut butter 
    	1-1/4 tsp. dried hot red pepper flakes
    	1/4 c. vegetable oil
    
    	Garnish:
    
    	1/2 c. coarsely crushed roasted peanuts, or to taste
    
    
    
    To poach chicken breasts:
    
    In a large saucepan or kettle, combine the chicken breasts with
    enough cold water to cover them by one inch.  Remove the chicken,
    bring water to boil, and add salt to taste.  Return chicken to the
    pan and poach it at a bare simmer for 17 minutes.  Remove the pan
    from the heat, let chicken cool in the liquid for 30 minutes, drain
    and follow recipie instructions.
    
    
    Recipie:
    
    In a large heatproof bowl, pour boiling water to cover over the
    noodles and let them stand for 10 minutes.  Drain and arrange on
    a platter or divide them among 6 plates.  In a bowl, combine the
    chicken, carrot, and cucumbers.
    
    Dressing:  mince and mash the peeled garlic to a paste with the
    salt.  In a blender, mix the soy sauce, sime juice, sugar, peanut
    butter, red pepper flakes and garlic paste.  With the blender running,
    add the oil in a stream, and blend dressing until it is emulsified.
     
    
    Pour half the dressing over the chicken mixture, toss the salad
    well and arrange it in the center of the noodles.  
    
    Just before serving, top the salad with the peanuts.  Pass the
    remaining dressing separately.  Serve the salad at room temperature
    or chilled.  Serves six.  
    
    [Recipies originally appeared in Gourmet Magazine, reprinted in
    "Bottom Line/Personal," August 15, 1989.]

    Notes on the chicken salad:
    
    1.  Watch the chicken when you're poaching it to make sure the
    	water is just "at a bare simmer."  If it boils for long, the
    	meat is tough and stringy.  If it is too cool, the chicken is
    	not cooked thoroughly to the bone.  
    
    2.  Salt:  I omitted salt when poaching the chicken.  I also omitted
    	it in the dressing by simply mashing the garlic in a garlic
    	press. Does anybody know why Gourmet wants you to mash it with
    	the salt?  I also use unsalted dry roasted peanuts for the 
    	garnish.
    
    3.  Ian Philpott recommends that you use either ground peanuts or
    	decent natural peanut butter instead of good old American
    	Skippy or Jif.   Hear, hear!
    
    4.  Noodles:  Instead of cellophane noodles, I've been using 
    	fresh Japanese Soba noodles which are in the produce section
    	of the Purity Supreme in Nashua.  Maybe not authentic, but
    	very yummy.  
    
    5.  Cucumbers:  If you plan on storing the salad and serving it
    	later, add the cucumbers when you serve the salad.  If you leave
    	them in for a day or so, they get slimy and icky.  Ian also
    	says that in Thailand, a more traditional ingredient would be
    	papaya.  
    
    6.  Soy sauce:  Ian and his wife say that the soy sauce and
        salt is probably a substitution for a Thai fish sauce. 
    
    Enjoy -- Peigi   

    
    Peigi sent me this by mail a while ago, and Ann and I have been
    experimenting since. I have four comments in addition
    
    1) No problem with poaching the chicken, however Ann usually steams
    the chicken (bamboo steamer over a wok, but any steamer will do),
    and of course this omits the salt from the chicken. Usually before
    cooking she bones and marinates it in fish sauce and ground red pepper 
    (chili) for 12 hours, but you can omit this stage if you prefer the chicken
    less spicy.
    
    2) After some experimenting we replaced the mashed garlic by half
    the amount mashed as suggested and half of it lightly fried in peanut
    oil - gives a bit more texture, but again purely a matter of taste.
    
    3) Ground peanuts should of course be saltless... but then I presume
    that goes without saying. We roast our own (low heat in an oven
    - spread the raw peanuts on a cookie tray and roast until barely
    cooked)                         
    
    4) You can add some (raw or lightly cooked) bean sprouts to the
    salad, again more for texture than anything else.
    
    Anyway it is delicious, and certainly a recipe that you can experiment
    with.  
    
    /. Ian .\
    
    Footnotes:
    
    1) a Thai name, if you want one, would be "Yum Kai", but that really
    just means "chicken salad", so nothing special
    
    2) Bamboo steamers have one distinct advantage over metal ones -
    the steam doesn't condense on the lid and drip back over the food
    being steamed, which I suspect makes the result a little less soggy...

    I'd just add curry powder to regular chicken salad, then add chopped
    apples, nuts, raisins, and onions to it.
    
    --Karen

  In addition to the ingredients suggested in .-1, try adding some
  crumbled bacon. It's really good!

Well:... all quantities are "to taste"

Put a small amount of peanut oil (or similar) in a hot wok and stir in some
chopped garlic (and optionally some chopped onion or shallots). Then when garlic 
and onions are golden brown add curry powder and stir.

Add 5 oz of plain yoghurt (or coconut milk), and stir to a paste.

Cool, and use to make dressing...

You can also add other hot ingredients (finely sliced red and green chilis for
example).

(my wife's mix: 10 cloves of garlic,
		1 medium onion
		2 tablespoons of home made curry powder
		5 green chilis
		5 red chilis

caution this is *hot*)

/. Ian .\

Some suggestions:

get a blender cookbook and make homemade mayonaise.  Mix half/half with
a mild yoghurt (dannon brand plain is fine).  Simmer chicken breasts in
a chicken broth seasoned with onions and a good hit of sage/poultry
seasoning just until white all the way through.  Cool chicken in broth.
Drain and remove all skin, all tendons, etc. from the chicken, chop
chicken into bowl.  Add mayo mix and celery slices/diced celery.  Taste.
I'm betting it will be real close to what you are looking for.  Season 
to taste with salt/white pepper.  Keep chilled in fridge.

    
    there are many ways to prepare chicken salad and henry appears to have
    found *the* perfect way!!  i don't know the recipe and haven't had the
    pleasure of tasting his chicken salad but i can offer a couple of solid
    possibilities.  boiling the chicken is not the way to go if you prefer
    a simple, yet flavorful salad.
    
    1. the chicken, it's best to use deboned/boneless breasts, can be
       poached with a blush or crisp white wine with shallots/onions,
       garlic, or herbs.  maybe even a touch of olive oil to boot.  this
       is a far better alternative to boiling.
    
    2. the chicken is baked in the oven, slowly, with herbs and garlic.
       i had chicken salad once that i thought was the best.  the secret,
       i discovered, was savory - fresh not dried (powdered).
    
    i prepared chicken salad once for a party.  most people expect the same
    old thing but not from me.  i enjoy adding different flavors to dishes
    that no one would ever expect.  it's innovative, different and does set
    a pace.  henry knows this - his chicken salad is a real pleaser! 
    
    /gail

Try mixing tuna AND chopped egg together with mayo and celery.  It tastes 
better than either tuna or egg salad.  Also, for just egg salad, add sliced 
green olives.

I make curried chicken salad by mixing together unknown quantities of some 
or all of the following.  

	cubed chicken
	curry powder
	mayonaise
	raisins
	chopped apple
	chopped celery
	cooked sliced carrots 
	
I make oriental chicken salad by mixing together unknown quanities of some 
or all of the following.  Make ahead of time to absorb the marinade.

	chicken, cut in large slivers
	rice vinegar, sesame oil (not too much), soy sauce, hot pepper sauce 
	   or red pepper flakes to taste
	sliced red pepper
	sliced scallions
	sliced cooked mushrooms
	cooked fettucine-type noodles
	chopped peanuts (add just before serving)

 Chicken salad
 -------------

 4 parts cooked chicken, diced
 1 part celery, diced
 1 part green olives, sliced
 Mayonnaise (I use Cains; it's all natural but only available in the NE US)
 Salt & pepper

 No doubt it's different than what you've had before. :-) Don't be put off
by the olives; it's a really interesting taste. I love it.

 The Doctah

	Saw this one in one of the books recently...
	
		1 - 2 lbs boiled bite
		      size chicken pieces
		1/4 c diced celery
		1/4 c diced onion
		1/8 - 1/4 c  slivered almonds
		1/4 c mayonnaise
		1 - 2 tsp curry powder (to taste)
		1 cup seedless grapes

	Mix together above ingredients and refrigerate for 
	1 - 2 hours before serving.

	You may want to experiment with the amount you use..