Curried Chicken Salad

A roasted or grilled whole chicken is great when you’re on a low sodium diet. You can rub the bird with just about any salt-free spice blend you can think of and get a wonderfully flavorful meal. I usually end up buying 4-5 pound chickens, so I can get several meals out of one cooking session. A few days ago, I roasted a Greek-style chicken, rubbed with lemon juice, garlic, and oregano. The chicken weighed almost six pounds, and I ended up with a lot of breast meat leftover. Just perfect for chicken salad, and this time I wanted a curry zing to it. The end result was delicious stuffed into low sodium pita breads. There was plenty left over for another day’s lunch too.

 I used my usual concoction for creamy sandwich fillings – a combo of mayonnaise and sour cream or yogurt. This base is creamy but lower in sodium than an all mayonnaise base. It’s also more moist and sumptuous than an all sour cream or an all yogurt base. Of course, I look for the lowest sodium mayo, sour cream, or yogurt available at my local grocery store. I also like to add a few tablespoons of leftover chicken broth/dripping to chicken salad. It boosts flavor while not adding salt.

Here’s what I did. Although there’s no real recipe and no exact quantities, you can get the idea. I didn’t include any fruit, but I know some people enjoy the combination of fruit and curry.

Curried Chicken Salad
(Printable Recipe)

Dressing:
Equal parts mayonnaise and sour cream or yogurt (I used approximately 1/4 cup each.)
1 tsp. salt-free curry powder or to taste
1-2 tbsp. low sodium chutney (I used a mango-chili chutney from my local farmers market)
2-3 tbsp. of NSA chicken broth
Lemon or lime juice or a sprinkle of vinegar (Add if the dressing seems "flat")
For even more zest, add some finely chopped jalapeno, a couple of drops of chili oil, or some crushed red pepper flakes.

Salad:
Cooked chicken, shredded, or chopped
Thinly sliced or slivered toasted almonds
Thinly sliced or chopped celery
Thinly sliced green onions or finely chopped red onion
Finely chopped red bell pepper, if desired
Dried fruit such as raisins, cranberries, or apricots, if desired
Fresh fruit such as halved grapes, pineapple chunks, or apple, if desired
Canned fruit such as pineapple chunks or mandarin oranges
Coconut, if desired