I apologize in advance for doing so many smoked things lately. But to be fair to myself (which I always like to be), this was make with leftover chicken that I made for last week’s tacos. I do admit to being a little obsessed with smoked chicken, however. We are so used to ham and bacon, etc., that we think that’s what this will taste like. It doesn’t in any way.
You’ll note that I don’t get specific about quantities on some of the ingredients. I’m sure you’ve all made chicken salad before and have very definite ideas about how wet you like it, etc. Same with Old Bay. (Have you tried mixing Old bay and butter? Amazing). I love Old Bay on seafood but I went really light on it in this recipe. For me it’s the same with garlic - I don’t want anyone telling me I have to use 2-3 cloves of garlic when I want to use a head. I don’t need that negativity in my life ;)
INGREDIENTS
4 smoked chicken thighs or 3 leg/thigh portions
3-4 pickle spears
3 stalks celery
1 small red onion
Mayo
1 lemon
Soul Food seasoning*
Old Bay
smoked paprika
arugula
METHOD
* I found a couple of interesting spice mixes at the Dollar General lately, one of them being “Soul Food Seasoning.” It’s a nice (but a bit salty) savory blend and I used it to season the chicken before I smoked it.
See last week’s paper or the blog for instructions on how to smoke the chicken if you don’t have a smoker.
When the chicken is cooked, remove all skin and bone from the chicken and cut the remaining meat into cubes of about 3/4” and put into a mixing bowl.
Dice the pickles, celery and onion fairly small. Add to the bowl of chicken.
Start adding mayonnaise, a little at a time, until you get the consistency you like. Add a teaspoon of the Old Bay to start, and taste, adding more as necessary.
On a bed of arugula, place a mound of the chicken salad.
Squirt a bit of lemon on the salad and the greens.
Top with a little sprinkle of smoked paprika.
Chicken salad is one of those dishes that are everywhere, usually fairly plan, although I still love it.
But making something so mundane into a really tasty dish was a lot of fun. Might be my new go-to.
