I am normally a huge meal prepper, but the pandemic has removed that need from my life and I have been clinging to easy recipes for lunches as I work from home. Curry chicken salad is one of my favorites to make over the weekend and have in the fridge ready to grab between zoom calls. This simple dish is a take on the curry chicken salad Trader Joe’s sells (which I LOVE!). I removed the cashews the Trader Joe’s version has, because I don’t normally have those on hand, but otherwise made this my own as a great source of protein and a healthy option for lunches. Everyone I share this with loves this recipe because it is adaptable to whatever you have on hand, you can include more or eliminate some based on what is in your kitchen or your personal tastes. And it is so quick and easy, so what’s not to love?
Ok enough with the back story, here are the details:
Ingredients you’ll need:
Shredded chicken (canned, roasted, or boiled)
Mayo
Yellow curry powder
Grapes, raisins, or cranberries
Carrot sticks
Green onions
Celery
Lime juice
Olive oil
Garlic powder
Salt & pepper
Steps:
- Shred the chicken. You can use canned chicken for this, shred a roasted chicken (removing the skins) you pick up premade from the grocery store or boil it yourself. I often will put a piece of chicken in a small crockpot on high for 4 hours with water and chicken stock and shred that. But you do whatever is easiest for you. Set aside.
- Made the dressing! In a separate bowl, combine about a cup of mayo (any kind you like!) with a tablespoon of lime juice, a tablespoon of olive oil, two tablespoons of yellow curry powder, and then garlic powder and salt and pepper to taste.
- Chop up carrots (if not already prepackaged in sticks), green onions, grapes, and celery. You can also swap the grapes for cranberries or raisins (both are a delicious substitute). The amount you decide to chop is up to you, but I generally add about a 1:3 ratio compared to my chicken. So if I have 3 cups of chicken, I would add 1 cup of chopped veggies/ fruit.
- Add the chopped veggie mix to the chicken. Then mix in the dressing. You want to have a good amount of dressing for your mixture, so if it looks a bit dry to you, mix up more of the dressing and add that in! Feel free to add any additional salt and pepper to taste and enjoy!
This is delicious on sliced bread as a sandwich, eaten with crackers as a dip, or on top of spinach or lettuce for a salad. This has been an easy lunch for me working from home, or a make-ahead item for a picnic at the winery. Let me know some of your favorite go-to WFH lunches in the comments below. I’d love to expand my culinary horizons and options!
