Creamy chicken salad is a comfort food and is perfect to be served cold. Today I am sharing the recipe of a flavorful and spicy Chipotle Chicken Salad where I added some spice to the mayo to make it Chipotle Mayo. I also got the opportunity to try pastured Chicken from US Wellness Meat. US Wellness Meats’ pasture-raised chickens are raised on a salad bar of grasses, legumes, and insects. The limited amount of grain US Wellness Meats’ chickens consume is Non-GMO. They are also antibiotic and hormone free.
The best thing about this recipe is that it’s so easy to make and that you can eat it in a few different ways! You can have this just like a salad (the recipe). Or you can add cooked gluten free pasta to this salad and have it as a Chicken Pasta Salad. You can also make a sandwich out of it using gluten free bread rolls like these!
What are the ingredients used in this Chipotle Chicken Salad Recipe?
- Chicken Breasts or Chicken Thighs: You can use good quality boneless chicken breasts or thighs for this recipe. I love to get my meat from US Wellness Meat.(Use coupon code cook2nourish for a discount)
- Fresh Garlic Cloves or Garlic Powder: The garlic adds flavor to the chicken while it is being cooked so the meat will be infused with its flavor.
- Red Chilli Flakes: Crushed red chilli flakes gives flavor to the chicken while it is being cooked.
- Sea Salt: Sea salt is needed while cooking your chicken. Depending upon how much salt is included in your mayo and your seasonings, you may need some additional sea salt to be added to the mayo.
- Good Quality Mayonnaise: You can use either a traditional mayo that includes egg yolk like Chosen Foods or use a vegan, egg free mayo like the one I shared in my last blog post . You can also buy a readymade vegan mayo like this one.
- Seasonings: For spices, you need Chipotle seasoning or you can also use Chipotle in adobo sauce. I also like to add a chilli powder like Ancho Chilli powder.
- Lime juice: Fresh Lime juice gives a nice fresh and tangy flavor to the mayo. You can also sub with fresh lemon juice.
- Non-dairy milk like cashew milk or coconut milk: You might need a little bit of non dairy milk to make the mayo dressing be more of a runny / spreadable consistency.
- ½ a pound of Chicken Breasts
- 1 tbsp smoked red chilli peppers
- 1 tbsp garlic powder (or 2 large cloves of garlic)
- 1 tsp sea salt
- ¼ cup water
- 4 tbsps Avocado Oil Mayo (or a good quality vegan mayo)
- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 1 tsp chipotle powder
- 1 tsp ancho chilli powder
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp honey or maple syrup (optional; if your chipotle seasoning has some sugar then you can skip this)
- 1 - 2 tbsp non dairy milk like cashew milk or coconut milk
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- 4 romaine lettuce leaves, roughly chopped
- 1 medium size carrot, grated
- Use any gluten free bread rolls or gluten free sandwich bread
- Butter as needed
- Add the chicken, the red chilli peppers, garlic, sea slat and water to the Instant Pot. Close the lid and pressure cook for 10 mins. let pressure release naturally before opening. You can also cook the chicken in a regular cooking pot on low heat for about 30-40 minutes.
- Once the chicken is cooled, shred it using two forks or your fingers. Keep aside.
- Mix all ingredients listed under dressing and whisk together using a whisk. Taste and add salt as needed.
- To a large mixing bowl, add all the salad ingredients. Add the shredded chicken and the dressing and mix thoroughly using a spatula.
- Apply butter to sandwich bread. And then place a generous aount of salad onto one of the bread slcies. Top with another slice.
- Mix 1 cup cooked gluten free pasta with this salad and toss well. Sprinkle additional salt as needed.
