The best salad in the world, that is the perfect use of any leftover roast chicken. Don't forgo the dressing, it's like coronation sauce but better.
This salad stemmed from leftover Sunday roast meat that I reheated in the microwave. Nervous about it poisoning anyone, I wacked up the heat and drizzled it with olive oil and water to create steam and keep it tender.
Mix the warm shredded chicken and its cooking juices with the mango chutney dressing before serving. The oil and meat juices emulsify the yogurt based sauce, making the 'coronation chicken effect'...
Serves 4
Ingredients:
Pre cooked chicken (roughly shredded) / (enough to feed about 5)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon water
½ Butternut squash (sliced into thin segments)
1 teaspoon of paprika or chilli powder
1 Red onion (roughly sliced)
1 small bag baby spinach
1 romaine lettuce heart
1 avocado (chopped)
2 peach (sliced)
1 handful hazelnuts (toasted and roughly chopped)
1 handful cherry tomatoes (halved)
1 handful mini gherkins (finely sliced)
Dressing:
6 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons mango chutney
1 lemon (juice)
2 teaspoons paprika
3 tablespoons greek yogurt
handful of sultanas (optional)
Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4/ 350°F
Line a baking tray and add the prepared butternut squash and red onion
Drizzle with olive and season with salt, pepper and the paprika/ chilli powder
Bake in oven for 20 minutes
Put the cooked chicken in a microwave proof bowl and add a drizzle of olive oil and a few tablespoons of water, cover with cling-film and microwave on a high heat for 5 minutes
Wash the lettuce and spinach and line them on the base of the dish
Add the avocado, gherkins, cherry tomatoes, peach and toss with the leaves gently
Make the dressing by adding all the ingredients together and combining vigorously (mix it well in bowl or shake in a jar)
Pour the dressing over the hot chicken and mix well
Add the warm butternut squash and onion and chicken mixture to the top of the salad
Toast the nuts and sprinkle on top