Curried Chickpea and Chicken Salad
By Better Plate RecipesTwo cans of chickpeas, about a generous cup per serving, are mashed just enough to go creamy at the edges, then folded with poached chicken, celery, red onion, halved grapes, and toasted almonds. The dressing is Greek yogurt bloomed with curry powder and a little honey, so it tastes rich and warmly spiced without a spoonful of mayonnaise.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
This is deli curry chicken salad rebuilt so you can eat a real portion of it. Mashing about a third of the two cans of chickpeas gives the whole bowl a creamy body, which means the Greek yogurt dressing only has to carry flavor, not fat. Blooming the curry powder in warm oil first is what makes it taste like a proper curry rather than dusty spice, and the halved red grapes deliver those sweet bursts that make this style of salad so moreish. Celery and red onion keep it crunchy, toasted almonds add richness, and cilantro and chives keep it fresh. At 42 grams of protein it is a serious lunch, and it is even better on day two.
What Makes This Recipe Work
Three techniques do the heavy lifting. Poaching the chicken at a bare simmer keeps the breast tender and moist where a hard boil would turn it stringy. Blooming the curry powder and turmeric in warm oil for twenty seconds dissolves the raw edge and deepens the color of the dressing. And the partial chickpea mash creates a creamy binder without mayonnaise, so nonfat Greek yogurt is enough to hold everything together. Grapes, celery, and toasted almonds then provide the three contrasting textures, sweet-juicy, crisp-watery, and nutty-crunchy, that keep every forkful different.
Before You Start
Start the chicken poaching first and keep the water at small bubbles, never a rolling boil. Toast the almonds early and get them off the heat the moment they smell nutty, since they go from gold to bitter fast. Use a mild curry powder unless you want real heat, because it stays essentially raw in a cold dressing. Dice the celery and onion finely so no single bite is overwhelming, and halve rather than quarter the grapes so they stay juicy.
Ingredient Notes & Easy Swaps
Chicken breasts: Poach at a bare simmer, never a rolling boil, which tightens the muscle and turns the meat stringy. Cook to 165°F and rest before dicing or shredding.
Chickpeas: Two 15 oz cans go in, about a cup of chickpeas per serving. Mash about a third of them and leave the rest whole. That partial mash is the creamy binder that replaces mayonnaise; mash them all and you have hummus.
Greek yogurt: A full 1 1/2 cups is needed to coat two cans of chickpeas. Nonfat Greek yogurt keeps the salad thick enough to scoop into lettuce cups. Regular yogurt will make it soupy.
Curry powder: Use a mild yellow curry powder, since it stays essentially raw in a cold dressing. Blooming it in warm oil for twenty seconds removes the dusty edge.
Red grapes: Halved seedless red grapes give the sweet bursts that make curry chicken salad addictive. They hold their shape better than green grapes and are sweeter against the spice.
Sliced almonds: Toast them in a dry skillet until they smell nutty, then keep them separate until serving, since they soften quickly once they hit the yogurt.
Celery: Dice it finely so no single bite is overwhelming. It provides the watery crunch that keeps the salad from feeling dense.
Turmeric: A half teaspoon deepens the color and adds a warm, earthy note. It is easy to overdo, so measure rather than pouring.
Curried Chickpea and Chicken Salad
Description
Two cans of chickpeas, about a generous cup per serving, are mashed just enough to go creamy at the edges, then folded with poached chicken, celery, red onion, halved grapes, and toasted almonds. The dressing is Greek yogurt bloomed with curry powder and a little honey, so it tastes rich and warmly spiced without a spoonful of mayonnaise.
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 1/4 tsp kosher salt, divided
- 2 cans (15 oz each) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 1/2 cups plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 1 1/2 tbsp avocado oil
- 2 1/2 tsp mild curry powder
- 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 1/2 tsp honey
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 3 celery stalks, finely diced
- 1/3 small red onion, finely diced
- 1 cup seedless red grapes, halved
- 1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh chives
- 6 cups baby spinach or butter lettuce leaves, to serve
Instructions
- 1Equipment: a 3-quart saucepan, a small skillet, a fine-mesh strainer or colander, a clean rimmed plate for the cooked chicken, a separate plate for the toasted almonds, one cutting board for the produce, a second clean cutting board reserved for the cooked chicken, a chef's knife, a large mixing bowl, a small bowl, a whisk, a small heat-safe spoon or spatula, a potato masher, two forks, clean tongs reserved for the cooked chicken, measuring cups, measuring spoons, an instant-read thermometer, 4 meal prep containers, and separate small containers or bags for the greens and almonds.
- 2Place the 1 pound chicken breasts in the saucepan in a single layer with clean hands, then wash your hands with soap and water. Add enough cold water to cover the chicken by about 1 inch, then add 1 bay leaf and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. Bring to a bare simmer over medium heat, with small bubbles rising but no rolling boil, and reduce the heat as needed to hold that gentle simmer. Keep the clean tongs reserved for the fully cooked chicken. While the water heats and the chicken poaches, continue with Steps 3 through 6.
- 3Place 1/3 cup sliced almonds in the dry skillet over medium heat. Toast 3 to 4 minutes, shaking or stirring often, until lightly golden and they smell nutty. Immediately move the almonds to their separate plate so they stop cooking. On the produce cutting board, finely dice 3 celery stalks and 1/3 of a small red onion, halve 1 cup seedless red grapes, chop 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, and chop 2 tablespoons fresh chives.
- 4Reduce the skillet heat to low. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons avocado oil, 2 1/2 teaspoons mild curry powder, and 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric. Stir constantly for 30 to 45 seconds, just until you can smell the spices. Turn off the heat and let the spiced oil stand about 1 minute so it is warm rather than sizzling hot.
- 5In the small bowl, whisk together 1 1/2 cups plain nonfat Greek yogurt, 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 1 1/2 teaspoons honey, the remaining 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Slowly whisk in the warm spiced oil until the dressing is smooth and evenly golden.
- 6Drain and rinse both 15-ounce cans of chickpeas, then shake them well. Add them to the large mixing bowl and mash about one third of them with the potato masher or a fork, leaving the rest whole.
- 7After the chicken has simmered gently for 12 minutes, begin checking the thickest part of each breast with the instant-read thermometer. Continue poaching until each breast reaches 165°F, usually 12 to 18 minutes after the water reaches a gentle simmer, depending on thickness. Remove each breast as soon as it reaches 165°F, using the clean tongs, and place it on the clean rimmed plate. Discard the bay leaf and poaching liquid. Let the chicken rest 5 minutes, move it to the cutting board reserved for cooked chicken, and dice into 1/2-inch pieces or shred with two forks. Spread it back on the clean plate for about 5 minutes, until warm but no longer steaming; cooling it briefly keeps the yogurt dressing from turning thin.
- 8Add the diced or shredded chicken, celery, red onion, grapes, cilantro, and chives to the large bowl with the chickpeas. Pour in the curry-yogurt dressing and gently stir for about 30 seconds, until everything is evenly coated.
- 9Divide the curried chicken and chickpea salad among 4 meal prep containers. Pack the 6 cups baby spinach or butter lettuce leaves separately so they stay crisp. Divide the toasted almonds among separate small containers so they keep their crunch. Cover and refrigerate all components promptly.
- 10Serve the salad chilled, either piled over the baby spinach or spooned into the butter lettuce leaves. Sprinkle the toasted almonds over the top just before eating. Do not reheat this salad.
Tips and Tricks
- 1
Bloom the Curry Powder: Twenty seconds in warm oil transforms the spice from dusty to fragrant. Stirring dry curry powder straight into yogurt always tastes raw.
- 2
Mash Only a Third: Leave most chickpeas whole for texture. Mash them all and you have hummus, not salad.
- 3
Poach, Do Not Boil: A bare simmer keeps chicken breast tender. A rolling boil tightens the muscle fibers and makes it stringy.
- 4
Toast the Almonds Separately: Add them at the very end and keep extras on the side, because they soften quickly once they hit the yogurt.
Nutrition
Serving size: 1 of 4 servings
Calories: 574kcal, Protein: 42g, Carbs: 54g, Fat: 19g, Fiber: 15g, Sugar: 17g, Sodium: 862mg.
Nutrition information is an estimate and may vary based on ingredient brands, product sizes, preparation methods, and substitutions. It is not intended as medical or dietary advice.
Recipe Guides
This recipe appears in
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