Food Storage Friday: Chicken Salad

Chicken Salad. Yum. One of my favorite lunches. Now food storage friendly.



Ingredients: Canned Chicken, Mayonnaise or equivalent, Craisins, Almonds or wheat berries.




Put a loose chop on your almonds. Or you can buy them already slivered.



Put them in a pan over medium heat and just let them sit, stirring occasionally. We are toasting the almonds to release the flavors. You will be watching for them to get brown and start to really smell nutty. You'll know when it happens, trust me.



Drain your chicken and place in a bowl. Take two forks and shred the chicken.



Until you have a nice bowl of shredded chicken. You know, I actually prefer canned chicken when it comes to chicken salad. The texture is works better in my opinion.



Now add some mayo. I add a little spoonful at a time and mix around until its a nice salad consistency. It's about two spoonfuls in my opinion. Add some salt and pepper here too. Some seasoned salt would be yummy.

After the almonds are brown and are releasing a rich nutty smell, then transfer them to a plate or bowl or something so they can cool a little.




Stir in the craisins, or you could use raisins, and add the toasted almonds once they've cooled a little bit.



Now you can chill it, or make yourself a sandwich. It's always good plain. Yum.

Want another alternative? I put 1/2 cup of wheat kernels on the stove with 2 cups of water and a little salt. I let it boil away for about 30 minutes or so. I just kept tasting them until the texture was right. I was looking for a nut/celery imitator. When the wheat berries had a nice crunch to them, I drained them and added about a quarter cup as a replacement for my nut.





More wheat! The wheat berries has kind of a nutty component so it works well here. This is a great bare bones recipe so you can work with it to suit your family. My husband likes a little curry powder mixed in. Go have fun!



Chicken Salad

1-13 oz can chicken
2 Tbsp Mayonnaise (varies)
1/2 cup craisins
1/4 cup chopped and toasted almonds, OR
1/4 cup wheat berries
salt and pepper

Toast almonds or make wheat berries. Drain and shred chicken. Add mayonnaise, seasonings and craisins. Once almonds or wheat berries have cooled, add to salad. Mix together and serve or chill until ready to eat. Makes approx. 4 sandwiches--probably more, I just eat a lot.