Chicken Salad with No Mayonnaise

Most weeks I cook a whole chicken. It's an affordable way to eat chicken and it's great to have the leftover meat for things like this chicken salad. And yes, chicken salad can still be nice and moist without mayonnaise!

4-6 cups shredded chicken
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 head of lettuce
1 onion or two shallot cloves
1 tablespoon butter
1 tomato

Salad Dressing
1 tablespoon pesto (optional)
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

I strip all the leftover meat off the bones and put it into a bowl. I put the bones into a pot and set aside to make chicken broth. Mix the canola oil, salt, and lemon juice in with chicken. I want to taste the lemon juice when I eat a sample of the chicken.

Then I chop the onion or shallot and cook it on medium heat for about 10 minutes. I want the onion soft and brown but not burnt.

While the onion is cooking, I clean a head of lettuce and put about half of it in with the chicken. I save the rest for a quick salad later in the week like this one here. I chop the tomato and add it to the chicken. And finally, I make the salad dressing. I could really do any type of salad dressing but I like to use my homemade pesto if there is some already made in the fridge. The salad dressing should be more on the olive oil side of taste rather than the vinegar side because of the chicken. Sometimes I need to drizzle more olive oil over the top of the salad. I also mix in extra salt at the end if it isn't salty enough. This salad needs more of a salty taste than a typical salad without chicken.

And then I stir in my caramelized onions and the salad is done.

Making Salads

Lately, I eat salad once a day. Greens are in season. It seems almost everything is in season or almost in season. I think that I've discovered the best way to make a salad with the fewest dishes and the tastiest of flavors. #1 = I use the biggest salad bowl that I have even if I am making a salad just for me. I make the vinaigrette, toss the salad, and eat the salad all in this one large bowl. #2 = Make a simple vinaigrette with about 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 tablespoon vinegar, salt and pepper. If I am feeling adventurous, I try different types of vinegar. I like raw apple cider vinegar. Or, I add a teaspoon of mustard. Or, I cut up a clove of a shallot. Shallots add so much flavor to the salad. #3 = I add any extras that I have on hand into the vinaigrette. I love fresh mozzarella and local organic tomatoes when in season. Olives are always a nice and fast addition to a beautiful salad. Then, I let it marinate while I wash and dry the lettuce. #4 = Toss the lettuce in with the marinated ingredients. Then I eat the salad straight from the bowl. Unless, of course, I have a visitor who would like to share some of my salad.