A large leftover package of chicken sat high on the list of must-cook items in the fridge, so that became the basis for the meal. Then, two of my favorite ingredients, avocado and cilantro, were nearing also their own ends, so it was clearly a Cilantro Avocado Chicken Salad day. Boy, do I love to spoil myself!
The great thing about this recipe is that you really use leftovers and throw in whatever you like, for instance:
- the chicken can be light or dark; seasoned or unseasoned; with skin or naked; baked, grilled, boiled, pan fried; chunky or mushy
- the onions can be red, white, yellow, or green
- toss in whatever you like, I only had onion and avocado, but peppers and celery would also be great
- eat it plain, on a bed of lettuce, wrapped up in a tortilla, or cozied up between two pieces of bread
I used the small food processor attachment on my Braun immersion hand blender to make the dressing.
This cilantro avocado sauce would be good on just about anything savory - oh Lord, it's straight drinkable!
Treat yourself: I had leftover hamburger buns lying around for grill season, so I toasted it up and made it a lunch time delight!
- 3 pounds (about 1.5 Kg) Chicken
- 1 avocado
- 1 heaping handful of cilantro (or coriander)
- 1 lime
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 2 cloves fresh garlic
- 1 dried red chili
- 1 small red onion
- Cook chicken to your liking. I used a mixture of thighs and legs for dark meat. They were pre-seasoned for the grill, but I baked them until done in the oven (about 30 minutes).
- Slice and shred chicken into chunks.
- Toss in bowl or container.
- In a blender or food processor, combine 1/2 avocado, cilantro, juice of 1 lime, 2 peeled garlic cloves, dried and dried chili.
- Blend until smooth.
- Pour sauce over chicken salad and mix thoroughly.
- Chop red onion and remaining half of avocado. Combine into chicken salad mixture.
I'm clearly a chunky chicken salad girl. How do you like yours?
