Tender chunks of chicken blended with the freshness of crisp cucumbers and the slightly salty, savory note of olives all wrapped in the creaminess of real mayonnaise. It’s a unique combination that delivers a gorgeous bite. This is the perfect chicken salad for warm summer months.
Something light and easy for lunch or dinner is always a great plan. Years ago, I had the opportunity to step into the world of catering with my dear friend, Jane. We made some fun and fabulous food together and our chicken salads were frequently requested for luncheons. We had several “go to” recipes for chicken salad and this is one of my favorites from Jane’s files.
The chicken is gently poached with a touch of rice or white wine vinegar, just a tiny bit of sugar, black peppercorns, bay leaves, and a touch of kosher salt. Then the shredded chicken is tossed with chopped, fresh cucumber plus green olives and stirred together with real mayonnaise.
Give it an overnight chill to let those beautiful ingredients meld together. It’s an unusual blend that strikes all the right notes. Simply scrumptious!
Chicken Salad with Cucumbers and Olives
For the poached chicken:
I typically cook twice the chicken needed for this recipe, freezing the extra for later.
1 pound boneless chicken breasts
4 to 6 cups of water
1 tablespoons rice or white wine vinegar
½ teaspoon sugar
½ teaspoon whole black peppercorns
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoons salt
Place the chicken in a medium stockpot, adding enough water to just cover the chicken. Stir in the vinegar, sugar, peppercorns, bay leaves, and kosher salt.
Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat and cook until chicken is cooked through, about 45 minutes. Cooking time will vary depending on the thickness of the chicken breasts. Turn off heat and leave the chicken in the cooking liquid for an additional 10 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a bowl and allow it to cool enough to handle.
For the chicken salad:
2 cups cooked chicken breast, shredded
½ cup peeled, chopped cucumber
½ cup chopped green olives with pimentos
½ cup real mayonnaise
4 teaspoons juice from the jarred olives
½ -1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
In a large bowl combine the shredded chicken, cucumbers, olives and mayonnaise along with the olive juice. Add ½ teaspoon of the kosher salt, and pepper. Stir in the remaining kosher salt if needed.
Stir to mix well. Cover and refrigerate overnight before serving.
Makes 3 cups of chicken salad.
Chicken Salad with Cucumber and Olives
Equipment
- Medium stockpot
Ingredients
- For the poached chicken:
- 1 pound boneless chicken breasts
- 4 to 6 cups cups of water
- 1 tablespoon rice or white wine vinegar
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon whole black peppercorns
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- For the chicken salad:
- 2 cups shredded cooked chicken
- ½ cup peeled, chopped cucumber
- ½ cup chopped green olives with pimentos
- ½ cup real mayonnaise
- 4 teaspoons juice from the jarred olives
- ½ to 1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
Instructions
- For the poached chicken:
- Place the chicken in a medium stockpot, adding enough water to just cover the chicken. Stir in the vinegar, sugar, peppercorns, bay leaves, and kosher salt.
- Gently simmer over medium heat until the chicken is cooked through, about 45 minutes. Cooking time will vary depending on the thickness of the chicken breasts. Turn off heat and leave the chicken in the cooking liquid for an additional 10 minutes.
- Transfer the chicken to a bowl and allow it to cool enough to handle.
- For the chicken salad:
- In a large bowl combine the shredded chicken, cucumbers, olives and mayonnaise along with the olive juice. Add ½ teaspoon of the kosher salt, and pepper, stirring to mix well. Add the remaining kosher salt if needed.
- Cover and refrigerate overnight before serving.
