Mango Sauced Chicken Salad
Leftover chicken, fresh bell pepper, dried cranberries, pine nuts, and a tangy Chipotle Mango BBQ sauce combine for a light and refreshing chicken salad.
Leftover chicken, fresh bell pepper, dried cranberries, pine nuts, and a tangy Chipotle Mango BBQ sauce combine for a light and refreshing chicken salad.
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 -- chipotle mango bbq sauce --
- note: makes 2c and you need 1/2c for the recipe
- 1.5 cups mango peeled, pitted and rough chopped
- 0.75 cup cilantro fresh, loose packed and chopped
- 2 tablespoons chipotles canned in adobo sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 4 cloves garlic peeled and pressed
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 -- chicken salad --
- 2 cup chicken cooked and chopped
- 0.5 cup bell pepper i chose orange but the color is yours to select
- 0.25 cup cranberries dried
- 2 tablespoons pine nuts
- 1 tablespoon tarragon
- 1 salt and pepper to taste
- Carbohydrate 17.4004656260529 g
- Cholesterol 84 mg
- Fat 22.37599375 g
- Fiber 2.9908062197905 g
- Protein 22.4796006250464 g
- Saturated Fat 5.51452525 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (248g)
- Sodium 123.235625000122 mg
- Sugar 14.4096594062624 g
- Trans Fat 1.865152 g
- Calories 357 calories
Step-by-step
- Place all the ingredients for the BBQ sauce in the blender or food processor and puree until smooth.
- Dice the bell pepper into very small pieces. You don't want the pepper arguing with you if you try to stuff a pita or tomato or something.
- Pop the bell pepper into the microwave for about 45 seconds on high to soften slightly.
- Mix the chicken, pepper, cranberries and pine nuts in a large bowl with about 1/2 cup of the mango sauce.
- Allow salad to chill for at least two hours so the flavors get to be friends.
Standard mayonnaise-heavy chicken salads rely on thick fats to coat the palate, whereas this fruit-forward variant builds its moisture using a vibrant, acidic puree that requires entirely different balancing techniques. Emulsifying the mango, rice vinegar, and canned chipotles in adobo requires a high-speed blender to completely break down the fibrous fruit cells; failing to puree this base thoroughly leaves a pulpy sauce that separates quickly from the proteins. Raw garlic cloves demand careful mincing or pressing before entering the blender blade to prevent sharp, unpleasantly pungent pockets of allyl methyl sulfide from dominating the dressing.
Ignoring moisture control represents the fastest path to ruining a fruit-and-chicken combination. Dicing the bell pepper into pieces no larger than one-quarter inch ensures the vegetable distributes evenly without structurally dominating every bite. Microwaving those chopped bell peppers for exactly 45 seconds forces out excess cellular water before mixing, preventing the released liquid from diluting the viscosity of the barbecue sauce dressing.
Toasted pine nuts contribute necessary textural contrast, but raw pine nuts lack the volatile oils unlocked by dry heat. Toss them in a dry skillet over medium-low heat for three minutes, shaking constantly until golden brown, to develop the distinct nutty aroma essential against the sweet mango base. Dried cranberries provide concentrated tartness, but they absorb surrounding moisture over time, so mixing them directly into the dressing base during the chilling phase allows them to plump properly.
Chilling the completed mixture for at least two hours allows the dense chicken fibers to absorb the capsaicin heat from the chipotle and the natural fruit acids. Dairy-free and gluten-free by nature, this preparation substitutes easily by swapping standard poultry with roasted chickpeas for a plant-based variation without altering the binding ratios of the sauce.
