This light and nutritious salad is a great way to make use of roast chicken leftovers. It would also be fabulous with leftover turkey, so make sure to set some turkey aside with this salad in mind.
I love the flavors here: there’s some sweet from the persimmon, some crunch from the pecans, and the fresh thyme adds a touch of herbal flair.
It’s important to use Fuyu persimmons in this and other salads: they’re the compact persimmons that stay firm, even crunchy, when ripe (as opposed to Hachiya persimmons: the oblong-shaped variety with much softer flesh and a very astringent taste unless perfectly ripe). Persimmons are high in antioxidants including vitamin C…they can be a little hard to find in some areas, but are definitely worth seeking out.
This chicken salad doesn’t have a lot of mayonnaise: there’s just enough to bind all of the ingredients together and give it a slightly luxurious feel. Look for a mayo that’s made with olive oil, if possible (many of the vegetable oils used in commercial mayonnaise aren’t health promoting). I also like the Vegenaise that’s made with grape seed oil.
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Related Recipes You Might Enjoy:
Persimmon, Parsley and Olive Salad from Herbivoracious
Whole Wheat Couscous Salad with Persimmons from Kalyn’s Kitchen
Chicken Salad with Grapes from Amanda’s Cookin’
Mayo-Free Chicken Salad Sandwiches from The Oyster Evangelist
Recipe for Chicken Salad with Persimmons and Pecans
Ingredients
- *2 cups cold cooked shredded chicken (I used leftovers from the roast chicken recipe found here; you could also use leftover roast turkey
- *1 ripe fuyu persimmon about 1/2 cup chopped persimmon
- *1/2 cup chopped celery
- *1/4 cup chopped pecans
- *1/4 cup chopped red onion
- *1-2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- *1/2 tablespoon Honey Ridge Farms Cranberry Chutney Honey Glaze" or just use 1/2 tablespoon honey
- *fresh thyme leave- to taste I used the leaves from 1-2 sprigs
- *salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Combine the ingredients in a medium bowl. Taste and adjust seasonings. Serve over greens, or with your favorite toasted bread (I like Udi's gluten-free whole grain bread). I also like this salad with rice crackers.
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