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Coronation Chicken Salad

Roasted Coronation Chicken is incredibly versatile and a real crowd pleaser. Curried, roasted and shredded chicken thighs are dressed with a fragrant yoghurt and mayonnaise dressing and dried apricots. This version is fruity spicy and perfect for preparing ahead for a delicious wild rice salad.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Cooling Time30 minutes
Total Time1 hour 30 minutes
Course: Salad
Cuisine: British
Servings: 8 people
Calories: 498kcal

Ingredients

Coronation Chicken

  • 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
  • 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
  • 2 teaspoons yellow mustard seeds
  • 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
  • seeds from 3 cardamom pods
  • 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons coconut oil
  • 800 g boneless chicken thighs about 10 thighs
  • 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

Dressing

  • 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 250 g yoghurt natural dairy or natural coconut
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • 2 tablespoons almond butter
  • 1 tablespoon curry spice mix
  • 8 dried apricots finely chopped
  • 1 red chilli seeds removed and finely sliced (optional)

Coronation Chicken Salad

  • 175 g basmati and wild rice mix
  • 420 g water
  • 4 spring onions finely chopped
  • two large handfuls of mixed baby leaves
  • large handful of fresh coriander
  • 30 g flaked almonds toasted
  • 2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds
  • 2 tablespoons sesame seeds black or white

Instructions

Coronation Chicken

  • Pre-heat the oven to 200°C / 180°C fan assisted oven / gas mark 5
  • Make the curry paste by grinding together the coriander seeds, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, fennel seeds and cardamom seeds until fine using a spice grinder or a pestle and mortar.
  • Tip the spices into a large bowl and add the turmeric, ginger, garlic powder, salt and mix well.
  • Remove 1 tablespoon of the spices and set aside in a small bowl for later.
  • Stir the coconut oil into the rest of the spice mix until a thick paste has been formed.
  • Rub the paste all over the chicken thighs until they are evenly covered.
  • Place in the oven and roast for 15 minutes then remove from the oven and scatter over the sesame seeds.
  • Place back into the oven and roast for a further 15 minutes.
  • Remove and leave the chicken until cool enough to handle then shred the meat and crisp skin.
  • Place in a bowl whilst you prepare the dressing.
  • Whisk together the mayonnaise, yoghurt, lime juice and almond butter with the reserved tablespoon of the curry spice mix.
  • Pour two thirds of the dressing over the shredded chicken and add in the dried apricots and red chilli.
  • Stir well until the chicken is completely covered.
  • Keep in the fridge until ready to use.
  • Use more of the dressing to loosen the Coronation Chicken just before serving.

Coronation Chicken Salad

  • Place the rice in a large saucepan. Pour in the water and stir.
  • Turn the heat on and place the lid of the saucepan on. Bring to boil then turn down to a simmer for 20 minutes. Don’t remove the lid at all during cooking. The rice is ready when all the water has been absorbed and you can’t see any bubbling up beneath the cooking rice.
  • Turn off the heat and place a folded up clean tea towel between the saucepan and the lid. Leave the rice to sit for 10 minutes.
  • Remove the lid and the tea towel and fluff the rice with a fork.
  • Leave the rice to cool before serving with the salad.
  • To prepare the salad toss the baby leaves, spring onions and coriander leaves together in a large bowl.
  • Serve the salad, rice and coronation chicken together on a large platter and scatter over the flaked almonds, pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds.

Notes

Chicken Breasts – you can use chicken breasts, I won’t judge, but I really recommend using chicken thighs for more flavour and juiciness.
Leftover Chicken – you can use leftover chicken instead of preparing it especially for this dish. It won’t be imbued with the same amount of flavour so you must add another tablespoon of curried spices to the dressing.
Chilli - If you are serving this to children or someone who dislikes heat you may want to leave out the red chilli.
Dried Apricots – cut extra fine so the dried fruit isn’t too overpowering.
Almond Butter – use really drippy almond butter, not the hardened dredge at the bottom of the jar.
Dressing – This recipe will make more dressing than you need. Finished Coronation Chicken will thicken in the fridge. Just before serving loosen it with some extra dressing.
Extra Dressing? – Don’t waste it, use it as a dip for crudités.
Dairy-free? Use coconut yoghurt instead of natural dairy yoghurt.
Alternative serving suggestions – If you don’t want to make the salad then the coronation chicken is delicious as a sandwich filling, heaped on a jacket potato or on cut and toasted French bread for a canapé.
Make Ahead – you can make the Coronation Chicken up to 3 days ahead of eating.
Store - keep refrigerated for up to 3 days
Salad Serving - I like to serve the salad so the leaves, rice and coronation chicken are not mixed together as it looks more attractive. Although you can mix it all up if you prefer.

Ingredient measurements

  • Please note when you see ‘grams’ listed as opposed to ‘millilitres,’ or any other term of measurement, that is not incorrect. I weigh all of my ingredients, including liquids, for accuracy.
  • US customary measurements for the ingredients provided are based on a conversion calculator. This recipe was tested with metric measurements and I recommend using a digital scale to weigh ingredients for the most accurate results. READ MORE >>> Why you should always weigh vs measuring with cups

Nutrition information

Please note that the nutrition information provided below is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator. It will vary based on the specific ingredients you use. Please seek a professional nutritionist’s advice for further clarification.
The nutrition serving is for 1 serving, assuming the dish is portioned into 8 servings. 

Nutrition

Calories: 498kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 33g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 104mg | Sodium: 424mg | Potassium: 541mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 520IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 132mg | Iron: 3mg