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Chicken Salad 101

Source of Recipe


"New England Open-House Cookbook" by Sarah Leah Chase



List of Ingredients



• 3 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (1½ to 2 pounds)
  
• 2 thin ribs celery, cut into ¼-inch dice
  
• ½ cup diced green bell pepper (â…›-inch dice)
  
• 3 scallions, both white and tender green parts, trimmed and minced
  
• ½ to â…” cup mayonnaise, Hellmann's or homemade
  
• 2 tablespoons light or heavy (whipping) cream
  
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  
• 8 very fresh sandwich-size slices white bread
  
• Crushed potato chips, optional
  






Instructions



1. Place the chicken breasts in a medium-size, straight-sided skillet. Add enough cold water to cover the chicken breasts amply. Let come to a full boil over medium-high heat, then cover the skillet and remove it from the heat. Let the skillet stand, covered, for 30 minutes to let the residual heat finish cooking the chicken. Drain the chicken breasts.
   
   
2. Cut the chicken breasts into ½-inch dice, removing any tough tendons as you chop. Place the chicken in a mixing bowl, add the celery, bell pepper, and scallions, and toss to mix. Add enough mayonnaise to bind the ingredients moistly together and then thin the salad slightly with the cream. Season the chicken salad with salt and black pepper to taste. The chicken salad can be refrigerated, covered, for 3 days.
   
   
3. To make the sandwiches, pile a ½-inch-thick layer of the chicken salad onto 4 of the slices of bread. If desired, coarsely crush 3 or 4 potato chips evenly over the filling on each sandwich. Top with the remaining 4 slices of bread and then slice the sandwiches in half on the diagonal. Enjoy at once, or wrap for a picnic.
   
   Makes enough for 4 sandwiches