03 December 2011

Home Smoked Chicken Salad with Cranberries and Almonds

My new addiction is home smoked chicken thanks to the outdoor grilling class at Cook at Cook the Books. It really does put all of the bought stuff to shame.  So much moister, lighter and delicately flavoured with herbs and aromatics.  Even better it really couldn't be easier.  Make a brine, let it cool, brine the chicken for a couple of hours, heat up the BBQ, soak some wood chips, chuck wood chips on BBQ, place the chicken on a foil tray and on to the BBQ and let the smoking begin.  45 minutes later and you have some totally delicious home smoked chicken.  You won't buy the store bought stuff again, ever again.  So this summer I think there will be a lot of smoking, on the BBQ that is!  Most definitely fish and thinking an apple wood smoked pork fillet would work a treat too, not to mention some rosemary smoked lamb.

Today saw the smoked chicken made its way in to a salad.  I wanted light, but lots of flavour and I like a few different textures plus it's a food blog so I wanted it to look pretty too.  Well I think this salad delivers on all counts.  Pretty as picture, festive even, full of flavour and all sorts of tasty little morsels loitering on the plate.

Home Smoked Chicken Salad with Cranberries and Almonds

Serves 4

4 cups baby spinach
1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup fresh chickpeas, if you can't get your hands on fresh substitute with the canned stuff.
1 smoked chicken breast, sliced
1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Dressing

Mustard Vinaigrette
1 tsp grainy mustard
1 tsp Dijon mustard
4 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp white wine vinegar, I used muscatel as it has such a lovely sweetness.
Salt

Directions

Place the spinach on a platter and top with the chickpeas and most of the cranberries.  Add the sliced chicken and sprinkle over the toasted almonds and the rest of the cranberries.  For the dressing whisk together all the ingredients, taste and season as needed.  Season with a little salt and pepper and drizzle with a little of the dressing and tuck in.


This could be my new favourite salad.  The chicken so moist and subtly infused with all the goodness from its briny bath.  Add to that the fresh chickpeas, fresher and an almost pea like flavour, the dried cranberries bring a not too sweet fruitiness and the crunchy toasty almonds all drizzled with a little mustard vinaigrette was really seriously tasty. A little festive flecked with crimson cranberries and the perfect lighter dish for the upcoming festive season and all the inevitable, but delicious, over indulgences.


If you like this you might like this Grilled Chicken with Cherry Tomatoes
One Year Ago Broad Bean and Pea Dip


Enjoy!

15 comments:

  1. Gosh you make smoking sound so easy! Most things homemade are better than store-bought any day. Not surprised your smoked chicken puts them to shame! :-))

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  2. Yummmmmm Smoked Chicken, and done at home - you are a STAR!!!
    Totally agree - homemade is the way to go, bring back the basics! Now how to tackle the time issue??? (Let me know if you smoke a salmon, I am addicted to smoked salmon - hot and cold smoked)
    Vanessa

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  3. This will be perfect for summer! Homemade definitely beats store bought!

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  4. Well done smoking your own chicken! We'll make a Kiwi out of you yet ;0)

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  5. Delicious! We smoke a lot of fish at home (smoked fishcakes last night! It'll be up on my blog in a day or two), but for some reason I'd not even contemplated home smoked chicken! This is going on my bucketlist.

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  6. I like smoked chicken/fish very much but have never contemplated home smoked anything. This sounds way too delicious!!

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  7. Gorgeous looking salad, Mairi. I have always wanted to try smoking - I am so going to give this a try. And then I'm going to have a go at smoking some mozzarella, since you can never buy it!! I've always wanted to try fresh chickpeas too, but have never ever come across any.
    Sue xo

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  8. I keep getting so jealous of all your tweets/blog posts from all the fun classes you've been going to at Cook the Books! Lucky!! That aside, this salad looks delicious. I've never smoked anything (except some fish on a camping trip, but the boys actually did that so it doesn't count) but would love to try. You're such an inspiration :)

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  9. @Sugar and Spice So easy, all you need is little brine & the BBQ!

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  10. @Vanessa and Ingrid Opera Salmon is even easier....did some last summer back in the Uk...will definitely be doing some salmon smoking soon!

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  11. @peasepudding I think I may now officially be a hybrid!

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  12. @Love, Mags Thanks Mags, looking forward to checking out your smoked fishcakes...they sound delicious.

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  13. @Mel Thanks Mel, you should definitely give it a go....it really couldn't be easier.

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  14. @milliemirepoix Thanks Mika, very sweet. And yes very lucky to be able to hang out at Cook the Books so much :)

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