I Tried Dolly Parton’s Pecan Rooster Salad and Now It’s in My Lunch Rotation

With an origin courting again to 1863, one of many first amalgamations of hen salad was dreamed up by Liam Grey, proprietor of City Meats in Wakefield, Rhode Island. His model mixed leftover hen with mayonnaise, tarragon, and grapes, and was so well-liked that ultimately the meat market would pivot right into a delicatessen. With affect like that, it’s no surprise hen salad remains to be a staple in American delicacies, garnering the respect of numerous cooks and celebrities alike, and one way or the other, by no means seeming to get outdated. 

Whereas there are many variations of hen salad to check out, Dolly Parton — somebody whose tastes are taken very critically round right here — occurs to have a scrumptious hen salad recipe that makes use of just a few elements, however is an absolute powerhouse. And if anybody is aware of the wrestle of working 9 to five and needing a simple, but scrumptious meal that may be thrown collectively in minutes, it’s the Queen of Nation herself. So, I made a decision to pour myself slightly cup of ambition and see what all of the fuss was about with Dolly Parton’s Pecan Rooster Salad. And let me inform you, I used to be removed from upset. 

Get the recipe: Dolly Parton’s Pecan Rooster Salad

Begin by poaching your hen in boiling water till it has reached an inner temperature of 165°F, about 10 to 12 minutes. Whereas the hen cools, cube your celery stalks and one small onion earlier than including to a big mixing bowl. Subsequent, cube the hen into small cubes and add to the bowl together with pecan halves, mayonnaise, and Dijon mustard. Combine all the things effectively with a spatula.

Then utilizing two forks, shred the hen guaranteeing that you just use your individual discretion for a way skinny you need it to be. Lastly, season with salt and pepper, then serve on a plate with a mattress of watercress as the bottom.  

Rising up, I used to be at all times a ride-or-die child when it got here to mayonnaise. Regrettably, I might put mayonnaise on all the things, however someplace alongside the road, I slowly misplaced my style for it. Due to that, I used to be much less more likely to search out hen salad through the years — even when it was available to me. It was virtually to a degree the place I might simply suppose that I didn’t prefer it anymore. Being that it’s been fairly some time since I had even a chunk of hen salad, I used to be each excited to strive Dolly’s recipe and nervous that I used to be making one thing that I might in any other case not wish to end. However boy was I fallacious, as a result of with the primary chunk, I used to be immediately met with a sense of nostalgia and couldn’t assist however end my serving. 

The one ingredient I might do with out, nonetheless, was the pecans — however even that was not a deal-breaker, and I discovered myself consuming them anyway as a result of every chunk was simply that dang tasty. Although I don’t imagine Dolly’s hen salad will make me the grasp mayonnaise connoisseur I as soon as was when rising up, it did remind me that I like hen salad. And I’ll most definitely be including this again into my cooking rotation.