This is fun and tasty spin on chicken salad. This spicy curried mango chicken salad has diced grilled chicken, cashews and a creamy curry sauce. It’s addictive and makes for a nice wrap or like lettuce wraps. Perfect for Picnics or light lunch.
Summer comes and mangoes are everywhere. Although we don’t get that many varieties sweet ones,as we get in India, we are lucky to get some sweet ones here.
When mango arrives, everyone’s enjoying them to the core. Smoothies, Popsicles, kulfi, ice-cream, salads, sauces, you name it, people make it. I am not the biggest fan of mango as is, I know I know, weird, but true. In salad form, I could eat the whole bowl.
This curried mango chicken salad is a favorite of ours. Curry powder is a special touch that elevates this dish.
Curried Mango Chicken Salad
Curry powder consists of turmeric, coriander, cumin, and ginger which gives this chicken salad its beautiful golden color— mostly because of the yellow turmeric in the blend. In this recipe, we’re adding the curry powder to the mayo used to make the salad rather than adding it to the chicken itself. You can grill the chicken with some salt and pepper or buy some rotisserie chicken.
Curry can sometimes taste bitter when added to a dressing like this, so the secret is to mellow the powder first in hot oil, just for a minute. This takes the raw edge off the spices.
This dressing keeps for a week good in the refrigerator. If you plan on taking this to picnics, take the dressing in a bottle in some ice pack. Mix in the end. Put out some lettuce and it makes an amazing stuffing for lettuce wraps.
Buy the sweet ripe mangoes for this salad, it’s best.
Fresh, flavorful, fruity, light and crunchy.
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, about 4, grilled
- 2 cups cubed mango, ½″, from 2 small champagne mangoes, 8 ounces
- ½ red onion, diced
- 4 stalks thinly sliced green onion
- 1 english cucumber, diced
- ½ cup grated carrots
- ¾ cup finely diced celery, from about 2 stalks
- 20 toasted cashews
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp almond butter or peanut butter
- 1 Teaspoon curry powder
- ½ Teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ cup homemade mayonnaise, or mayo of choice
- 2 Tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- Salt to taste if needed
- Lettuce leaves for wrapping, about 8-12 from 1 head green or red leaf lettuce
- Tortillas
- Cube the grilled chicken into ½″ pieces, you’ll have about 2½ cups. Add the cubed chicken to a medium sized mixing bowl along with the mango, cilantro, green onion, carrots, and celery,cashews. Lightly toss to combine.
- For the dressing, keep a pan on the stove. Add 1 tsp oil. Keep it on low heat. Add the curry powder, toast for a minute and mix together all the ingredients called for. Taste to see if you need to add more salt, then mix the dressing together with the chicken mixture until combined.
- Taste again to see if you need to adjust the salt, then serve the chicken salad with your choice of wrap.
- I prefer to let the chicken salad sit for at least 2 hours in the fridge to let the flavors meld, and the dressing really sink into the chicken. I either make it the night before and take it for lunch for the next 2-3 days. Or I make it in the morning to serve at a brunch or light dinner.
Increase the speed to 2-3 on a Vitamix, and slowly drizzle in the avocado oil in a thin steady stream. It’s very important not to add the oil too fast or the mayonnaise won’t emulsify. Increase the speed as you continue to add the oil to around 5-6.
Continue to add the oil just until the mayonnaise becomes so thick it stops blending in the machine. When this happens, turn the machine off and scrape out the mayonnaise. It’s advised to only keep homemade mayo for 2-3 days in the fridge.
*Please do tag me on Instagram @foodfashionparty if you make this, using the hashtag #foodfashionparty. Check out my book MASALA AND MEATBALLS.
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Looks absolutely droolicious! Love that peanut butter curry sauce.
Mango combined with chicken! An absolutely different thought. I think this salad will be a healthy and tasty dish. Because here we can obtain the nutrients of vegetarian and a non vegetarian food at the same time. The way the dish is presented is also very attractive. Keep sharing more such dishes.
Thank you and yes, it’s so so healthy. Hope you get to try it out.
You know I’m a big mango fan, but would never have thought to add it to a salad like this…. you know I’d love to put my vegetarian spin on this! SO adore your photography and food. Thank you, Ash, for inspiring me every time. xo
Aww Traci, you are really too kind. Thanks for the loveliest of words. I am always in awe of your veggie spin, you are the best!!
Thanks
xo
Just made this for dinner (with a couple of substitutions since I didn’t have curry powder or carrots – used an extra cucumber and garam masala+coriander). So GOOD! Seriously one of those recipes which is better than the sum of its parts!
(Just like the chicken wraps from your book – I didn’t believe it until I tried it but that recipe tastes way better than you would think)
You are always a treasure and I’ve never had a single one of your recipes fail