This recipe came about because I had an extra piece of chicken that I had already marinated in Tony Chachere's creole seasoning. You can use your favorite Cajun or Creole seasoning mix for this recipe. Both creole and cajun seasoning mixes are made up of paprika/cayenne or both, garlic powder, onion powder, pepper, and maybe some thyme + oregano.
Check the seasoning blend you're using - Tony Chachere's is a salt so you won't need to add extra salt to this recipe but you will want to add extra paprika and could throw in some dried thyme. Others will have plenty of paprika but won't have salt so you'll want to season with salt on your own.
My mom has a fantastic cajun seasoning mix that's just called "Cajun Dust" - I don't know where she got it but it has salt, garlic, onion, sugar, bay leaves, basil, cayenne, pepper, chili pepper, paprika, jalapeño + other spices. It's amazing - my point is, find a cajun seasoning you like and use that!
This recipe calls for hot sauce - I didn't put a specific one but for this ~flavor profile~ you'll want to use Tabasco, Zatarain's or something similar and preferably red pepper based (ie Tabasco is chipotle pepper based).
You'll need:
1 large chicken breast or 2 cups pulled rotisserie chicken
1/2 of a lemon, juice
1/2 - 1 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons cajun or creole seasoning
1/4 teaspoon paprika (depending on your seasoning)
2 teaspoons of hot sauce
1/3 cup diced green pepper
1/2 jalapeño, diced
1/3 cup diced red onion
1/3 cup diced celery
Other:
Toast or crackers or a croissant
Spinach / Arugula / celery
More hot sauce?!
Instructions:
Start with a cooked chicken breast or rotisserie chicken. If you're cooking your chicken - do so covered in the oven (25 minutes at 425 degrees) or over medium heat in a dutch oven (covered) or sous vide if you're really feeling fancy. This works best if your chicken is cold when you mix it up (in my opinion). Either chop or shred your chicken using a knife or forks (to pull it apart) or even a hand mixer! Add chicken into a mixing bowl.
Dice your veggies and add into the mixing bowl as well. I like a small dice for this but up to personal preference!
Next add your hot sauce, lemon juice, cajun seasoning, paprika, and 1/2 cup of sour cream to a small bowl and mix. Add into the mixing bowl and stir until everything is combined. If the chicken is not fully coated add another 1/4 - 1/2 cup of sour cream until its all coated! Taste a bite and add more spices to your taste - this recipe varies a lot depending on how much chicken you use!
Enjoy right away or better yet, let it sit in the fridge for 30 minutes to cool down completely and give the flavors time to enhance.
Notes/Tips:
For the chicken - you can buy a rotisserie chicken, pull the chicken off and use that. My mom buys packages of already pulled rotisserie chicken from costco and that works well. Use whatever chicken you're comfortable working with. When I have an extra chicken breast that needs to be used, I cook it either with just salt and pepper or with seasoning that I know I can use in chicken salad. For example for this chicken salad, I have used a leftover chicken breast that had been cooked with cajun seasoning.
You can easily double this recipe! You want your ratio to be about 2:1:1 when it comes to chicken : sour cream : veggies but its more of an art than a science!
I hope you enjoy this recipe!! You can use it as a really easy base recipe for other chicken salads as well - I have a handful posted online.
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