We’ve been living in the United Kingdom as expats for over a year now and one of the many discoveries we have made is that any number of dishes have been created in celebration or in honor of royalty.
One of those staple dishes is a curried chicken salad dish called Coronation Chicken. You can purchase a boxed sandwich almost anywhere in Britain with this combo of chopped chicken, mayo and curry in between two slices of bread. It was first created for the Queen’s coronation in 1953 and the sandwiches you find with this name vary widely in quality.
The resident hero of British cooking, Jamie Oliver, created this updated version of Coronation Chicken for the Queen’s sixtieth year on the throne in 2012. He calls it ER’s Diamond Jubilee Chicken, and he has removed the mayo and added in its place pineapple, cilantro and nuts.
The result is a delightful bursting-with-flavor salad dish that is as fitting for a main meal as it is gorgeous to serve. Layer the ingredients on a large platter to highlight all the beautiful colors.
We have loved using Jamie Oliver’s cookbooks. They have been a great way for us to discover British cooking and I appreciate how Jamie always seems to try to create recipes that have no waste. In this recipe he gives instructions for using up the cilantro stalks and even the chicken skins.
PS. Here’s a little six second video of this recipe!
- 4 chicken leg quarters and 7 chicken thighs (or could also use 14 thighs)
- 1 heaped tablespoon garam masala powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- a thumb-sized piece of ginger root, peeled and grated
- 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
- 1 lemon
- 2 heaping tablespoons sesame seeds
- ½ cup toasted sliced almonds
- 1 ripe pineapple, peeled, cored and chopped into ½ inch pieces
- 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped into ½ inch pieces
- 1 cup sugar snap peas
- 6 spring onions, peeled and chopped
- 1 fresh red chili pepper and 1 green jalepeno pepper, sliced, seeded and thinly sliced
- 1 cup of plain yogurt
- 2 limes
- 1 bunch of cilantro leaves
- Put chicken pieces skin side up in a baking dish.
- Sprinkle all the spices over the chicken, as well as salt and pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Squeeze the juice of the lemon over the chicken.
- Bake at 375 degrees F for 50 minutes or until the meat pulls away from the bone.
- Once cooked, remove the chicken skin and place it upside down on a separate roasting tray. Scatter the sesame seeds over the chicken skins. Then put the tray in the oven for around 10 minutes, or until the skin is crispy and the seeds toasted (don’t burn them!). Remove from oven and leave to cool.
- Place the cucumber and pineapple on a serving platter. Then add the sliced onions and chili pieces. Pull the chicken apart, discarding the the bones and fat, but reserving the juices in the roasting dish. Place all the meat on the platter as well. Also add the sugar snap peas and the cilantro leaves, reserving the stalks for the dressing.
- In the roasting dish, mix the yogurt and the juice of the limes with the chicken juices. Be sure and scrape all the flavor from the tray. Add a little salt and pepper. Also mix in the chopped stalks of the cilantro.
- Pour the sauce from the tray over the platter. Sprinkle the toasted almonds and the crispy skins and sesame seeds on the top.
- Toss the salad and serve immediately.
Getting to Know our ARWB Foodies
Alison Chino
Chino House
What food reminds you of childhood?
All homemade cookies.
Cookies were the first thing I learned to make as a child. My sister and I would beg our mom to let us make cookies and she would say that we could as long as we cleaned up our mess. Anna and I would eat so much cookie dough that we usually felt sick by the time we were finished!
What is your favorite international cuisine?
I go in phases and currently I’m in a Mediterranean phase. Hummus and really fresh Greek feta cheese are making regular appearances in my cooking.
What is always in your refrigerator at home?
Apples and extra sharp cheddar cheese.
What is your most used cookbook?
It’s a cross between The Barefoot Contessa and Soup and Bread by Crescent Dragonwagon
What is your favorite kitchen gadget?
Probably my emulsifier (stick blender) which I use for salad dressing and to puree soups!
Do you have a favorite food indulgence?
Think cream. Creamy soups. Homemade whipped cream. Cream in my coffee. I can never be a skim milk kind of girl.
What is your go-to ingredient that you use time and time again?
I use garlic every single day. LOVE it.
What is your favorite food meal to cook at home?
I make soups most often but my favorite would probably be either a pasta with creamy sauce or a fancy salad with lots of ingredients.
What is a cooking tip that you would like to share with beginning cooks?
Recipes can always be simplified. You don’t have to have ALL those tools (you can chop up garlic if you don’t have a press) and you can get by with fewer ingredients.
When you’re not cooking, what are your favorite pastimes?
Reading, writing and being outside!
What else would you like us to know about you?
I live in Scotland, but I miss Arkansas something fierce.
Alison Chino is a born and bred Arkansan who lives in Scotland, where she is learning to walk everywhere and to live with tiny appliances. She loves hiking the Scottish Highlands with her husband and kids on the weekends. She’s blogs at the Chino House and she’s pretty much obsessed with Instagram.
Connect with Alison:
instagram: @alisonchino
twitter: @alisonchino
FB: alisonchino
Thank you for sharing this recipe. We had Coronation Chicken Salad at our rehearsal dinner before our wedding (in 1988) and loved it. We lived in England at the time, and my friend, who was also a caterer, made it for us. Love it!
I forgot to add that we got married back in the U.S. so it was really neat that we had the Queen’s Coronation Chicken Salad given our circumstances.
Thanks for sharing! Arkansas misses you something fierce Alison!
It sounds delicious! Great Post, thank you for sharing
http://love-pink-forever09.blogspot.com/