Chicken Tarragon Salad

Mayonnaise is the one ingredient that has the biggest effect on calories and fat content in salads like this one. Unless you have high cholesterol, however, there’s no reason to cut it out completely. Organic mayonnaise like Trader Joe’s contributes a lot of flavor and creamy texture even in small amounts. Just mix the salad well and you won’t be able to tell the difference.

I have a bunch of potted herbs from the Union Square greenmarket; whenever I’m making a dish like this one, I just snip a mixture of herbs and throw them in. If you don’t have tarragon, you can use a mixture of thyme, sage, etc. to taste.

Recipe: Chicken Tarragon Salad

1 boneless, skinless chicken breast
1/4 yellow onion
1 tbsp. Herbes de Provence or other French seasoning mix
1 clove garlic
2 tbsp. organic mayonnaise
2 tsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. fresh tarragon and/or mix of fresh French herbs like thyme, sage, etc., chopped fine
1/4 tsp. sea salt

Bring a small pot of water to a boil and drop in the chicken breast, onion and Herbes de Provence. Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the chicken breast and chill.

Meanwhile, make the dressing. Put the mayonnaise in a medium-size bowl, hold a garlic press above it, and squeeze the garlic atop the mayonnaise. Cut off any pressed garlic that has stuck and add this along with the lemon juice and chopped herbs. Mix and refrigerate.

When the chicken has cooled, take it out of the fridge and shred it into thin strips by hand. Add it to the medium-size bowl with the mayonnaise dressing and mix thoroughly. Let it chill for at least 30 minutes more. Just before serving, mix in the salt. Serve chicken alongside a lightly-dressed green salad or as a chicken salad sandwich on multi-grain bread.

Serves 2.