I ate a great chicken salad at the Kin Kin General Store in the Sunshine Coast, which was the creation of chef Jodie Williams. This is my version. If you want to make it into a more substantial main course, serve it with steamed jasmine rice.
Ingredients
| 1 stalk | Lemongrass, 10cm of the white part of a thick stalk, crushed |
| 4 slices | Fresh ginger, cut 1cm thick |
| 2 | Garlic cloves, squashed |
| 1 | Kaffir lime leaf |
| 3 Tbsp | Japanese soy sauce |
| 1 whole | Chicken, free range or organic (I use Bostock), wing tips cut off (Main) |
| 2 | Baby cos lettuce, leaves separated |
| ¼ medium | Celeriac, very thinly sliced, tossed in 2 Tbsp lemon juice (if celeriac isn't available, use celery heart, the bottom inside part of a bunch of celery, very thinly sliced) |
| 1 | Red onion, very thinly sliced |
| 1 | Carrot, peeled and grated |
| ¼ cup | Mayonnaise, store-bought |
| 3 Tbsp | Coconut milk |
| 3 Tbsp | Lime juice |
| 2 Tbsp | Chopped mint |
| 2 Tbsp | Chopped coriander |
| 2 Tbsp | Chopped basil |
| 1 pinch | Chilli flakes, a generous one |
| 3 | Limes, halved |
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Directions
- Put the lemongrass, ginger, garlic, kaffir lime leaf and soy sauce into a saucepan that, once filled with water, will be big enough to keep the chicken well covered with liquid. (Do a dummy run without the flavourings but with the water and the chicken if you aren't sure it will fit.) Bring to the boil, then lower the chicken, breast side down into it. Simmer 50 minutes, carefully skimming off the scum occasionally. Top up with boiling water if the level falls below the chicken.
- Have a large bowl ready of cold water with lots of ice in it. When the chicken is cooked, lift it out of the saucepan and lower it into the iced water. Let it cool for about 30 minutes. Icing the chicken gives it a firm but moist, creamy texture. Cooking the chicken can be done well in advance. Remove from the iced water and drain well.
- Remove the meat and skin from the bones and break the meat up into large bite-sized pieces. You can strain the cooking liquid and add the bones and boil gently until reduced by half to make some good chicken stock, which can be frozen and used for Asian soups.
- Put the cos, celeriac, onion, carrot and the cold chicken meat into a large salad bowl.
- Put the mayonnaise, coconut milk, lime juice, chopped herbs and chilli flakes into a small bowl and mix well. Add this to the salad and mix well.
- Serve the salad with extra sprigs of herbs and lime halves for squeezing.
