This curry chicken salad with almonds is packed with flavor and crunch! Perfect on its own, on top of greens, or as a sandwich filling.
Spring means sunshine, sports, and outdoor adventures, which means I always need to have lots of portable snacks handy for the whole family. So I was super excited when Blue Diamond Almonds approached me to join their Blue Diamond Tastemakers group of bloggers. I already love Blue Diamond Almonds - they're my go-to brand since their almonds come in handy dandy portable canisters. Plus, they are mighty tasty.
Blue Diamond Almonds recently sent me a can of their Honey Dijon Almonds and Honey Roasted Cinnamon Almonds to try out. Honey Dijon? Hmm... I admittedly was slightly skeptical about that one.
The Honey Roasted Cinnamon Almonds I knew I would love. I mean, what baker doesn't love the honey plus cinnamon combo?
They are just as delicious as I imagined, and they're perfect for snacking on-the-go, and while at my desk blogging away! This flavor is super versatile. It's great to throw into a snack mix with pretzels and small crackers for when a group of neighborhood kids come over. And it's also just as fantastic to set out with some cheese and olives for when the moms come over.
When I tried the Bold Honey Dijon Blue Diamond Almonds, I was totally caught off guard. I loved it. So much.
Immediately, I thought of trying them in a curry dish. The honey adds just a touch of sweet to complement the subtle tang of the honey dijon mustard flavor of these almonds. I loved just snacking on these on their own as well. But let me tell you: they are DELISH in this curry chicken salad that I made! I think you're gonna love it, too!
How to make curried chicken salad with almonds
You can use skinless chicken thighs, chicken breasts, or chicken breast tenderloins for this recipe. I used chicken breast tenderloins. While the chicken is roasting in the oven, you can prepare the rest of the ingredients.
I used a knife to roughly sliver the almonds. However, you can also pulse them for just a bit in a food processor if you prefer. I happen to like the shape of slightly slivered almonds in my salads as opposed to chunky chopped almonds. It's up to you!
You can see the tangy dijon mustard powder in the almonds above. Mmmm. So good.
Mix the almonds with the remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Then once the chicken is done cooking, slice into bite-size pieces. Toss into the dressing mixture until every itty bitty little piece is well coated.
Now, I don't like my chicken salad to be drenched in any dressing, curry or otherwise. So if you find that the amounts below are too sparse for your chicken salad, feel free to mix in more mustard and mayo.
Note: I normally have a fairly strong dislike of raisins - EXCEPT when they are disguised and hidden. The raisins are nicely coated in the curry dressing here. I did save some almond pieces and raisins to top off each serving at the end, for presentation.
Serve this curry chicken salad with almonds on a bed of lettuce. In the photo above, I've got it on a bed of kale, spinach, and swiss chard. This is also delicious between two slices of your favorite bread as a sandwich. Or you can just grab a fork and dig in!
It's all good here, friends. It's all GOOD.
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breast tenderloins
- olive oil
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 Tablespoon curry powder
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ⅓ cup apple juice
- 2 Tablespoons dijon mustard
- 3 Tablespoons curry powder
- ¼ cup diced celery
- 1 Tablespoon chopped green onions
- 2 Tablespoons raisins
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- ⅓ cup roughly chopped Blue Diamond Honey Dijon Almonds
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Place chicken breasts in a large bowl. Generously douse chicken in olive oil, coating all sides, then lay flat in one layer onto a baking sheet. Sprinkle evenly with salt, pepper, and 1 tablespoon curry powder.
- Roast chicken in 350 degree oven until just done, about 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare the dressing. In a large bowl, whisk together mayo, apple juice, mustard, curry powder, celery, green onions, raisins, garlic, and almonds.
- Remove chicken from oven, let cool for 5 minutes before slicing into bite-size pieces.
- Mix chicken into the dressing until fully coated.
- Serve immediately over bed of lettuce or rice.
Notes
Nutrition information is a general estimate. Actual nutrition details may vary depending on the exact foods & brands you use to make this recipe. It does not take into account any substitutions, toppings, or optional ingredients.
This conversation is sponsored by Blue Diamond Almonds. All opinions, photos, and recipes are, as always, my own.
Carole from Carole's Chatter says
Hi Marlynn, I do hope you'll come over to Food on Friday: Curries to bring this to the party! Cheers from Carole's Chatter
Stacee says
That looks and sounds incredible!!!!!!!!!!! Probably shouldn't be reading this at 11pm... it's making me hungry! LOL ;)
Monica Louie says
This sounds like a wonderful combination of flavors! Thank you so much for sharing!
Des @ Life's Ambrosia says
I have had a love affair with almond chicken salad ever since my first restaurant job. But that sandwich was just a basic chicken salad, this curried one looks amazing!
Marlynn Jayme Schotland says
I love regular almond chicken salad too, Des, but if you like curry, this is a great combo of flavors!
Jen says
Bookmarking - thank you!
Marlynn Jayme Schotland says
Thank you, Jen!
Catherine says
I love flavored almonds too (especially the wasabi ones, mmmm) but you have to be really careful to not eat too many b/c of the salt content. But this is a great idea to add them to a savory dish like curry salad!
Marlynn Jayme Schotland says
Thanks for the reminder about the salt content, Catherine! Flavored almonds are a fave snack of mine too!
Abigail says
I love adding curry powder and raisins in my chicken salad too so I know I am sure to enjoy this delicious dish! Pinned, too.
Marlynn Jayme Schotland says
Thanks, Abigail!
Gwen @SimplyHealthyFamily says
i love honey Dijon and curry, interesting combination!
Marlynn Jayme Schotland says
Thanks, Gwen! They work well together! :)
Danielle says
Dijon tends to not be a friend to my taste buds, but curry is my absolute BEST friend! I guess I'll just have to try this recipe out for myself to know for sure how my taste buds will react. By the looks of these photos, it seems like there's a good chance that its going to be a winner ;) thanks for sharing, cheers!
Marlynn Jayme Schotland says
Ahh try it! Dijon goes well with curry, and actually helps the curry flavors stand out.
Christie says
I love the sound of honey dijon almonds. I can just imagine how delicious they will be with the curry in the chicken salad. Can't wait to try this one.
Marlynn Jayme Schotland says
They are pretty darn tasty, Christie. If you get some at your local grocery store, I'd love to know what you thought of them!
Patricia @ Grab a Plate says
These almonds sounds fab! Perfect addition to your chicken salad, which sounds wonderful! This is one of my favorite dishes!
Marlynn Jayme Schotland says
Thank you, Patricia! The almonds on their own are slightly addictive... ;)
Pech says
I have that same feeling towards raisins and still may not use them in this recipe, but this recipe sounds amazing, and I really like that it doesn't use much mayo as I find most curry chicken salad too cloying. I totally would pulse the almonds in a food processor to chop them - not because I don't like the appearance of sliced almonds, but laziness. :X
Marlynn Jayme Schotland says
Pech, the secret for us non-raisin eaters is to use the baby raisins that come in the kid snack pack sizes. They're perfect: small enough so you don't take a bite and think "Ack! Raisin!" but just enough to add some sweetness to the dish :)
Joy @ Joy Love Food says
This sounds delicious, I love curry chicken salads and almonds sound like a wonderful addition!
Marlynn Jayme Schotland says
Thank you, Joy! Almonds definitely give the chicken salad a nice added crunch!
Rachel says
I'm not a huge fan of dijon, but I do LOVE curry. I may try this with regular almonds instead!
Marlynn Jayme Schotland says
Definitely try it with regular almonds! I've made non-curry chicken salad with Blue Diamond salted almonds before and it's just as delicious!