Tarragon Chicken Salad with Walnuts and Cranberries

Overview

When I was pregnant with my daughter many moons ago, I LOVED this one bagel sandwich from Brueggers Bagels.

Their tarragon chicken salad was the bomb to me; it had a crunch from almonds, and a subtle tarragon flavor that just was perfect, and was GREAT on a bagel. Unfortunately, this particular salad is no longer offered near me, so I decided to make my own version, and it’s a great base chicken salad recipe, even if you omit the walnuts or dried cranberries. If you make it, be sure to tag me on instagram @jackiecooksanddrinks!

Serves 3-4 lunch portions on a bed of greens

Hi, I’m Jackie, Founder of Jackie Cooks and Drinks, and a BIG believer that cooking, creating and entertaining should be FUN.

LEARN MORE

Shopping List

  • 3 whole chicken legs, cooked (I season only with coarse sea salt and drizzle with olive oil; bake at 425 for about 40 minutes), skin removed, and chopped into bite sized pieces

  • 3 stalks of celery, diced

  • 3 large scallions, sliced

  • 1/4 cup walnuts

  • 1/4 cup dried cranberries

  • 2/3 cup good quality mayonnaise

  • juice of 1/2 lemon

  • 1-2 tbsp of coarse ground dijon mustard (eye ball it; use more if you like a mustardy taste, use only 1 tbsp otherwise). I like Maille old style

  • 2 tsp dried tarragon (or 1.5 tbsp fresh)

  • 1 tsp dried parsley (or 1 tbsp fresh)

  • 1 tsp kosher salt

  • black pepper to taste

Method

Once chicken is cool, remove skin and chop meat into bite sized pieces. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, lemon juice, mustard, tarragon, parsley, salt, and pepper. Stir in the chicken, celery, scallions, walnuts, and dried cranberries. Chill before serving.

While you may be tempted to eat this right away, it’s even better after a couple hours in the fridge to allow the flavors to marry!

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK:

​

mrs

January 23, 2023

The printed recipe doesn’t include the tarragon so I almost left it out! Oops!

Carol Rhodes-Rice