This healthy coronation chicken recipe is a delicious low fat chicken salad, perfect for using up leftover chicken. Cooked chicken is mixed with a lightly spiced, tangy curry sauce made with just a few ingredients. It's quick and easy and is ideal for meal prep.
British coronation chicken was first made for the Queen's coronation in 1953. The original recipe had a few more ingredients, and was made with a rich mayonnaise and whipped cream. This low fat, healthy version has been simplified and although there's a little mayonnaise in the recipe, it's mixed with Greek yogurt to make it lighter.
You can also make a veggie option of this coronation salad with cauliflower, or a festive coronation turkey.
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What you'll love about the recipe
- Healthy coronation chicken salad is an easy recipe for a meal that you want to prepare ahead of time. Enjoy it at a summer lunch party or for an everyday dinner. This quick recipe is ready to eat in just 10 minutes!
- A delicious way to enjoy leftover cooked chicken. Kids and adults love the mild creamy curry sauce, and you can easily tweak the recipe to suit your own taste.
- This healthy coronation chicken recipe is a filling and substantial salad dish. It is packed with protein, low fat and very low in carbs. It's also naturally gluten free.
Ingredients
Cooked chicken. You can use either leftover cooked chicken breast, chicken legs or a mixture of both. Leftover roast chicken is perfect.
Mayonnnaise. I use just a little bought mayonnaise in this recipe as a short cut as it is well seasoned. It can be low fat or full fat, but proper mayonnaise is better than salad cream. If you prefer however, you can omit the mayonnaise and replace it with an extra spoonful of Greek yogurt. I'd recommend some extra seasoning and a squeeze of lemon to balance the recipe if you make a mayo free coronation chicken.
Greek yogurt lightens the dressing for this healthy chicken salad. You'll need a plain, natural yogurt which can either be fat free or full fat.
Mild curry powder. This gives the dressing its distinctive flavour and colour. A ready blended curry powder is easier, but you can also blend your own spices if you prefer. Use a stronger curry powder if you'd prefer a spicier dish.
Mango chutney. I used a homemade refined sugar-free mango chutney, but use whatever you have available. It adds a sweet tang to the sauce, but it's not essential. You could replace the mango chutney with a low sugar apricot jam, or another type of sweet chutney if you prefer.
Sultanas add an extra fruity sweetness to this healthy coronation chicken. If you prefer, you could replace them with other dried fruit such as apricots, mango or raisins. Or omit the dried fruit altogether if you prefer.
Seasoning, to taste
You might also like this healthy pork tagine recipe, which combines low-fat pork with a fruity, spicy sauce.
Optional ingredients/variations
- Add a few flaked almonds for extra texture
- Sprinkle with chopped coriander for decoration
- You can also use leftover cooked turkey to make this recipe, so it's ideal for Christmas or Thanksgiving leftovers!
How to make healthy coronation chicken
This quick, easy recipe takes just a few minutes to make. You can make it directly into a serving bowl so there's hardly any washing up.
Take the chicken off the bone if necessary and remove any skin. Shred or cut into small bite sized pieces.
Mix the dressing in a large bowl. Stir the mayonnaise together with the Greek yogurt until well blended. Mix in the curry powder and mango chutney. Taste to see whether you need any extra seasoning or would like to add extra curry powder.
Add the chicken and sultanas to the dressing and stir together. Enjoy!
Expert tips
If you don't have any leftover cooked chicken, it doesn't take long to poach a couple of boneless chicken breasts for this recipe.
Place the chicken breasts in a pan with a couple of inches of water and a generous pinch of salt. The chicken should be just covered with the water. You can also use stock or add some herbs or garlic if you prefer.
Bring to a boil and simmer very gently for around 12 minutes. You'll need to adjust the time slightly depending on the size of the chicken pieces. Check that the chicken is cooked. You can either pierce the thickest part with a knife to check that the juices are clear, or use a meat thermometer.
You can also poach a whole chicken in the slow cooker to use in this recipe.
Serving and storage
This healthy coronation chicken is designed to be served as a cold salad. I prefer to remove it from the fridge half an hour before eating so that it has more flavour.
The recipe quantity makes 2 generous servings. If you are making the dish as part of a spread, it will serve 4 people.
Curried chicken salad goes really well with this brown rice pilaf which can also be served cold.
Or for a carb free meal, serve it in lettuce leaves. You can also add a Waldorf salad or some healthy coleslaw on the side.
Homemade coronation chicken also makes a classic chicken sandwich filling. Or serve it on these wholemeal flatbreads. It's also a great filling for baked potatoes (or try these slow cooker baked sweet potatoes).
Healthy coronation chicken can be stored in the fridge for up to 2 days.
I wouldn't recommend freezing the recipe as the sauce will split. However, you can freeze cooked chicken and rustle up this easy curried chicken salad at a later date.
Frequently asked questions
The original coronation chicken recipe was very high in fat, with lots of rich mayonnaise and cream. However, it was developed for a very special celebration!! This low fat healthy coronation chicken recipe has Greek yogurt and is suitable as an everyday meal.
This healthy coronation chicken recipe has 143 calories if you make it with chicken breast, low fat mayonnaise and fat free Greek yogurt. And it still tastes creamy and delicious!
Other healthy chicken recipes
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Recipe
Healthy Coronation Chicken
Ingredients
- 200 g cooked chicken
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise low or full fat
- 2 tablespoon Greek yogurt low or full fat
- ½ teaspoon mild curry powder
- 1 tablespoon mango chutney
- 1 tablespoon sultanas
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Remove any skin and bones from the cooked chicken and shred or cut into small pieces.
- Mix the yogurt and mayonnaise together in a serving bowl. Stir in the mango chutney and curry powder and mix well. Taste and adjust the seasoning and curry powder to suit.
- Add the chicken and sultanas and mix together.
Notes
- For a mayo free coronation chicken recipe, omit the mayonnaise and replace with additional Greek yogurt.
- You can use leftover chicken breast or dark meat. If you're concerned about fat content, chicken breast is a good choice as it tends to be lower in fat.
- If you don't have leftover cooked chicken, you can poach chicken breasts for this recipe. Place the chicken breast in a pan and just cover with water. Add a pinch of salt and herbs if desired. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook until the juices run clear - around 12 minutes for medium-sized chicken breasts.
Bibi Whiteman says
very simple but delicious