I find that in most pot luck Filipino parties I go to -- although I haven't exactly been to a hundred -- people prefer to bring either their most complicated specialties (e.g. kare-kare, caldereta, lengua, etc) or their simplest: dessert (leche flan, buko pandan, or my favorite quick and easy choice: the fruit platter!) And not that I don't want to be outdone, I just don't like to be the one to bring the food that people barely touch on the buffet table and so I too like to bring something "special" as well, like this Chicken Macaroni Salad. I like to think that it's not overly complicated and I have received mildly flattering compliments each time I've made it hence I am sharing this recipe for non-cooks like myself.
I give full credit to my high school home economics teacher for this recipe. It's not the quickest food to prepare but it is simple enough for a non-cook to do (I learned it in highschool, after all).
INGREDIENTS:
2 Chicken breasts
3-4 cloves garlic
2 large onions
Salt and Pepper
3 stalks Celery
500g Elbow macaroni
1 green pepper
1 large carrot
1 can pineapple tidbits OR 1 cup of raisins
1/2 cup pickle relish
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup vinaigrette (combine 1/4 c. white vinegar, 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 tsp each basil, oregano, salt and pepper)
1/2 cup evaporated milk
2-3 T sugar
STEPS: There are going to be 4 major processes you just need to keep in mind and I'll list the steps accordingly: 1) cooking the chicken breast, 2) prepping the pasta/macaroni, 3) prepping the veggies, 4) mixing the salad together.
IMPORTANT: You will need a very large bowl to mix the salad together.
1) Cooking the chicken breast:
- Place clean chicken breasts in small pot
- Add peeled and squished cloves of garlic, one onion peeled and halved, one celery stalk, about 1 tsp each salt and pepper.
- Add enough water to cover chicken
- Turn on medium heat and cook for about 30 minutes (or check for meat doneness)
- Remove chicken from pot and let cool
- Once cooled, shred or cut up the chicken breast finely. then set aside
2) Prepping the pasta/macaroni:
- Cook the macaroni according to box instructions to reach al dente. (note: Rinse cooked pasta with cold water as you would for cold pasta salads)
- Add vinaigrette to your cooked and rinsed macaroni and mix thoroughly, then refrigerate for about 30 minutes to allow the vinaigrette to cling to the pasta
- Add evaporated milk to the macaroni and refrigerate again for 30 minutes or until you're ready to combine all the ingredients together
3) Prepping the veggies:
- Mince 1 onion, 2 celery stalks and 1 green pepper and place in a large bowl.
- Peel carrot and grate carrot, then add to your minced veggies.
- Add pickle relish and pineapple tidbits or raisins to minced veggies and mix thoroughly.
4) Mix the salad together:
- Take your large bowl with your minced veggies, relish and pineapple.
- Add in your chicken and mix.
- Add in your macaroni and mix.
- Add your mayonnaise and mix thoroughly
- Add your sugar and mix thoroughly
- Taste the salad and adjust to fit your preference (don't skip this step! this is the part where I usually add a little bit more sugar and maybe some mayo if the macaroni looks too dry)
-
