Although this Chicken Celery Prune Walnut Salad might not look like the most appetizing dish, it’s indeed very delicious.
This post was originally published in January 2017. I have uploaded new images but the recipe and blog post remain unchanged.
Celery, Prunes, and Co
But I get you. Celery. Prunes. These ingredients don’t get a perfect reputation. The list is endless.
There are quite a lot of things that don’t sound appealing to many people.
I recall my nephew being at the age of 6-7 or so. He did like blueberry jam, but when once we suggested some fresh blueberries, he answered he wasn’t sure blueberries were his favorite berries. Also, being a kid he didn’t mind having some kind of eggplant dip; however, when he saw a real eggplant (With our idea to try it in a different dish), he basically was petrified. I think he wouldn’t eat that dip for a while.
But children are different, you know.
Or not really?
C Word
I’ve seen many people who figuratively couldn’t speak when they heard that bad C world. Celery, I mean.
Or let’s say prunes. Black, sticky, and suspiciously looking? It’s like that eggplant story – a lot of people do love plums, but prunes mean something completely different and probably from a different planet. Repugnant.
Andrey doesn’t like sun-dried tomatoes; however I made some new year’s appetizers with sun-dried tomatoes pesto, and he rather enjoyed. I’m wondering did he recognize the tomatoes? If not, should I tell him?
I’ve got even a better example. Myself. I used to be biased against blue cheese and any cheese with a strong flavor. I just had been rejecting to try it for a long time. Although I had never tried any blue cheese, somehow I knew I wouldn’t like it. I believe this is kind of food prejudice, don’t you think so? When I finally, a number of years ago, tried a little piece (Of course thinking I would probably die), I liked it. Not like it was love at first sight, but I started to gradually enjoy it. Now blue cheese is one of my favorite things (On a side note, there are kinds I’ve been rejecting to sample).
Or let’s say lavender. I’ve known some people who were skeptical about lavender. Seriously! Well, we aren’t friends anymore haha:)
Chicken Celery Prune Walnut Salad – To Be or Not to Be?
So, if some people find this Chicken Celery Prune Walnut Salad doesn’t sound delicious to them, I will understand. We are all humans being skeptical about some things.
For those who don’t mind either prunes or celery, this Chicken Celery Prune Walnut Salad would be a delicious dish packed with many good things. To make it even better, I made a simple dressing of 0% fat greek yogurt, mayo, jalapeno, and black pepper.
Indeed, I posted a similar salad last week (Chicken Celery Grape Salad) which you might like too.
And you know what I’m thinking? Some blue cheese, either crumbled over the salad or incorporated into the dressing, would be a nice addition. I mean, celery, prunes, and blue cheese – absolutely killing combo!:)
What’s your ingredient you secretly afraid of? Do you have an established relationship with prunes?
Chicken Celery Prune Walnut Salad
Notes
Cooking time does not include cooking and chilling the chicken breast; this would up up to another 20 minutes or so.
Ingredients
Salad:
- 1 large chicken breast; cooked, chilled, and cubed/sliced/pulled
- 1 cup pitted prunes, sliced
- 1 cup finely sliced celery
- 1/2 cup walnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
- ~2 cups of spinach or other salad of your choice
Dressing:
- 2/3 cup Greek or any plain yogurt
- 2-3 tablespoons mayo
- 1/2 (or to taste) small jalapeno, finely chopped
- a good pinch of black pepper
- a pinch of salt, if needed
Instructions
- For a dressing, combine the yogurt with mayo, and add the jalapeno and black pepper. Season with a little salt if necessary. Place in the fridge until ready to use.
- In a bowl combine the spinach, celery, chicken, and prunes. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes (You can serve the salad at once, but it’s better when chilled.
- While serving, sprinkle the salad with the toasted walnuts and mix with the dressing.
- Enjoy!
Hi – I’m Ben, a blogger, recipe developer, and food photographer. I’m glad you’re here! I hope you will enjoy hundreds of delicious recipes and a pinch of havoc in the kitchen.
Prunes…while many people love plums they for some reason don’t want to eat prunes. I love them and your salad sounds great. I also agree that blue cheese would make a nice addition.
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Hahaha, your Nephew sound like Adoria. She also loves eggplant dip, when she sees eggplant itself, she says it’s disgusting. ;) This chicken celery prune walnut salad looks stunning. And I certainly have no issues with blue cheese, so I can that entire plate.
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Haha! Yes, I totally agree with you. There are some things in this world that just take a while to get used to. *ahem lavender ahem* I’m the same as you on blue cheese, Ben. I didn’t like it for years, but I’m not sure I ever really tried it. Same goes for cheesecake. (I mean who wants dessert with cheddar cheese in it…at least that’s what my 7-year-old brain thought a cheesecake was!) But this salad looks insane! I’m a huge fan of blue cheese now, and I would gladly devour this salad…even if it had lavender in it!
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