I love making healthy versions of the food you would usually find in the local fast food location. It lets me satisfy my fast food cravings without the guilt I feel after stuffing myself with fatty cheeseburgers. These chicken salad lettuce wraps are like an extreme, grain-free version of a chicken wrap.
What makes this chicken salad really great is the herbs. I have several different herbs growing on my patio and I use them whenever I can. I used to think it wasn’t worth it but it took me only one time making a meal with fresh herbs to see what difference they make. They don’t take up a lot of space, you can even grow them on a window sill or on the kitchen counter by the window. Give it a try if you haven’t yet!
I use freshly made homemade mayonnaise to transform this chicken salad from something simple to a real heavenly meal. You can read about how to make mayonnaise in another post of mine. If you don’t want to make your own then make sure that the mayo you buy at the store doesn’t contain any suspicious ingredients. Yes, they are rare but they do exist! The mayonnaise is what gives the salad that tasty creamy texture so it’s really important you use a good quality one.
And, of course, the chicken. I’m sure I don’t need to tell you this but we should all support real field-raised chicken farms. They are being replaced by the so-called factory chickens that are cheap to raise and cheap to sell. But their taste is far from what a real chicken should taste like, not to mention all antibiotics we ingest together with their meat! That’s why I buy from local farmers whenever I can and if you don’t have access to one, do some research about what kind of chickens are available at the stores near you. You won’t regret it, I promise!
Necessary equipment:
- a large mixing bowl
- a wooden spoon
- an ice cream scoop
Ingredients:
- 4 cups of cooked and cubed chicken
- ½ cup of homemade mayonnaise (learn how to make your own at home here)
- ½ cup of sour cream
- three sprinkles of chopped fresh parsley
- two sprinkles of chopped fresh thyme
- two sprinkles of chopped fresh tarragon
- one sprinkle of chopped fresh dill
- several chopped sage leaves
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 dill pickles cut into cubes
- 1 cup of chopped pecan nuts
- 1 cup of halved grapes
- romaine lettuce leaves
Instructions:
- Combine mayonnaise and sour cream in a large mixing bowl.
- Add the herbs (parsley, thyme, tarragon, dill, and sage) and stir until well blended.
- Add the dill pickles cubes and stir again.
- Now add the chicken, pecan nuts, and grapes. Stir so they are all coated well.
- Scoop the salad onto lettuce leaves and wrap as you would do with a tortilla wrap.
Enjoy your healthy chicken wraps! If you don’t have lettuce, you can also eat this salad with some whole-grain crackers.