Our show this week explores the idea of ‘authenticity’ in food. People are always saying: This recipe, or restaurant, or chef is authentic, this is not. But I maintain that ‘authenticity’ is a weird and unexamined concept: How could you possibly be authentic to anything far away in time or space? We have refrigeration and different strains of tomatoes than, say, people did in Tuscany 200 years ago, so what is authentic Italian food, what they made then or what we can make now? I maintain making something really tasty in the here and now is more valuable than making something “authentic” and as my proof of this concept I’ve rounded up five terrific chicken salad recipes—and one pork salad!—all of which really speak to living the good life in the confines of the American grocery store, which is where we all actually live. The here and now people, don’t trash it—it’s really the only thing we’ve got!
Thai Chicken Larb Salad (the basics)We have Ann Ahmed from Golden Valley’s new Lat 14 on the show Saturday. Her family is originally from Southeast Asia, and I think of Larb as one of the greatest dishes of that peninsula that holds Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos. It’s meat, often chicken, beef or pork, cooked with lime juice and spices, served with vegetables and herbs, and when it’s made with chicken you could argue that it’s a chicken salad! Anyway, if you make it with ingredients from a Minnesota grocery store, you’ll be having a very authentic Southeast-Asian-diaspora-in-Minnesota experience, as well as a very delicious experience.
Plum Alley’s Northern Thai Pork Larb Lettuce WrapWhat’s a pork salad recipe doing in a chicken salad round-up? I just really like the way this famous Salt Lake City restaurant called Plum Alley thinks about American Asian food—as it’s own thing. Also this is a seriously delicious recipe, and you should have it with a nice Riesling or Sauvignon Blanc. Two-Pea Pesto Chicken Salad Pesto, green peas, and snap peas all together—just a delicious bit of fresh energy in the winter, and there are so many good jarred pestos in grocery stores now. Get a rotisserie chicken, and make a double batch!
Greek Chicken Salad I love a good Greek salad above all, and when it’s got some chicken in it, that’s a perfect weeknight dinner. Please note it can also stand up to any additional leftover veggies you might have on hand, so use up all the little bits of red pepper or broccoli in the drawer!
Rick Bayless’ Mexican Chicken Salad with AvocadoIf you’re asking yourself: Can I make a Mexican chicken salad with all those avocadoes in the market right now, the answer is: Yes, yes you can.