One of the things I always loved to see mama place on the table was her homemade Chicken Salad. I loved it… just loved it. She always made a great big bowl of it several times a month. It took a prominent place on that oval table most every Sunday and I always enjoyed sandwiches the next day, if any of it happened to be left. Did I mention that I loved it?
As good as mama’s Chicken Salad was, one of my fond memories of this dish growing up took place before I became a teenager. We lived about two miles from the middle of downtown for our city. Most Saturdays, mama would have me “call a cab” (taxi) to take us downtown for an afternoon of shopping. On a good Saturday, mama would give me enough money to visit one of the local Drug Stores while she went shopping in the ladies clothing store.
This particular drug store had a small area where they sold the best Coca-Cola I’ve ever tasted and a very tasty chicken salad sandwich. The Coca-Cola was served in a cup with very finely crushed ice and a small straw. They never put lids on top as I recalled. The soda fountain wasn’t very large but I will always remember how great those Coca-Colas and their sandwiches were to me.
The Chicken Salad sandwich would be served on toasted bread with a scoop of the meat pressed in between. Then, they would wrap it in wax paper, place it in a small brown bag, and I’d be out the door. Most of the time I’d just stand outside the store enjoying my cold soda and that delicious sandwich as other folks walked by. It was so very good, especially to this youngster.
Mama’s chicken salad was a bit different. She would always make it using her own special sweet pickles and the juice from the pickle jar. I”m fully convinced it was those pickles and their juice that made many of mama’s dishes so very special to us all. It was very sweet and she used it in her chicken salad, potato salad, deviled eggs and other dishes. I’ve said it before but, I keep thinking maybe one day we can actually bring mama’s sweet pickles to market. They were just that good to me.
So, I do hope you’ll give our recipe for Chicken Salad a try. There are a ton of recipes for making it all over the internet with all types of variations. We grew up pretty simple I guess so ours may seem pretty basic. It’s just the way I like it and I hope you will too. Ready to get started? Then… Let’s Get Cooking.
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