Name: Chicken Salad with Walnuts
Ingredients: 5 pounds (2,400 g) skinless, boneless chicken breasts; ¾ cup (150 g) non-fat sour cream; ¾ cup (150 g) non-fat mayonnaise; 2 tablespoons (30 ml) white wine vinegar; 4 celery ribs, strings removed, and cut into small dice; ½ cup (75 g) walnuts; ¼ cup (12 g) chopped fresh tarragon; freshly grated pepper; extra tarragon for garnish

Why it works: Celery and tarragon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 456 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓

Chicken Salad with Walnuts

Timeabout 15 minutes

Ingredients

5 pounds (2,400 g) skinless, boneless chicken breasts
¾ cup (150 g) non-fat sour cream
¾ cup (150 g) non-fat mayonnaise
2 tablespoons (30 ml) white wine vinegar
4 celery ribs, strings removed, and cut into small dice
½ cup (75 g) walnuts
¼ cup (12 g) chopped fresh tarragon
freshly grated pepper
extra tarragon for garnish

Directions

Prepare the chicken

Poach the chicken breasts in simmering broth until cooked through, about 15 minutes.
Drain, cool, and cut into bite-sized pieces.

Make the dressing and combine

In a small bowl, combine the sour cream, mayonnaise and vinegar.
Combine the chicken and dressing. (Can be made ahead and refrigerated to this point 1 day in advance.)

Finish and serve

Before serving, add the celery, walnuts, tarragon and pepper to taste.
Place mixture in a large serving bowl.
Garnish with tarragon.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

386Calories

56 gProtein

12 gFat

10 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 8 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Chicken	100g cooked	165
Yogurt	170g plain Greek	100
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Walnut	1 walnut half (4g)	26
Celery	1 stalk (40g)	6
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Vinegar	1 tbsp (15ml) distilled	3
Tarragon	1 tsp dried (0.5g)	2

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

Celery + tarragontop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together456 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Celery + peppertop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together16,012 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Walnut + tarragontop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together118 recipes

Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
Tarragon + peppertop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together2,399 recipes

Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
Celery + walnuttop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together852 recipes

Shared aroma: alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Chicken breasts: Provide the main protein, which becomes tender when gently poached and stays moist in the salad.
Sour cream: Adds creamy moisture and a mild tang to the dressing.
Mayonnaise: Emulsified fat that binds the dressing and keeps the chicken moist and rich.
White wine vinegar: Adds acidity that brightens the dressing and balances the richness of the cream and mayonnaise.
Celery: Adds crisp texture and fresh, mild flavor against the soft chicken.
Walnuts: Add crunch and a toasty, slightly bitter depth to the salad.

The step that matters

Poaching the chicken. Simmering gently rather than boiling keeps the proteins from tightening, so the chicken stays tender and juicy. Cooking until just cooked through, then cooling it, prevents dry, rubbery meat.

Swap the walnut

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (chicken, cream, white wine, vinegar, celery, tarragon, pepper):

Beansfits about as well
Chestnutfits about as well
Walnutthe original
Lentilsfits about as well

Fit is the average pairing score against chicken, cream, white wine, vinegar, celery, tarragon, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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Chicken Salad with Walnuts