Why it works: Chicken and celery are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,375 recipes. Both carry myristicin, which smells spice, warm. The science ↓
Chicken Salad
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no cooking times; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
Prepare
Combine equal parts of cold chicken and chopped celery in a bowl.
Pour ½ cup of French dressing over the mixture and let it marinate for 30 minutes to 2 hours.
Serve
When ready to serve, mix in mayonnaise dressing to taste.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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.
-
Chicken + celerytop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,375 recipes
Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cold chicken
- Provides the main protein and bulk of the salad.
- Celery
- Adds crisp texture that contrasts with the soft chicken.
- French dressing
- Marinates the chicken and celery, adding acidity and sweetness.
- Mayonnaise dressing
- Adds fat and creaminess, binding the salad together.
The step that matters
Marinating the chicken and celery. Letting the mixture marinate in the French dressing allows the acid and sugar to season the chicken and celery. Adding the mayonnaise dressing only at the end keeps the salad creamy and prevents it from becoming watery or greasy.
“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.
More chicken salad recipes
You might also like
Salad Dressing491 recipes
Tomato Salad179 recipes
Cold Slaw160 recipes
Boiled Salad Dressing67 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.