This Easy Coronation Chicken is a lovely way to turn cooked chicken into a creamy, flavour-packed dish. It is perfect for lunches, light dinners or entertaining. Shredded chicken is combined with crème fraîche, mayonnaise, curry powder and chutney to create a delicious balance of savoury, sweet and gently spiced flavours.
The addition of dried apricots and almonds brings a little sweetness and crunch to every bite. It is easy to prepare ahead of time and a great option when you have leftover cooked chicken to use up.
The history behind Coronation Chicken
This brightly coloured dish is such a lovely one to know how to make. Originally created by Rosemary Hume for Queen Elizabeth II in 1953 as a dish prepared for the banquet at the Coronation. It has since gone through many variations, and mine is just one of the variations I like best.
I love a good chunky sandwich, especially one with lots of lovely flavours and textures in every bite. This filling certainly fits the bill! I have always wanted to share this one here, even though it may be a bit of an acquired taste for some!
How to build flavour in Coronation Chicken
Coronation chicken traditionally includes cooked cold chicken, curry, herbs, mayonnaise, crème fraîche, almonds and apricots or raisins. From there it can really suit the tastes of those making it.
I always make mine in a way that builds flavour. I do not like using raw curry powder, so I cook it off with the almonds. This also allows the almonds to toast at the same time and ensures that the flavours are perfect every time.
Why add mango chutney to Coronation Chicken?
The addition of a mango chutney happened sometime later. It works so well with the curry flavours, adding a lovely sweet and tangy finish. This also helps balance the creaminess of the dish.
You can use apricot jam or sweet chilli sauce if you prefer.
What chicken is best for Coronation Chicken?
For this recipe, you will want to use cold chicken. Leftover roast chicken, supermarket rotisserie chicken or poached chicken breasts are all ideal.
I like to shred it so that it still has some size and texture. Chicken that is shredded too finely is not as enjoyable.
Why toast the almonds and cook the curry powder?
Then it is a matter of toasting the sliced almonds in a little butter until they are lightly golden and fragrant, before adding the curry powder to cook it off. I find this step makes such a difference to the overall flavour, as raw curry powder can be quite bitter and unpleasant to eat. Gently heating it in the butter helps bring out those lovely warm curry flavours, while the almonds develop a delicious toasted flavour and crunch. Just keep an eye on the heat and stir regularly, as both the almonds and curry powder can burn quite quickly.
Why use mayonnaise and crème fraîche in Coronation Chicken?
For the sauce, I use both mayonnaise and crème fraîche as this was traditional. I find the crème fraîche is lovely and creamy and it gives a thicker sauce. If you do not have this or prefer not to use it, you can use Greek yoghurt in its place, this will make your sauce a little thinner as a result.
Substitutions for Coronation Chicken
- Swap the crème fraîche for Greek yoghurt (the sauce will be thinner)
- Swap the dried apricots for raisins or golden sultanas
- Swap the coriander for fresh flat leaf parsley or mint
- Swap the mango chutney for apricot jam or other fruit chutney of your choice
How to make a smooth Coronation Chicken sauce
It can be a little tricky to blend the crème fraîche together with the mayo without lumps, the key to this is to whisk the room temperature crème fraîche well first then add the mayo a little at a time until it whisks together smoothly.
Some people also add a little cream to this to help it come together, but I find a few lumps are fine!
How to combine the Coronation Chicken ingredients
Then I add to this the chutney and stir well, then tip in the cooled curried almonds, diced apricots (or raisins) and the diced coriander and mix this together well. Then pour this over the chicken and combine until the chicken is well coated.
If you do not like to use coriander then you can use flat leaf parsley, or mint can give a nice contrasting flavour.
Allow the chicken to sit in the fridge for 2-4 hours for the flavours to infuse and develop. The longer you leave this filling the more dry it may become, simply add a little mayonnaise to it if you need to moisten it on the days to follow.
How to store Coronation Chicken safely
Coronation Chicken must not be kept out at room temperature for any length of time, due to both the chicken and the mayonnaise content, so keep any sandwiches made with this cool and refrigerated until eaten also.
It will keep for up to 3 days if stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
Can Coronation Chicken be frozen?
No, this cannot be frozen as the dressing will split and become watery once thawed. Instead, halve the recipe to make less.
How to serve Coronation Chicken
I love to serve this as a lovely chunky sandwich, using soft, fresh slices of buttered bread, with some lettuce or rocket and finely diced cucumber. It makes such a delicious filling, with plenty of flavour and texture in every bite.
It is also wonderful served on toasted bread or a crusty baguette. Simply spread with a little butter or mayonnaise, add a generous helping of Coronation Chicken, then finish with some fresh rocket, toasted seeds or almonds and a sprinkling of fresh herbs.
For something a little different, you can even serve this over rice for a lovely lunch or light dinner. If the mixture seems a little dry, simply stir through some extra mayonnaise to loosen it, then finish with fresh herbs.
This recipe makes approximately 2 cups of Coronation Chicken mixture, but you can easily double the quantities if you are feeding a crowd or preparing sandwiches for a gathering.
Coronation Chicken recipe
Easy Coronation Chicken Recipe
This Easy Coronation Chicken combines tender shredded chicken with a creamy, gently spiced dressing, sweet dried apricots and crunchy almonds for a delicious lunch or light dinner.
Ingredients
- 10 grams Butter
- 1/3 Cup Sliced Almonds, 30 grams
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1 Tablespoon Curry Powder
- 1 Cup Mayonnaise, 235 grams (whole egg mayo like Best Foods)
- 1/2 Cup Crème Fraîche, 120 grams (or greek yoghurt)
- 3 Tablespoons Mango Chutney (or fruit chutney/apricot jam)
- 1/3 Cup Dried Apricots, 50 grams, diced (or raisins)
- 1/4 Cup Coriander, 8 grams, finely sliced
- 500 grams Cold Cooked Chicken, shredded to diced to 2-3cm
Instructions
- Bring the measure of crème fraîche to room temp while you prepare the rest of the dish
- In a small frying pan add the butter and melt, over a medium heat add the sliced almonds and salt, and stirring often, begin to toast these for 3 minutes
- Once they are just starting to brown, add the curry powder and stirring constantly toast this until fragrant, approx 1 minute, then remove from the heat and scrape into to a small bowl to cool.
- In a medium to large bowl add the crème fraîche and whisk it using a small whisk until it is smooth, then add the mayonnaise, half at a time, and whisk well to combine and remove most of the lumps
- Add to this the mango chutney and fold through.
- Then add to this the diced apricots, finely sliced coriander and the cooled curry toasted almonds and stir through.
- Shred or dice the chicken to 2-3 cm pieces, then add this to the bowl of the sauce and stir through until well coated.
- Cover the bowl and place in the fridge for 2-4 hours for the flavours to develop and infuse into the chicken.
- See serving suggestions in notes below, always serve cold.
- Always keep this filling refrigerated, will keep for up to 3 days if covered well. If it drys out as the days pass, stir through a little extra mayonnaise.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Serving Suggestions for Coronation Chicken
- As a sandwich, using fresh slices of buttered bread, with lettuce or rocket and finely diced cucumber
- On toasted bread or baguette, spread with butter or mayonnaise, pile the bread with rocket, toasted seeds or almonds and fresh herbs to finish.
- Over rice, if too dry, add a little more mayo, serve with fresh herbs
Substitutions for Coronation Chicken
- Swap the crème fraîche for greek yoghurt (the sauce will be thinner)
- Swap the dried apricots for raisins or golden sultanas
- Swap the coriander for fresh flat leaf parsley or mint
- Swap the mango chutney for apricot jam or other fruit chutney of your choice
Can Coronation Chicken be Frozen?
No, this cannot be frozen as the dressing will split and become watery once thawed. Instead, halve the recipe to make less.
Nutrition Information
Yield 8 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 500Total Fat 43gSaturated Fat 11gUnsaturated Fat 32gCholesterol 95mgSodium 420mgCarbohydrates 13gFiber 6gSugar 6gProtein 18g
JustAMumNZ.com, occasionally offers nutritional information for recipes contained on this site. This information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although justamumnz.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
I really hope you love this Easy Coronation Chicken as much as I do. It is such a lovely recipe to have on hand for lunches, sandwiches or entertaining, and one I’ll be making again and again.
If you give this recipe a go, I’d love to hear how it turned out for you in the comments. You can also leave a ⭐ rating in the recipe card above, it really helps others find and enjoy this recipe too.
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Happy baking,
Anna x
Sally Harnett says
Made today to make rolls for a platter (like asparagus rolls). Friends went crazy for them only to complain they had run out! Would be nice to add pasta
as a salad. Goes a long way. Will be our new summer fav 😍
Anna From Just A Mum says
I’m so happy to hear that, thanks for letting me know! Anna