Chicken Salad - Best Ever!! (At least in my house)

Let me start out by saying that I got very, very sick from chicken salad when I was a kid and virtually stayed away from it for more years than I can count.  However, I'm all grown up now and decided that it was time I tried this little puppy again.  I've experimented with various ingredients such as cut-up apples, celery, grapes, cranberries, onions, etc. and even tried it plain.  I've added a LOT of mayo and I've added very little mayo.  Even tried spicing the chicken before I cooked it and then cut it into chuncks.   Bottomline, nothing tasted WOW.  So...after much experimenting, here is what I've come up with and I really like it - just the right amount of crunch and not overwhelming flavour.  I even tested this on some of the ladies at church and got the a-okay !!

Couple of tips:  You can add Crazens to the mix - gives it a great colour but be aware that they get pretty limp by the next day and a little chewy.  Chicken salad on the next day has more flavouring - a day really helps to get the flavours mixed thoroughly.  Be sure to cover the bowl tightly or put it into an airtight container before refrigerating overnight.

One thing you should be aware of - it involves nuts - roasted pecans.  If you have allergies, stop reading before you have a reaction!

Ingredients:  (recipe is geared for salad for 4 or a few sandwiches)

2 chicken breasts (cooked thoroughly in a little orange juice and chopped)
1/2 cup celery (chopped small)
1/2 cup roasted pecans (chopped into bits or pounded) (I use a sandwich bag & a wooden hammer)
1 tsp Lemon Pepper
1/2 tsp Cracked Black Pepper
1 tsp Dry Mustard
Pinches of Kosher Salt
Pinch of Ground Coriander
1/2 cup Mayo (guage the mayo to your taste - about 1/2 cup keeps chicken pieces together)



 Mix the chicken pieces with mayo in a big bowl - get all pieces covered.  Add celery and mix.  Add lemon pepper, dry mustard, pepper and salt and mix together.  Put a few pinches of coriander in bowl and add the pecans.  Mix.  Once it's all thoroughly mixed, try a little and start adding spices to your taste, ie., a little more lemon pepper, or pepper or dry mustard.  Limit the amount of coriander - it will take over if too much.  You can also reduce the amount of celery or pecans if you don't want it as crunchy.  Add crazens (if you desire) at the end.  Refrigerate until use.  Hope you like it as much as we do.  Enjoy.