Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 2 chicken breasts (about 1.5 pounds) boneless and skinless
- 1 medium yellow onion, sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
- Kosher salt
- 2 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
- 4 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen peas
- 3/4 – 1 1/4 cup good quality store-bought mayonnaise (I use Primal Kitchen Mayonnaise made with avocado oil)
- 1 cup finely diced Persian pickles (about 2-3 pickles)
- Olives, radishes, extra pickles or fresh dill for garnish (optional)
- Crusty baguette for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Put the chicken, onion, garlic, and 2 teaspoons of kosher salt in a 12-inch saute pan or medium pot. Cover the chicken with cold filtered water and bring the water to a boil over high heat.
- Once the water boils, reduce the heat to medium, cover the pot partially with its lid and simmer until the chicken is fully cooked, 15-20 minutes. The chicken is cooked when it registers 160 degrees Fahrenheit on an instant read thermometer inserted into its thickest side.
- Transfer the poached chicken onto a plate and set aside until cool enough to handle.
- Discard the water, onions and garlic that you used to flavor the chicken. Set the pot aside to use later for the potatoes and eggs.
- Using two forks or clean hands, shred the cooked chicken.
- Place the shredded chicken in a large mixing bowl and set aside.
- Place the potatoes in the saute pan. Cover the potatoes with cold water and add ½ teaspoon salt.
- Bring the water to a boil over high heat. Once the water boils, reduce the heat to medium low and partially cover the pot with its lid.
- Cook until the potatoes easily fall apart when pierced with a fork, about 25 minutes.
- Drain the potatoes and add the hot potatoes to the shredded chicken.
- Fill the saute pan with 2 inches of water and bring to a boil. Once the water is boiling, use tongs to lower the eggs into the hot water.
- Cover the pan with its lid, reduce the heat to low and cook the eggs for 9 minutes.
- Remove the eggs from the hot liquid using tongs, set aside to cool. Once the eggs are cool enough to handle, peel the eggs.
- Chop the peeled eggs finely and add them to the chicken mixture.
- In the same pot that you cooked the eggs in, add the peas, 1 ½ cups water and ½ teaspoon salt. Cover the pot with the lid and bring to a boil over high heat.
- Once the water is boiling, reduce the heat to medium and cook the peas for 5 minutes.
- Drain the peas and add them to the chicken mixture.
- Add 1 Cup of mayonnaise and the pickles to the chicken mixture. Use a wooden spoon to thoroughly combine everything together. The mixture will be chunky but will hold together like tuna salad.
- Taste the salad olivieh and add more salt (¼ teaspoon at a time) if desired. You can also add more mayonnaise if you want a creamier salad.
- Mound the salad olivieh onto a serving platter and garnish with extra pickles, olives, or fresh dill.
- Cover the salad olivieh with plastic wrap and refrigerate until fully chilled, about 1 hour.
- Serve the olivieh with a side of pita bread, as a filling for a baguette sandwich or on a mezze table with a variety of Persian finger foods.
- Leftover olivieh can be covered and kept in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes inactive cooking
- Category: Summer
- Cuisine: Persian