Chicken Breast Salad with Walnuts and Grapes with homemade mayonnaise

👨‍🍳 Method

For the Salad Dressing

1. 1
   Put the egg, mustard, salt and black pepper in the blender jar and blend about half a minute.

   BlenderorStick blenderorFood processor
2. 2
   Add the oil in a thin, slow stream, while the blender is running, until a thick emulsion forms.

   Blender

   💡The thin stream is everything: fat that goes in too fast can't bind, and the sauce breaks. For mayonnaise and hollandaise, if this happens, start with a fresh yolk and slowly add the broken sauce to it; if the sauce is too thick, thin it with a teaspoon of water.
3. 3
   Add the lemon juice and stir. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
4. 4
   In a small bowl, whisk the mayonnaise, lemon juice, honey and mustard until smooth.

   Bowl

For the Pan-Seared Cut

1. 5
   Place the chicken between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound with a meat mallet to an even thickness of 1.5 cm.

   Meat malletPlastic wrap

   💡Pound gently from the center outward: the goal is even thickness, not the thinnest possible cut, and torn meat dries out as it cooks.
2. 6
   In a bowl, mix the olive oil, paprika, salt and black pepper and coat the chicken in the mixture.

   Bowl
3. 7
   Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat.

   StoveGrill pan
4. 8
   Sear the chicken in a single layer 4–5 minutes per side, until it is nicely seared and cooked through.

   Stove

   💡Chicken pieces in a single layer, left alone until the underside releases, sear and brown; in a crowded pan they release liquid and steam.
5. 9
   Let the chicken rest 5 minutes before cutting.

   KnifeCutting board

To assemble

1. 10
   Toast the walnuts in a dry skillet over medium heat 3–4 minutes, stirring, until they turn lightly golden and fragrant. Break them by hand into coarse pieces.

   StoveFrying pan

   💡Toast over medium heat and keep things moving: nuts, pine nuts and spices go from toasted to burnt in seconds. Transfer to a plate right away, since the hot pan keeps toasting.
2. 11
   Let the chicken cool slightly and slice it into diagonal strips.

   KnifeCutting board
3. 12
   Arrange the leaves on a serving plate.
4. 13
   Arrange on top the tomatoes and sliced chicken.
5. 14
   Sprinkle the grapes, nuts and seeds on top.
6. 15
   Serve with the lemon wedges and the dressing in a small bowl on the side.