Spiral pasta salad with chicken seasoned with curry and spice, with a fried onion and bell pepper, mixed with a yogurt and mayonnaise sauce, and garnished with drained corn kernels. A light cold dish suitable for summer evenings.
Pasta salad was born in American kitchens in the 1960s, and moved to the Arab world in the 1980s as an easy dish for Ramadan gatherings.
The additions varied according to taste: chicken, tuna, mixed vegetables. The curry version gave it a distinctive Indian flavor.
Sauté the chopped onion with the bell pepper in a pan over medium heat for 4 minutes until they wilt half-cooked.
Add the chicken pieces and stir until they change color. Season with the salt, spice mix, and curry powder, and continue stirring until the meat is cooked.
In a separate bowl, mix the yogurt with the mayonnaise and stir until homogeneous. Pour it over the boiled and drained pasta and stir.
Add the chicken and vegetable mixture to the pasta and stir gently. Garnish with the drained corn kernels and serve the salad cold.
The glycemic index (GI) measures how quickly a food raises blood sugar, while the glycemic load (GL) measures how much a full serving raises it. Together they give the complete picture.
A low value (≤55) means a gradual rise in blood sugar — the most suitable range for diabetes and insulin resistance.
Glycemic load reflects the impact of the full serving. To lower it: take half a serving, or pair the recipe with a source of protein and fiber.
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000-calorie diet per FDA food-label reference values — your daily needs may be higher or lower. Values are derived from the recipe's ingredients via the USDA database.
The most common problems when preparing Cold Pasta Salad with Chicken and Curry, and how to fix them:
Add an extra tablespoon of mayonnaise and a tablespoon of cold milk to soften it.
Keeps for two days in a closed container. We stir it before serving because the mayonnaise settles at the bottom.
| Original Ingredient | Tested Substitute | Ratio | Flavor Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | Canned tuna | 1:1 | We drain the tuna well. A cheaper and faster version. |
Boil the pasta 'al dente' (it needs one extra minute of full cooking) so it absorbs the sauce and does not dry out. Cool it under cold water immediately to stop the cooking. Full cooling before mixing is necessary so the mayonnaise does not melt.
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