Delia Smith’s Coronation Chicken Recipe (and Why It’s Still the Best One)

Coronation chicken is one of those dishes that gets a bad reputation it absolutely doesn’t deserve. For years, I thought of it as the beige stuff in a triangular sandwich at a slightly sad work buffet. Then I actually made the Delia Smith Coronation Chicken version from scratch, and I genuinely couldn’t believe it was the same dish.

Delia’s coronation chicken is a cold chicken salad coated in a creamy, mildly spiced sauce with mango chutney, dried fruit, toasted almonds, and fresh coriander. It’s quick to pull together, works brilliantly with leftover roast chicken, and it genuinely tastes like something you’d pay good money for at a deli. It’s become a staple in this house, particularly from May onwards when we’re heading into picnic and lunch season and I want something a bit more interesting than a plain chicken sandwich.

What I didn’t know for years, by the way, is that Delia actually calls this recipe “Curried Chicken Salad” in her Chicken Collection book. She deliberately sidesteps the coronation chicken name, possibly because every supermarket in Britain has a version and she didn’t want the comparison. But it is, unmistakably, coronation chicken at its absolute best.

What You’ll Need

This is Delia’s recipe, kept faithful. If you’re using leftover roast chicken from last night’s dinner, you can skip straight to the sauce.

For the salad:

• 1 medium cooked chicken, OR 450g leftover cooked chicken (shredded or chopped into bite-sized pieces)
• 50g flaked almonds
• 25g raisins
• 50g ready-to-eat dried apricots, roughly chopped
• 4 spring onions, thinly sliced
• Fresh coriander leaves, a small handful
• Mixed salad leaves to serve
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the sauce:

• 75g good-quality mayonnaise (Hellmann’s is fine, something thicker is better)
• 2 tbsp Greek yoghurt or natural yoghurt
• 1 tbsp Madras curry paste (not curry powder – more on this below)
• 1 tbsp mango chutney

That’s it. Genuinely. No long list of spices, no complicated steps. Delia keeps it brilliantly simple.

A note on measurements: 450g chicken / 1.6 oz, 50g almonds / 1.75 oz, 25g raisins / 0.9 oz, 50g apricots / 1.75 oz.

How to Make Delia Smith’s Coronation Chicken

Step 1: Toast the almonds

Preheat your oven to 180°C / 350°F / gas mark 4. Spread the flaked almonds on a baking tray and toast for 8 minutes exactly (set a timer – they go from golden to burnt faster than you’d think). Let them cool for a minute or two, then roughly chop them. You want texture, not crumbs.

Step 2: Prepare the chicken

If you’re working with a whole cooked chicken, strip all the meat off and discard the skin and bones. Chop or shred into bite-sized pieces and put them in a large mixing bowl. If you’re using leftover roast chicken, chop it up and do the same. This is a great use for the bits and pieces you’d usually pick off while making a sandwich.

Step 3: Make the sauce

In a separate small bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, yoghurt, curry paste, and mango chutney. Give it a good stir until everything is combined and smooth. Taste it at this point – it should smell fragrant and slightly sweet, with a mild warmth from the curry paste.

Step 4: Combine everything

Pour the sauce over the chicken. Add the raisins, chopped apricots, about three-quarters of the spring onions, and about two-thirds of the toasted almonds. Mix everything together gently but thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper, then cover and put it in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.

Step 5: Serve

When you’re ready to eat, lay the salad leaves out on a serving dish or individual plates. Spoon the coronation chicken on top, piling it up a bit. Scatter over the reserved spring onions, the remaining almonds, and the coriander leaves. That’s your dish. Done.

Tips From Making This Many Times

Use curry paste, not curry powder. This is the most important thing and it makes a real difference. Curry paste blends into the mayo smoothly and gives a more rounded, fragrant flavour. Curry powder can leave the sauce slightly grainy and occasionally a bit dusty-tasting. Madras curry paste (Patak’s is easy to find in any supermarket) is the one to go for. It has warmth without being overpowering, which is exactly right for this dish.

Don’t skip the chilling time. You can absolutely eat this immediately if you’re in a rush, but the flavour improves noticeably after an hour in the fridge. The sauce softens into the chicken, the dried fruit plumps up a bit, and everything tastes more cohesive. If you’re making it for a party or picnic, make it the night before and it will be even better.

Rotisserie chicken is your friend. I won’t pretend I always roast a whole chicken just for this. Picking up a ready-cooked chicken from M&S or Waitrose works perfectly well. You get plenty of meat, the flavour is good, and it keeps the whole thing genuinely quick to put together.

Let the almonds cool before they go in. If you add warm almonds to the mayo sauce, they start to soften immediately. You want them cool and crisp. I usually toast mine first and then go and do something else for ten minutes.

Go easy on the mango chutney if yours is particularly chunky. Some brands have big bits of mango in them which can make the sauce a bit uneven. A quick chop with a knife first if yours is very lumpy.

Don’t worry too much about exact quantities. Once you’ve made this a couple of times, you’ll naturally adjust to taste. More curry paste if you want a bit more warmth. A bit less chutney if you prefer it less sweet. Delia’s proportions are a great starting point, but this is a very forgiving recipe.

Variations Worth Trying

Coronation chicken jacket potato. This might be my favourite way to eat it now. Load it into a properly baked jacket potato and add a small dollop of extra yoghurt on top. It’s filling enough for a proper dinner and the kids are far more likely to eat it this way than on a salad.

Coronation chicken sandwich. Classic and still brilliant. Thick white bread or a soft roll, a bit of cos lettuce, and plenty of filling. Perfect for a packed lunch.

Coronation chicken wrap. Add some cucumber sticks and extra salad leaves and roll it up. Easier for lunchboxes than a sandwich because it doesn’t go soggy as quickly.

With rice. Delia sometimes suggests this in her notes. Cold basmati rice with the coronation chicken spooned over the top works really well as a more substantial salad bowl.

Serving Suggestions

This is at its best served cold, which makes it ideal for warm weather eating. It works as a main dish for lunch or as part of a larger spread for a party or buffet. In the summer months, I’ll put it in the middle of the table alongside a green salad, some good bread, and maybe a potato salad.

For something more low-effort, it’s brilliant just piled into pittas or wraps. My eight-year-old will eat it in a wrap with cucumber and not even complain about the bits. My teenagers eat it straight from the bowl while I’m trying to plate it up properly.

If you’re making it for a party, it scales up really well. Just multiply everything proportionally and remember to make it at least a few hours ahead so the flavours have time to develop properly.

Storage

In the fridge: Store in an airtight container and it’ll keep well for up to 3 days. It’s honestly often better on day two. Give it a gentle stir before serving as the sauce can settle a little.

At room temperature: Don’t leave it out for more than an hour or two, particularly in warm weather. It has mayonnaise in it, so treat it with the same care you’d give any mayo-based dish at a buffet.

In the freezer: This is where it gets a bit complicated. The mayonnaise-based sauce doesn’t freeze particularly well and can separate when thawed, leaving it a bit grainy and watery. If you want to get ahead for a big event, your best option is to freeze the cooked chicken separately, then make the sauce fresh when you need it. The whole dish only takes about 10 minutes to assemble once the chicken is ready.

FAQs

Can I use curry powder instead of curry paste in Delia’s coronation chicken?

You can, but the result won’t be quite the same. Curry paste blends into the mayonnaise much more smoothly and gives a rounder, more developed flavour. If you only have curry powder, use 1 teaspoon to start (it’s stronger than paste), and consider frying it off briefly in a tiny bit of butter first to take the raw edge off before mixing it into the sauce.

What’s the best chicken to use?

Leftover roast chicken is ideal because it has the most flavour. A ready-cooked rotisserie chicken from a supermarket works brilliantly too and is the most practical option if you’re making this from scratch. Poached chicken breasts are fine but they can be a little bland – if you’re poaching from raw, season the water generously and add a bay leaf.

Is Delia’s coronation chicken very spicy?

Not at all. Madras curry paste does have some warmth to it, but one tablespoon in this amount of mayonnaise gives a very mild, gentle spice. Even my youngest eats it without complaining. If you’re cooking for children or people who really can’t tolerate any heat, swap the Madras paste for a mild curry paste instead.

Can I make Delia’s coronation chicken the day before?

Yes, and actually you should. Making it the night before or that morning gives the flavours time to meld together properly. Just hold back the toasted almonds and scatter them on at the last minute so they stay crunchy. Store covered in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.

What can I substitute for the dried apricots?

If you don’t have apricots, raisins alone work fine – just double the quantity. Sultanas are another good swap. Some people use a small amount of diced fresh mango instead, which is lovely but makes the dish a bit wetter, so drain any excess juice before adding it. Chopped dried mango works well too if you happen to have some in the cupboard.

 

This recipe has earned its place as a permanent fixture in my kitchen, and I say that as someone who spent years dismissing coronation chicken as fridge fodder. Delia’s version is genuinely special – not because it’s complicated, but because it’s not. Every element has a purpose. The sauce is well-balanced, the texture is interesting, and it tastes like something someone actually thought about.

If you’re making it for the first time, trust the recipe. Don’t overthink it, don’t add extra spices, and definitely don’t skip the resting time in the fridge. Give it a couple of hours and you’ll end up with something you’ll want to make again before the week is out.

See more of my favourite Delia Smith Recipes:

Delia Smith Pancakes

Delia Smith Pavlova

Delia Smith Scones

Delia Smith Chocolate Torte

Delia Smith Meringue

Delia Smith Red Cabbage

Delia Smith Lasagne

Delia Smith Plum Jam

Delia Smith Dundee Cake

Delia Smith Victoria Sponge

Delia Smith Christmas Cake

Browse my full Delia Smith recipe collection here → Delia Smith Recipes