Chopped Crispy Citrus Chicken Salad

This chopped winter salad is packed with crispy rotisserie chicken, bright winter citrus, pomegranates, toasted pine nuts, fresh herbs and hearty bed of Tuscan kale then tossed in an orange dijon dressing.

*This post is sponsored by The Home Depot.

If you follow over on Instagram, it’s no secret we’re (and when I say “we’re” I really mean “I” as Ulysses has and wants absolutely nothing to do with the whole thing) planning a major kitchen remodel this spring.

After living in this house for 10 years, the days of the dark cherry cabinet kitchen that was probably envy worthy in the early 2000s are numbered.

Currently, the kitchen sits in the middle of the house, open to the northern facing family room but with a wall separating it from the sunny and bright southern facing dining room. With one eastern facing window, it’s dark enough as is and only compounded by the dark cherry wood surrounding you. 

Dream Kitchen Wishlist:

• white cabinets
• open floating shelving
• marble-like countertops
• 36″ dual fuel range
• vent hood
• knocking down wall between kitchen and dining room

That’s what I wanted and to be honest, I was pretty unwilling to give up any of those items in the design of this new space. If I was going to lay out the kind of money it takes to gut renovate a kitchen, I was getting what I wanted.

New Kitchen Design

Design took A LOT of iterations. When you take out an entire wall, there leaves very little in the way of placement options for things like the refrigerator and the stove and the space has some nuances making things even more complicated – like a 2 foot bump out on the exterior of the house in the kitchen but not in the dining room portion.

Ignoring the weird things like the fake cake, horrible pendants, countertop color, stool selection and missing vent hood over the stove, the mock-ups below from my kitchen designer give you an idea of what the renovated kitchen will look like.

If you look at the old kitchen below, you might notice the only two major items staying in their original place are the sink and the dishwasher. Everything else is moving.

Knowing a new stove was happening anyway, that part didn’t concern me, what did, however, was the refrigerator.

Of course, from a budget standpoint I would’ve loved to keep the fridge we had. There was nothing wrong with it, it was only 3 years old and worked totally fine. Only caveat was the depth.

Refrigerators come in two depths:

• standard depth (about 36″ deep)
• counter depth (about 33″ deep)

I wish I knew that when we bought our old fridge but unfortunately, it wasn’t something I became aware of until somewhat recently. 

The way our fridge stuck out about half a foot from it’s niche never really bothered me too much in the existing space because it was at the end of the cabinetry and there wasn’t anything to the other side that I needed to access.

In the new design, however, the fridge moves across the room and there will be cabinetry and countertop on both sides of it. If we stuck with our standard depth fridge it would really obstruct the flow of the new design and I just knew it had to go.

Getting A New Refrigerator

Home Depot happened to reach out to me just as all these design decisions were coming to fruition with the opportunity to participate in their Weekend Updates campaign to highlight simple updates you can make over a weekend that make a big impact on your space.

With the fridge dilemma literally being the only piece of this whole renovation puzzle that we could do ahead of the actual renovation, the whole thing couldn’t have been more perfect.

When the Samsung Family Hub counter-depth refrigerator was given as an option for our space, I got crazy excited.

This is the exact fridge that Julie has and loves and I’ve been able to see it in person when I’ve visited her, interact with it and already knew I loved it. There’s always that element of the unknown when you get a new appliance so knowing someone who has and loves the exact same one definitely put my mind at ease.

Features I Love on the Samsung Family Hub Refrigerator

1. The Polygon Handles

I know it’s just an aesthetic but I love the look of these handles. They add a professional vibe to the kitchen and will match the same professional handle look of the 36″ dual fuel range I’m getting perfectly.

2. The Counter-Depth

Another aesthetic, but just look at how sleek that is! No more 6+” jutting out into my kitchen with the ugly non-stainless steel sides exposed. 

I was actually shocked at how much of a difference these 3″ made in the current space. I really didn’t think the switch from standard depth to counter depth would matter that much prior to the actual renovation but the kitchen instantly felt so much more spacious and open. 

3. The FlexZone Drawer

Having this middle drawer separate from the fridge and freezer space took some getting used to but I absolutely love the convenience.

We utilize the FlexZone drawer for our deli meats, cheeses, bacon and pita bread/lavash bread, almost all things we both use for breakfast every day. Often times, I don’t even need to open the big section of the refrigerator because everything I need for whatever I’m making is in this drawer.

The FlexZone is just that though, flexible. It has settings for beverages, wine, meat and deli so you can adjust it to what best fits your family’s needs. 

It also has an adjustable divider so you can make each section larger or smaller.

4. Family Hub Entertainment Screen

By far the most impressive part of this refrigerator is the screen and all the technology integrated with it.

It’s almost impossible to talk about everything the fridge does but some of my favorites are:

• integrated shopping list (syncs with your phone through the Samsung Family Hub app)
• interior camera (you can see inside your fridge from the app – sometimes helpful in the grocery store)
• favorite app integration (Pandora, Spotify, weather, etc.) – I now play music on the fridge all the time!
• whiteboard – a fun way to leave messages to family members
• calendar integration – shows your events for the day from your Google (or any other) calendar

Chopped Crispy Citrus Chicken Salad

In the video I talk a lot more about the features of this refrigerator and what I love about them.

I also talk about this chopped crispy citrus chicken salad.

Once the fridge was all set up (transferring your food, especially when downsizing from a larger to smaller appliance is no small task – took us about 3 hours!) it was one of the first meals I made.

It’s bright, vibrant colors and flavors are exactly what I crave this time of year now that the holidays are over and I mentally shift towards the countdown until spring.

This year, not only because of the warmer weather but because it signals the start of this kitchen renovation!

What’s In This Crispy Citrus Chicken Salad?

Using a store-bought rotisserie chicken (or shredded meat from a stewing hen) makes this citrus chicken salad super simple. Just a few fresh ingredients like:

• pomegranates
• orange segments
• toasted pine nuts
• fresh herbs

make the whole thing come together in a bright and refreshing way while still being perfectly seasonal.

Of course, you can roast your own chicken or make air fryer Cornish hens to use in the salad instead if preferred.

This persimmon salad is very similar in its bright festive colors and use of seasonal ingredients for another delicious option.

Do I Need To Crisp The Chicken In The Skillet?

It’s literally the only “cooking” required in this recipe. It takes just about 5 minutes and I personally thing those crispy chicken pieces are worth the investment. 

Of course, it’s not necessary, just highly recommended.

It also brings even more citrus flavor to the salad when you add the fresh orange juice to the skillet at the end!

Stay tuned for more kitchen renovation posts and follow along on Instagram where I created a highlight in my stories to keep up to date on the progress once it starts in a couple of months.

I’m not so sure how living without a kitchen for a couple months as a food blogger is going to pan out but the excitement of cooking in the new space far outweighs that minor inconvenience!

Don’t miss these other great winter salads as great alternatives to this crispy citrus chicken salad:

Winter chopped kale salad
Baby kale chicken cherry salad
Pickled fennel citrus salad
Honey mustard chicken Brussels sprouts salad

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*I acknowledge that The Home Depot is partnering with me to participate in the promotional program described above (the “Program”). As a part of the Program, I am receiving compensation in the form of products and services, for the purpose of promoting The Home Depot. All expressed opinions and experiences are my own words. My post complies with the Word Of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA) Ethics Code and applicable Federal Trade Commission guidelines.