The last heatwave in late May inspired cravings for peak-summer produce (and mild dread of my stove). That seasonal shock made it clear I need to prepare an arsenal of no-cook, picnic-ready dishes in time for the next heatwave - which we're now sweltering through.
Inspiration came after seeing Lidey Heuck’s recipe for green goddess chicken salad sandwiches. Rotisserie chicken has long been a heatwave staple – leave the cooking to someone else! But rather than a sandwich, I wanted something extra-portable and unlikely to get soggy. What better than a wrap?
The cooking required is thankfully minimal: Once the chicken is cool enough to handle, it’s shredded – keep the carcass in the freezer for a cooler day for stock – then mixed with a green goddess sauce featuring Greek yoghurt, avocado and a whole heap of summery herbs.
For extra dimension, I added sweet gem lettuce, which brings a light, refreshing crunch, and lightly spiced fried chickpeas to the wraps. Making the chickpeas does require turning on the stove, but for no more than five minutes. Still, if you really can’t bear the thought, either skip them or use store-bought fried chickpeas instead.
Once the wraps are all rolled up and ready to go, you’re picnic-ready. Or at least you are once you’ve remembered to pack your bottle of Accent du Sud Rosé. I love this wine, which feels so utterly summer. It has a subtle creaminess, notes of citrus and red berries, and a real freshness; it’s aromatically complex but still easy drinking. Those delicate fruit notes marry so well with the aromatic herbs in the green goddess sauce, and neither overwhelms the other. It really is the perfect heatwave pairing.
Green Goddess Chicken Salad Wraps with Crunchy Chickpeas
Loosely adapted from New York Times Cooking
Makes 8 wraps
For the crunchy chickpeas:
1 400g tin chickpeas
2 tablespoons cornflour
60ml vegetable oil
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon mild chilli powder
Flaky sea salt, such as Maldon
Freshly ground black pepper
For the green goddess chicken:
1 rotisserie chicken
1 avocado
120g full-fat Greek yoghurt
10-12 anchovy fillets (from an oil-packed jar or tin)
100g basil, roughly chopped
50g parsley, roughly chopped
50g chives, roughly chopped
30g tarragon, stemmed and roughly chopped
Juice of 1 lemon
Juice of 1 lime
Fine sea salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste
For the wraps:
8 large tortilla wraps
2 sweet gem lettuce heads
1. First, make the crunchy chickpeas. Drain and rinse a tin of chickpeas – do not use the fancy jarred ones; they tend to burst when fried – and pat dry with a kitchen towel. Add to a medium bowl alongside the cornflour; shake and stir until the chickpeas are evenly coated. Transfer to a sieve and shake to discard any extra cornflour.
2. Meanwhile, place a large frying pan over medium heat and add the oil (you want enough oil to thinly cover the surface of the pan; add any more if needed). Once hot, carefully add the chickpeas in a single layer. Cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until evenly toasted and golden brown. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a bowl and add the spices, plus the flaky sea salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine and set aside to cool.
3. Prepare the chicken next. Remove all the meat from your rotisserie chicken and shred; transfer to a large bowl. (Save the carcass and skin in the freezer for a future stock, or discard.)
4. Next, make the green goddess sauce. To a large food processor or blender – you may need to do this in two batches, depending on your appliance’s size – add the avocado, alongside the yoghurt, anchovies, fresh herbs, lemon juice and lime juice. Blend on high, pausing to scrape down the sides with a spatula if needed, or until uniform. If the sauce is still very thick, thin out with a tablespoon or two of water, and blend until it has just reached a pourable consistency. Season to taste with fine sea salt and pepper.
5. Add the green goddess sauce to the bowl with the shredded chicken and stir with a spatula until completely incorporated and the chicken is well-coated. Meanwhile, stem the lettuce and separate into individual leaves; wash and dry well.
6. To assemble the wraps, place a large tortilla wrap in front of you. In the middle of the wrap, leaving a roughly 1-inch margin at the top and the bottom, place several lettuce leaves. Top the lettuce with ⅛ of the chicken mixture and spread into an even layer; you may find it fits well into the lettuce cups. Top with ⅛ of the chickpeas.
7. Fold up the top and bottom of the wrap and hold them over the filling. Bring the left side of the wrap over the chicken filling and press snugly. Still holding down the top and bottom of the wrap with your fingertips, roll it from there into a tight cylinder. 8. Repeat with the remaining wraps. You may wish to wrap them in foil, especially if bringing to a picnic later.
Claire M Bullen is a professional food and travel writer and all-around lover of tasty things. You can follow her at @clairembullen. For more recipes like this, sign up to our Natural Wine Killers wine subscription - you'll receive Claire's recipe and food pairings plus expert tasting notes for three amazing wines like this one every month (or two, if you choose our bi-monthly option).
