I made the chicken recipe Queen Elizabeth ate at her coronation with apricots and curry paste — and it's the perfect sandwich filling for any occasion (2024)

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Queen Elizabeth II's official coronation took place on June 2, 1953, after ascending to the throne in February 1952.

Queen Elizabeth II became the first British monarch to celebrate aPlatinum Jubilee this February, marking 70 years on the throne. She ascended to the throne in February 1952 after the death of her father, George VI, but didn't celebrate herofficial coronationuntil over a year later on June 2, 1953.

According toFood Network, Queen Elizabeth II and her guests ate Poulet Reine Elizabeth — known as coronation chicken — at her coronation luncheon. The dish is credited to florist Constance Spry and Rosemary Hume, the founder of Le Cordon Bleu London.

"Sir David Eccles, the Minister of Works exclusively asked Rosemary Hume and her students to undertake the luncheon for Her Majesty's guests, who were mainly representatives of other countries," the Le Cordon Bleuwebsiteread. "Sir David Eccles had great faith in the students' abilities and without a hitch the luncheon was served at two o'clock."

Ahead of the June celebrations, I made an adapted version of the coronation chicken shared byEnglish Heritage. Although the number of ingredients initially looks intimidating, the coronation chicken is very simple to assemble and resembles a chicken salad.

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You'll need to make a grocery store trip before cooking this historic meal.

You'll need to buy kitchen twine for this recipe for the bouquet garni.Divide the recipe into three sections: chicken, sauce, and optional mayonnaise.

For the chicken, you'll need:

• 1 small chicken, or chicken breasts (about 2 ½ lbs)
• 1 onion
• 1 celery
• 1 carrot
• ½ tbsp salt
• A bouquet garni (parsley, bay leaves, thyme sprigs)

For the sauce, you'll need:

• ½ tbsp neutral oil (sunflower or rapeseed)
• ½ tbsp minced onion
• ½-1 tbsp curry paste
• ½ tbsp tomato purée
• 65ml (4 tbsp) red wine
• 65ml (4 tbsp) water
• 1 bay leaf
• a pinch of sugar
• 1 tsp lemon juice (plus more, to adjust seasoning if required)
• 1 slice of lemon
• salt and pepper
• 4 dried apricots, soaked in hot water for 30 minutes and then minced finely
• 200ml (about ¾ cup) of very good quality mayonnaise
• 2-3 tbsp whipping or double cream

If you decide to make your own mayonnaise, you'll need:

• one egg yolk
• ¼ tsp salt
• a squeeze of lemon
• ½ tsp mustard
• 250-300m (1 to 1.25 cups) of neutral oil
• tbsp of vinegar, preferably tarragon vinegar

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Soak four dried apricots in hot water. You're going to use these later for the sauce.

According to the recipe, soak the apricots for 30 minutes and mince them into small pieces. I bring this step up first because it's easy to forget compared to integral ingredients like chicken or vegetables.

Then, make a simple "mirepoix" to cook with the chicken.

"Mirepoix"refers to sautéing onions, carrots, and celery with butter in a stovetop pan. For the coronation dish, I imitated the traditional mirepoix by combining one chopped onion, one chopped carrot, and one chopped stalk of celery with one tablespoon of butter on a stovetop pan.

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Sauté the vegetables for six to eight minutes to soften them.

The goal is to sauté the vegetables until they're soft, translucent, and fragrant — but not browned. Then remove the pan from heat.

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Time for the chicken! Add the chicken to a pot and poach for 15 to 20 minutes.

The original Poulet Reine Elizabeth called for two roasting chickens, but the modern home cook can purchase chicken breasts — about 2 ½ lbs — or a small roasting chicken.

Put the chicken and six cups of water in a stovetop pot with the mirepoix, about one tablespoon of salt, and abouquet garni. A bouquet garni refers to a bouquet of parsley, thyme sprigs, and bay leaves that help add flavor while a dish simmers.

Bouquet garni is typically tied with kitchen twine and wrapped in cheesecloth, but they can also be added to a pot with just kitchen twine.

Bring the items to a boil, then turn the heat down and poach the chicken for 20 minutes at most.

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Let the chicken cool in the water, then remove and dice into cubes.

Set the chicken aside once it's diced.

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Before creating the sauce — this recipe's final step — there's an option to make your own mayonnaise.

The recipe calls for 200 ml of "very good quality mayonnaise" and provides an optional recipe for home cooks. Feel free to skip this step if using store-bought mayonnaise, but to start, mix one egg yolk, ¼ tsp of salt, a lemon squeeze, and ½ tsp of mustard.

Then, very slowly whisk or beat the oil into the mixture, watching to make sure it thoroughly mixes into a mayonnaise-like texture. Add a tbsp of vinegar, I used white vinegar, and mix.

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The sauce uses the most ingredients but has the fastest cook time.

According to the recipe, fry ½ tbsp of minced onion in ½ tbsp of neutral oil before adding the 1 tbsp of curry paste, ½ tbsp of tomato puree, 65ml (about 4 tbsps) of wine, 65 ml (about 4 tbsps) of water, one bay leaf, one tsp of lemon juice, and one lemon slice.

Bring these ingredients to a boil, then let them simmer uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes to reduce the sauce. Stain the sauce, which should have thickened during that time, and let it cool.
Once cooled, fold the mayonnaise into the sauce, add the minced apricots, and add the 2 tbsp of whipping cream.

The sauce's color should shift from a dark red to light color.

Finally, fold the chicken into the sauce and serve!

Once the chicken is thoroughly folded into the sauce, serve the chicken on rice with green peas, bread, on a salad, or by itself. Although the first meal was served with rice, green peas, and pimentos, I decided to pair my chicken with bread slices like Chef Franklin Becker's recipe for Inside Edition.

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Coronation chicken is a great sandwich filler or salad topping that fits any occasion.

The first thing I want to make clear is that this recipe is far easier than it seems. Words like "mirepoix" or "bouquet garni" may seem intimidating, but both are easy and take 10 minutes at most.

My favorite flavors in this dish were the chicken, thanks to the mirepoix and bouquet garni, and surprisingly, the apricots. The fruit pieces add a nice burst of sweetness amid the curry paste, red wine, lemon juice, and other similar flavors. I'm also impressed by the homemade mayonnaise, which paired well with the sauce.

The chicken, although cubed, actually resembled shredded chicken at first and was very tender in the first few bites.

Perhaps what stood out the most about the coronation chicken is its versatility. It's the kind of recipe that can be a main dish or a side dish.