Coronation chicken or Poulet Reine Elizabeth is an English dish of boneless chicken traditionally seasoned with

parsley Parsley, or garden parsley (''Petroselinum crispum''), is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae that is native to Greece, Morocco and the former Yugoslavia. It has been introduced and naturalisation (biology), naturalized in Eur ...

thyme Thyme () is a culinary herb consisting of the dried aerial parts of some members of the genus ''Thymus (plant), Thymus'' of flowering plants in the mint family Lamiaceae. Thymes are native to Eurasia and north Africa. Thymes have culinary, medici ...

bay leaf The bay leaf is an aromatic leaf commonly used as a herb in cooking. It can be used whole, either dried or fresh, in which case it is removed from the dish before consumption, or less commonly used in ground form. The flavour that a bay lea ...

cumin Cumin (, ; ; ''Cuminum cyminum'') is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae, native to the Irano-Turanian Region. Its seeds – each one contained within a fruit, which is dried – are used in the cuisines of many cultures in both whole ...

turmeric Turmeric (), or ''Curcuma longa'' (), is a flowering plant in the ginger family Zingiberaceae. It is a perennial, rhizomatous, herbaceous plant native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia that requires temperatures between and high ...

ginger Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice and a folk medicine. It is an herbaceous perennial that grows annual pseudostems (false stems made of the rolled bases of l ...

and peppercorns, mixed with

cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this proces ...

mayonnaise Mayonnaise (), colloquially referred to as "mayo" (), is a thick, creamy sauce with a rich and tangy taste that is commonly used on sandwiches, hamburgers, Salad#Bound salads, bound salads, and French fries. It also forms the base for various o ...

, and dried apricots (or sultanas). Some modern variations also incorporate

cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, biscuits, b ...

. It is served cold and eaten as a

salad A salad is a dish consisting of mixed ingredients, frequently vegetables. They are typically served chilled or at room temperature, though some can be served warm. Condiments called '' salad dressings'', which exist in a variety of flavors, a ...

with rice, peas and pimentos, or used as a filling for

sandwich A sandwich is a Dish (food), dish typically consisting variously of meat, cheese, sauces, and vegetables used as a filling between slices of bread, or placed atop a slice of bread; or, more generally, any dish in which bread serves as a ''co ...

es. It was created by Constance Spry, an English food writer and flower arranger, and Rosemary Hume, a chef, for the

coronation of Queen Elizabeth II The Coronation of the British monarch, coronation of Elizabeth II as queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms took place on 2 June 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London. Elizabeth acceded to the throne at the age of 25 upon th ...

in 1953.

Composition

Coronation chicken sandwich unwrapped 01

Normally bright yellow, coronation chicken is traditionally flavoured with curry powder and fresh or dried herbs and spices, but may also include additional ingredients such as flaked

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', Synonym (taxonomy)#Botany, syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree from the genus ''Prunus''. Along with the peach, it is classified in the subgenus ''Amygdalus'', distinguished from the other subgenera ...

raisin A raisin is a Dried fruit, dried grape. Raisins are produced in many regions of the world and may be eaten raw or used in cooking, baking, and brewing. In the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia and South Afri ...

s, and

crème fraîche Crème fraîche (English pronunciation: , , lit. "fresh cream") is a dairy product similar to cream cheese, a soured cream containing 10–45% butterfat, with a pH of approximately 4.5. It is soured with a Microbiological culture, bacterial cult ...

. The original dish differs from modern versions in that it calls for apricot puree rather than raisins. The chicken is first poached in diluted, seasoned white wine, before being coated in a mayonnaise-based cream of curry sauce and arranged atop a rice salad.

History

Constance Spry, an English food writer and flower arranger, and Rosemary Hume, a chef, both principals of the Cordon Bleu Cookery School in London, are credited with the invention of coronation chicken. Preparing the food for the banquet of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, Hume is credited with the recipe of cold chicken, curry cream sauce and dressing that became known as coronation chicken. Coronation chicken may have been inspired by jubilee chicken, a dish prepared for the silver jubilee of George V in 1935, which mixed chicken with

and curry. Additionally, for the Queen's

Golden Jubilee A golden jubilee marks a 50th anniversary. It variously is applied to people, events, and nations. Bangladesh In Bangladesh, golden jubilee refers the 50th anniversary year of the separation from Pakistan and is called in Bengali language, ...

in 2002, another celebratory dish was devised, also called Jubilee chicken.

References

External links

*
Recipe for the original Coronation Chicken
by Andrea Soranidis (Author and Food Blogger)
Blog post on the origins and whether it has links to the Coronation Sussex breed of chicken

History of Coronation Chicken
by James McIntosh {{English cuisine British cuisine British sandwiches British chicken dishes Coronation of Elizabeth II Indian cuisine in the United Kingdom Curry dishes British salads

Composition

History

See also

References

External links