Mom’s Chicken Spread
[This post was resurrected from deep in the archives; it originally appeared in August 2007.]
From the time we were in sixth grade until we graduated from high school, our parents threw big New Year’s Eve parties. They weren’t anything fancy, but they had all of their friends over, some family, and of course everyone’s kids. It was a fun tradition, and as we got older, our sister and we would invite our own friends. We have so, so many food-related memories of those New Year’s Eve parties… from our mom’s friend who always brought shrimp cocktail, to another who brought veggie pizza every year, our mom’s barbecued beans, and this chicken spread. It only takes five minutes to make and can be made ahead of time, which makes it reliable for parties.
The original recipe that our mom always made calls specifically for Underwood canned chicken (which makes us think that this was perhaps a recipe from a brand cookbook or packaging?), but we can’t find it at our local store anymore. Any type of canned chicken breast will work, just be sure to drain it.
We love the combination of the cream cheese with bits of chicken, a bite from the onion and the flavor of the soy sauce. It’s the reliable topping for Ritz crackers, but it can be served with any variety of accompaniments, from assorted crackers to tortilla chips, pita chips… whatever you love to use for dipping!
We absolutely adore recipes that bring back specific memories, and all of those New Year’s Eve gatherings are wonderful memories.
- Yield: 6 to 8 servings
- Prep: 5 minutes
- Total: 5 minutes
Ingredients
- 8 ounces ( 226.8 g ) cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 small onion, finely chopped (about ¼ cup)
- 4.25 ounce ( 120.49 g ) can chicken
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
Method
- In a medium bowl, blend all ingredients together with a hand mixer until creamy and combined.
- Serve with assorted crackers. Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
