Alan Jackson’s Favorite Chicken Dish Has an Unexpected Ingredient

“Where I come from, it's cornbread and chicken,” country singer Alan Jackson croons in his song “Where I Come From.” So, naturally, one of his favorite down-home, easy comfort foods involves chicken.

Jackson grew up in Georgia, enjoying classic Southern dishes from his mother’s kitchen, like her leftover fried mashed potato cakes. Because so many Southern staples require few ingredients and minimal cooking, it’s no surprise that Jackson prefers simple recipes. Just look at his contribution to the 2014 Southern Living cookbook, "Country Music's Greatest Eats."

The “Gone Country” singer shared his “Favorite Chicken Salad” for the cookbook, which is not only incredibly easy to make but also contains an ingredient you'd never expect to find.

Alan Jackson's Favorite Chicken Salad

“This chicken salad caters to Alan’s sweet tooth,” the cookbook reads. 

Thanks to his favorite 3-ingredient sandwich, we know that Jackson enjoys the sweeter things in life. So, when we saw the recipe for his chicken salad, we weren’t that surprised to see that pineapple juice is his secret ingredient.

It seems there’s something about the sweet, slightly tangy pineapple that Jackson can’t get enough of. He doesn’t just dump an entire can of pineapple juice in the salad, but rather, mixes the juice with honey and apple cider vinegar, then boils the chicken breasts in the mixture. This allows for the sweet flavors to penetrate the chicken, while the acidic juice and vinegar tenderize it for an extra tasty bite.

The sweet and savory concoction might not be one that you’d find at Chicken Salad Chick, but it could become one of your new favorite ways to enjoy the simple lunchtime staple.

How to Make Alan Jackson's Favorite Chicken Salad

Like any chicken salad, Jackson’s recipe is incredibly simple to whip up. The most time-consuming part is boiling the chicken breasts in the pineapple mixture, which takes about 45 minutes. You don't want to skip the boiling because it makes the chicken tender and easier to shred.

After boiling, Jackson follows a pretty traditional chicken salad format, adding mayo, toasted slivered almonds, and dried cranberries to the mix. He serves the salad on lettuce wraps, but you can also serve it with crackers, veggies, or bread.

His love for pineapple is obvious, so we’re not sure why Jackson chose the passion fruit-flavored hurricane cocktail as his “tall-and-strong” drink of choice instead of a pineapple piña colada in his song, “It’s 5 O’Clock Somewhere." Who knows, maybe he also adds pineapple juice to the hurricane as well. And, if he doesn't, might we suggest trying our nearly 5-star recipe for a Pineapple Hurricane?