Description
This chicken salad recipe is simply the best! Diced chicken is tossed in a creamy dressing and loaded with crisp celery, maple candied pecans, juicy grapes, and fresh herbs like chives and tarragon. Enjoy it in croissants, with crackers, or in lettuce cups for a quick lunch or light dinner idea.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 3/4 cup maple candied pecans, chopped small (recipe below)
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
- 1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, or to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
- 3 cups diced cooked chicken breast
- 2/3 cup finely diced celery
- 1 cup red seedless grapes, halved
- 1 green onion, thinly sliced (optional)
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped chives
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped tarragon (dill or parsley work too)
Maple Candied Pecans
- 3/4 cup raw pecans
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- A pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)
Instructions
- Make the maple candied pecans. Add the pecans, maple syrup, and a pinch of cayenne pepper (if using) to a medium skillet over medium heat. Stir continuously until the nuts are well coated and there is no more liquid left in the skillet (approximately 5 minutes).
- Immediately remove from the heat and spread the nuts evenly on parchment paper. Let cool completely (about 20 to 30 minutes). Once the candied pecans have completely cooled, chop them into small pieces for the chicken salad.
- Make the dressing. In a large bowl, add the mayonnaise, sour cream or plain Greek yogurt, Dijon mustard, fresh lemon juice, salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Stir to combine.
- Combine the salad ingredients and chill. Add the chicken to the bowl with the prepared dressing, along with the celery, grapes, green onion (if using), chives, tarragon (or dill or parsley if using), and chopped candied pecans. Stir together until evenly coated. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. Cover and let chill in the fridge until you’re ready to eat.
Notes
- This chicken salad recipe is perfect for meal prep. It tastes best after chilling in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
- Leftover chicken salad can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Candied pecan substitute: You can use toasted pecans if you prefer.
- Candied pecans still sticky? It’s normal for candied nuts to remain slightly sticky until cooled. If they are still sticky after cooling, it probably means you didn’t cook them long enough.
- Chicken: I use baked chicken for this recipe. Two large chicken breast equals around 3 cups of diced cooked chicken. You can use poached chicken, rotisserie chicken, or leftover grilled chicken.
- How long can chicken salad be left out of the fridge? Chicken salad should not be left out of the fridge for more than 2 hours (or 1 hour if it’s a really hot day).
- Nutritional information is a rough estimate based on 4 servings.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Lunch
- Method: Chopped
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 236g
- Calories: 471
- Sugar: 13.4g
- Sodium: 497mg
- Fat: 28.9g
- Saturated Fat: 3.8g
- Unsaturated Fat: 17.5g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 17.4g
- Fiber: 2.5g
- Protein: 36.3.g
- Cholesterol: 100mg