This chicken salad recipe is one of my favorites—it makes a delicious quick lunch or dinner.
Chicken, mayonnaise, a few add-ins and some seasonings come together to create a creamy salad or filling for a homemade chicken salad sandwich or wrap!
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Chicken Salad Ingredients
- Chicken: I most often use rotisserie chicken, but leftover chicken of almost any kind, including grilled chicken, can be used. If using canned chicken, mix all ingredients except the chicken in a bowl and then gently fold in the drained canned chicken.
- Add-ins: Since this is a classic chicken salad recipe, I add celery for crunch and green onion for flavor.
- Dressing: Mayonnaise adds a creamy texture, while simple seasonings add flavor.
Variations
- Add dill or other fresh herbs.
- Lighten it up a bit by replacing half of the mayo with Greek yogurt.
- Change the flavor by adding ranch dressing.
- Dress it up with add-ins like chopped apples, grapes, or chopped nuts such as almonds, walnuts, or pecans.
How to Make Chicken Salad
Prepare this classic chicken salad recipe in just 15 minutes with only a few simple ingredients.
- Chop cooked and cooled chicken and place into a large bowl with celery and onions.
- Mix dressing ingredients (recipe below) in a bowl. Toss with chicken.
- Serve on rolls, bread, or over a bed of lettuce.
Serving Suggestions
- This chicken salad sandwich recipe can be served on any type of bread, including a croissant. I love to lightly toast the bread.
- Serve it with crackers for snacking.
- Spoon it over greens or into lettuce leaves to make lettuce wraps.
Storing Leftovers
Refrigerator: Store chicken salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Stir before serving.
Freezer: Prepared chicken salad doesn’t freeze well however, to prep ahead, dice the chicken and freeze it it. When ready to make the salad, combine the thawed chicken with the remaining ingredients below for a quick lunch!
More Favorite Sandwiches
This chicken salad recipe is a favorite lunch or light dinner. Here are more easy sandwiches that top our list!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked chopped chicken or shredded chicken
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 1 rib celery diced
- 1 green onion thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ¼ teaspoon seasoned salt more to taste
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper or to taste
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh dill or ¼ teaspoon dried dill, optional
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, add chicken, mayonnaise, celery, green onion, mustard, salt, pepper, and dill if using. Mix well to combine.
- Taste and season with additional salt and pepper if desired.
- Serve as a sandwich or over salad.
Video
Notes
- 1 cup chopped red grapes or 1 cup chopped peeled apple
- 2 tablespoons chopped nuts (pecans or almonds)
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Salad
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Would plain Greek yogurt be okay in place of Mayo?
You can use plain yogurt but it will be less creamy and more tart (or sour) in flavor. I would suggest half Greek yogurt and half mayo if it works for you.
Hi Holly. Happy early Thanksgiving! Reason for me to make a comment on something so easy, I have made chicken salad many times in past, and could never get it right. Because I thought I knew what I was doing was right. Lol. At my age, which I not going to say, but, I am a Senior Citizen. Finally I googled how to make it. Well, I was making it all wrong. I used your re pie, but. Used Leftover roasted chicken from Costco which is I feel is the best anyways using that chicken and your recipe knocked it out of the park I know now what I was doing wrong through all these years I didn’t know so thank you for setting me straight LOL oh and the reason why it taste so bad all the time I was putting hard-boiled eggs and pickles in it it just didn’t do it LOL have a beautiful day or evening thank you again
I love rotisserie chicken in this recipe too Bonnie, I’m so glad you loved this as much as we do!
Nobody cares about when and where someone else uses it. Just the recipe please instead of burying it in paragraph after paragraph of useless talk
The writing in this post includes information about ingredients, variations, substitutions and storage/leftovers. While you may be experienced in the kitchen, some readers are new to cooking and find the information both useful and helpful.
There is a “JUMP TO RECIPE” at the top of each page that will take you directly to the recipe and skip past the writing. Hope that helps!
Well said, Holly. No one is forcing him to read the comments from your interested readers. Thank you for sharing.
Great comment Holly and way to keep your cool, not sure I could have done that. Stuart needs to get a life it seems. How rude. I plan on making this tomorrow with left over rotisserie chicken, I’ll let you know how it turns out. Like another reader commented, I’ve tried to make this for years and it just never turned out/tasted right. However, I also was using hard boiled egg and pickle, like a tuna fish salad. Sometimes simpler can be better. Now I wish I had croissant rolls but will have to settle for regular rolls or bread.
WOW DUDE, why so rude?
No one cares about your hateful comment!
Really, get over yourself and move on to another website.
Really delicious, thank you!!
I learned from this amazing cook when I used to do catering at a country club to add some ketchup at the end of making your chicken salad ! I do the same ingredients as you and I always add teaspoon of ketchup at the end ! It gives it a light pink look and makes it so much better ! Ketchup had sugar and vinegar and makes it perfect ! It doesn’t taste like ketchup I promise you have to try it !!!!!!
Easy and delicious!! I used leftover grilled chicken breasts and shredded them. This is my favorite chicken salad recipe yet!!!
i would love to get any kind of new and different recipes of any kind. i dont mind trying any new food that dont have mushrooms anchovies or anything nasty like that, but the ones that i dont like i can always pas on to family and friends.
Is the nutrition info for the whole recipe?
The nutrition info is for ⅙th of the recipe.
I made this for a luncheon today and it was fabulous! I didn’t have fresh dill so I used a pinch of dried dill. I also made it the night before and added a small handful of quartered grapes just before serving.
Your version sounds great, Andrea, glad you enjoyed it!
Absolutely delicious!!!
Do you use real mayonnaise or salad dressing?
This recipe uses mayonnaise, but salad dressing will work as well. Enjoy Katie!
My favorite chicken salad recipe hands down.
Outstanding and simple chicken salad recipe. I’ll never make it another way ever again. Do not skip the dill and don’t skip the Dijon mustard. The flavor combination here is simplistic, classic and outstanding!
So glad you loved it Dee!
Absolutely great tasting! The fresh dill is a must though. Makes all the difference
The servings are 6. Do you what that equates to cup wise?
Serving size is ½ cup of the chicken salad.
Looking forward to trying these recipes!
Hi Holly!
Thank you so much for posting this recipe. I made chicken salad earlier and I was so disappointed – something was missing. Upon finding your recipe, I added some dijon mustard. Wow! Yay! Now I just need to wait for lunch…If I can.
So glad you loved it Amy!
Just plain Great! Just made it. Didn’t have dill, so I diced some hamburger dill chips.
Easy recipe and added some chopped pecans. This was delicious!
Chicken Salad recipe was easy and fast. Tastes awesome! We use olive oil dressing and a a tablespoon of sweet pickle relish to give it a little sweetness since we don’t use salad dressing (miracle whip) which is the base that I like.