Sweet & Savory Chicken Salad {Whole30}
A quick and easy classic Chicken Salad recipe with no added sugar. Gluten free, dairy free, and Whole30 friendly!
I’m pretty sure this simple chicken salad is one of my favorite lunches of all time. In a sandwich, wrap, or on a bed of lettuce – it’s so delicious! It’s also very easy to make and great for meal prep. Make a big batch over the weekend to have for lunches throughout the week!
My mom always used to add grapes to her chicken salad when I was growing up, and now I can’t have chicken salad without them! The beauty of this recipe is you can add whatever fruit + nuts you have on hand. Blueberries, apples, strawberries, almonds, pecans, etc. – you get the point. You really can’t go wrong!
What You Need to Make This Sweet & Savory Chicken Salad:
You only need a few simple ingredients to make this simple chicken salad recipe.
- 1 lb chicken breasts, or the meat from 1 rotisserie chicken. Whole Foods has Whole30 compliant rotisserie chickens. Most others have added ingredients (even gluten) – so make sure to check your labels! I love getting organic chicken from Butcher Box!
- Mayo – I love Sir Kensington’s mayo and I get the large jar of it at Costco. They removed sugar as an added ingredient, so it is now Whole30 compliant. You can also make your own! This is a great recipe from my friend Natalie at Tastes Lovely!
- Dried cranberries OR diced apple (I love to use green apples in this)
- Pistachios or pecans
- Celery
- Grapes
- Celery seed
- Paprika
- Sea salt
How To Make This Sweet & Savory Chicken Salad:
If you are making your own shredded chicken and not using rotisserie, bring a pot of water to a boil with the chicken breasts in the pot. Once it is boiling, cover it and remove from the heat. Let the chicken sit in the hot covered pan for 15 minutes. Shred it using two forks. Alternatively, shred or cut up your rotisserie chicken.
Add the shredded chicken and remaining ingredients to a large bowl, and mix well. Serve on a salad, on a sandwich, or in a paleo wrap. You can store this chicken salad in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Looking for some other delicious lunch recipes? Check these out!
Ok, let’s get cookin’!
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Sweet & Savory Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breasts , or 1 rotisserie chicken
- 15-20 grapes, sliced in half
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries or diced apple
- 1/4 cup pistachios or pecans, raw or dry roasted
- 1/4 cup chopped celery, (optional)
- 1/4 cup mayo , Use Primal Kitchen for Whole30
- 1/2 tsp sea salt, more or less to taste
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp celery seed
- 1/2 tsp paprika
Instructions
- Cook chicken (if not using rotisserie): Bring a large pot of water to a boil with chicken breasts inside. Once boiling, cover and remove from heat. Let the breasts sit in the covered pot for 15 minutes. Chop/shred and add to a bowl.
- Add remaining ingredients into a large bowl with the cooked shredded chicken. Mix well until combined. Refrigerate until ready to eat! Can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days.
25 Comments on “Sweet & Savory Chicken Salad {Whole30}”
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Chicken salad is my favorite healthy go-to meal or snack!
This is such a good whole 30 lunch option!! Delish on salads or in the Bibb lettuce wraps. YUM!
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I have made MANY chicken salad recipes off the internet. I think it will be our go-to recipe now. It was humble but impressive. We so enjoyed the elements of sweetness balanced with the addition of pistachios– it was an incredible balance of sweet and savory. Highly recommend!
Thank you Amy! This is such a great compliment. Glad you enjoyed it!
I used to make a chicken salad similar to this years ago, and had forgotten how delicious the sweet & savory combo is! Thanks for another yummy, easy, clean recipe!😊
You’re welcome! Thank you Lucrezia!
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I’ve been a huge chicken salad fan my whole life. This is my new go-to recipe! It’s so good.
Thank you, Katie!
So tasty and easy to make! Perfect to store in the fridge and have for lunch. I put mine on cucumber slices for mini open face sandwhiches and it’s a great pairing!
Made this today! Day 15 of my whole30 (when the boredom sets in) & this was the solution! Delicious
Love this recipe! I’ve made it two weeks in a row now. I also add sliced almonds, red onion and fresh avocado.
THANK YOU for including how you cook your chicken to shred. On behalf of all of us beginner level chefs, I appreciate it! I can’t wait to try the recipe.
We just discovered this amazing recipe. My daughter has taken it in her lunch with crackers every day this week. It’s so tasty!
Another great recipe that can be personalized based on what you have in your pantry — I subbed pomegranate seeds for the the apple. Yummalicious.
Oh. My. Gosh. I’m literally about to eat this entire recipe by myself in one sitting. I just can’t quit it!!! Mary, you need to change it to “Yields: 4 people with self control” because I am not joking, haha! I’m on my third serving of it. And I’d be surprised if that last serving hangs on til tomorrow. The flavor combos are just unreal, and I love the different textures! It really hits every single note. The perfect easy weekday lunch!
Thank you so much, Samantha!
This is one of my favorites to make! It’s incredibly simple both in terms of ingredients (which I love) and preparation. Plus it feeds my husband and I for a week! This is one of the few dairy free (as we use avocado Mayo) recipes he actually enjoys because it tastes like the dairy filled not as great for you version. I make this at least once a month during the school year as it makes an easy lunch/dinner for my teaching schedule and doesn’t have to be reheated (bonus since I work out of my car)
Delicious and husband approved, too! Packed his lunch for work and he texted me “This chicken salad is the best one you’ve made yet”. Easy to make, simple ingredients, and great flavor!
This looks so Yum! What a great recipe to change things up with my chicken salad.