Chicken Salad with Grapes is such an easy and healthy sandwich recipe to make for potlucks, parties, a quick lunch, or backyard barbecues. It is the best homemade version that is made with shredded rotisserie chicken, toasted pecans, seedless grapes, and a mixture of mayonnaise and hummus.
Want a few other healthy and easy picnic food ideas? You might also enjoy this Thai Peanut Quinoa Salad, Creamy Cucumber Dill Salad, Italian Dressing Pasta Salad, and this Mexican Street Corn Salad.
Chicken Salad Recipe – Easy + Homemade
There are so many different theories when it comes to making a homemade chicken salad.
Some grew up with apples, others with grapes, cranberries, or even raisins.
People make it with mayonnaise and mustard, while others add a pinch of curry powder.
But at the end of the day, one thing remains the same… this dish always has a place at the potluck or picnic table!
Best Recipe With Grapes
My husband grew up making curried chicken salad sandwiches while my way of making it includes a blend of crunchy pecans and seedless grapes.
Eventually I will end up posting all of the different variations we make at home, but for today… we’re going traditional and making this healthy chicken sandwich with grapes!
Ingredients
There are a few basic ingredients that you will need for this recipe, many of which you probably already have on hand.
- Cooked Chicken
- Mayonnaise – You can use a Paleo-approved mayonnaise that is made with avocado oil if you prefer.
- Hummus – Feel free to substitute more mayonnaise if you do not like hummus.
- Salt and pepper – Adjust to your taste preference.
- Mustard – Dijon or yellow mustard work great.
- Celery – Finely chopped is the way to go!
- Pecans – Make sure you toast them! Also, feel free to use toasted almonds, walnuts, or cashews instead.
- Dill – The secret ingredients to making this chicken salad so flavorful!
- Grapes – Be sure to get the seedless. Red or green will work equally as well.
Best Chicken for Recipe
You might be wondering, “What kind of chicken should I use in this recipe?”
The easiest and best kind to get when making this homemade dish is a rotisserie chicken.
Using a rotisserie chicken will not only save you a lot of time, but it is also loaded with flavor since you will use both dark and white meat.
One rotisserie chicken will generally give you between 4 and 5 cups of shredded chicken.
Cook’s Tip: Opt for a natural, or traditional, flavored rotisserie so as not to have any conflicting flavors.
However, if you have extra chicken breasts on hand you can also cook and shred some Instant Pot Chicken or Crock-Pot Chicken for this recipe.
How to Make
These are the steps you will follow when making this chicken salad:
- Combine cooked, shredded chicken in a large bowl with mayonnaise, hummus, mustard, salt and pepper. Stir until it is well coated.
- Add celery, toasted pecans, grapes, and dill. Stir until ingredients are well combined.
- Chill for at least 2 hours before serving.
- Serve as a sandwich, in a lettuce wrap, or with crackers and enjoy!
A Healthier Version
In order to make this recipe a little healthier for you, hummus is used in place of some of the mayonnaise. (It also adds INCREDIBLE flavor to the recipe!)
Additionally, less mayonnaise and hummus are used overall in the recipe compared to other, traditional recipes.
If you want to make this recipe even healthier, opt for a Paleo-approved, avocado oil-based mayonnaise.
On the other hand, if you do not want to use hummus, you can always replace the hummus with more mayonnaise.
How to Serve
Chicken salad goes beyond just your typical sandwich and can be served in a variety of ways:
- Sandwich Bread: The most iconic (and in my opinion, the best!) way to serve. Honey wheat, store bought gluten-free bread, your own gluten-free sandwich bread recipe, or traditional white sandwich bread all pair amazingly well with homemade chicken salad.
- Lettuce Wrap: If you’re on a low-carb or keto diet, opt for a Bibb or butter leaf lettuce wrap.
- Croissant: Take it up a notch and serve it like Jason’s Deli does — on a buttery croissant!
- Crackers: Serving it up at a party or picnic? Sturdy crackers are great for scooping out a big bite of chicken salad.
How Long Does It Last?
Chicken salad will last up to 3-5 days when refrigerated immediately after making. Please note, this is 3-5 days starting the day the chicken is cooked, not the day the recipe is made.
Since this recipe is made with temperature sensitive ingredients (i.e. mayonnaise) do not let it sit at room temperature for more than 2 hours at a party or potluck. If the ambient temperature is greater than 85-90 degrees do not let it sit out for more than 1 hour.
Can You Freeze Chicken Salad?
Since mayonnaise generally separates after freezing and then thawing, I would not recommend freezing.
How to Make Keto and Low-Carb?
To make it low-carb and keto compliant, leave out the grapes (you can replace with more nuts if you’d like!) and serve it in a lettuce wrap or on Parmesan cheese whisps.
More Rotisserie Chicken Recipes:
- Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps
- Easy Chicken Enchiladas Verdes
- Baked Chicken Taquitos Recipe
- More healthy chicken recipes.
Chicken Salad with Grapes
Chicken Salad with Grapes is such an easy and healthy sandwich recipe to make for potlucks, parties, a quick lunch, or backyard barbecues that is made with shredded rotisserie chicken, pecans, grapes, and mayonnaise.
Ingredients
- 4 ½ cups chicken cooked, cut into bite-sized pieces
- ⅓ cup mayonnaise
- ⅓ cup hummus plain or garlic
- ½ - ¾ tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. pepper
- 2 tsp. Dijon mustard
- 1 ½ Tbsp. dill finely chopped
- ½ cup celery finely diced
- ¾ cup pecans toasted
- 1 cup grapes cut into bite-sized pieces.
Instructions
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In a large bowl add chicken, mayonnaise, hummus, Dijon mustard, and salt and pepper to taste . Stir until chicken is well coated.
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Add dill, celery, pecans, and grapes. Stir until just combined so as not to break apart the grapes.
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Chill chicken salad for at least 2 hours before serving.
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Serve chicken salad as a sandwich, in a lettuce wrap, or with crackers. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
- Chicken salad nutritional information is calculated without sandwich bread, lettuce wrap, or crackers.
- You can use an avocado oil-based mayonnaise.
- To make your chicken salad low-carb and keto compliant, leave out the grapes (you can replace with more nuts if you'd like!) and serve it in a lettuce wrap or on Parmesan cheese whisps.
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