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chicken salad on whole croissant on white plate

My Favorite Chicken Salad

Yield: 8 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

Chicken Salad:

  • 4 cups cooked, shredded (or small chopped) chicken (see note)
  • 1 cup small diced celery
  • 1 cup red grapes, halved or quartered
  • ½ cup chopped slivered almonds or cashews
  • 2-3 tablespoons finely diced green onions or chives
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Dressing:

  • 1 cup mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons sour cream
  • 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice or red wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
  • ½ teaspoon coarse, kosher salt (use a bit less for table salt)
  • ⅛ teaspoon black pepper, I use coarsely ground
  • ⅛ teaspoon dried dill
  • ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ⅛ teaspoon onion powder
  • Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions 

  • Combine all of the salad ingredients in a large bowl.
  • Whisk together all of the dressing ingredients until smooth.
  • Pour the dressing over the salad ingredients and mix until evenly combined. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper, if needed.
  • Refrigerate until ready to serve.
  • Serve on lettuce, bread, croissants, or rolled up in tortillas or flatbread.

Notes

Chicken: A rotisserie chicken works great here. Otherwise, here's a great method for cooking chicken for recipes like this. Another option is to throw a couple chicken breasts in an electric pressure cooker with 1-2 cups chicken broth, salt and pepper, and cook for 8-10 minutes high pressure. Naturally release pressure for 10 minutes, then quick release remaining pressure. Drain liquid and shred chicken to use in recipe.
Dressing: the flavors of the dressing get better with time so while the chicken salad can be served right away, it tastes better if it is refrigerated for 1-2 hours. The dressing can be made ahead several days in advance.
Adaptable: this recipe is very adaptable. Leave out ingredients (like nuts) if you can't eat them/don't like them, or add in others that you like (dried cranberries, drained mandarin oranges, etc).