Apple Walnut Chicken Salad

posted by Katya on Sep 23, 2022 1 comment »

Apple walnut chicken salad is the perfect dish for a quick lunch at work or to take to school. This salad is made with creamy dressing, walnuts, and tart apples.

Love chicken apple combo? Try our Apple Chicken Chili.

What is Apple Walnut Chicken Salad?

This easy chicken salad recipe is a spin on the classic chicken salad made with tart apples and crunchy walnuts. It has all the elements of a delicious chicken salad: savory, crunchy, creamy, and sweet.

The key to a tasty chicken salad dressing is to use sour cream in addition to the mayo. It adds the perfect amount of tanginess to the salad.

Made with a handful of ingredients, just like our spring chicken salad, this creamy chicken salad is a perfect addition to a meal prep menu as it stores well in the fridge for up to a week!

How to Cook the Chicken

The key to a delicious chicken salad is good-tasting chicken and there are a couple of different ways you can prepare the chicken for this salad.

Roast. My absolute favorite way is to roast bone-in chicken breast or a simple whole roasted chicken and use some of the meat to make this recipe.

Poach. You can also, poach chicken breasts in simmering water until cooked all the way through and there’s no pink left in the middle. Be sure to keep an eye on the chicken and take it out as soon as it’s done, or it will get chewy.

Or Buy! Lastly, buy a rotisserie chicken from the store if you need lunch at the last minute and don’t have time to cook the chicken separately.

Ingredients

Here are the ingredients you will need to make this apple walnut chicken salad. While the ingredients are simple, this recipe packs a ton of flavor.

Dressing:

Mayonnaise
Sour cream
Apple cider vinegar
Dijon mustard

Salad:

Diced cooked chicken
Granny Smith apple
Celery
Red onion
Red grapes
Walnuts
Parsley

How to Make Apple Walnut Chicken Salad

Here are the directions to make this dish. See the recipe card below for the full recipe.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, vinegar, mustard, salt, and pepper.

Fold in chicken, apples, celery, onion, grapes, walnuts, and parsley. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving on toast, with crackers, or on a bed of lettuce leaves.

Recipe Tips

This chicken apple salad has lots of texture and is a great way to eat an easy lunch. Here are a few tips and notes:

If making with only mayo. If using just mayonnaise and not sour cream for the dressing, you may need to add a little extra vinegar or fresh lemon juice to balance out the creaminess.
Substitute for sour cream. Add greek yogurt instead of sour cream. I recommend plain whole milk Greek yogurt.
Quality mayo. Use good quality mayo or make it yourself at home for the best flavor.
Keep the skin on. You don’t need to peel the apples before adding them in, but you can if you’d prefer.
Smaller dice is the key. If you like a bit of everything on each forkful, chop all the ingredients into smaller pieces.
Chill before serving! Refrigerate the chicken salad for half an hour or up to overnight before serving, so all the flavors blend together.

Variations

This chicken salad is easily adaptable. You can add your favorite ingredients or replace the ones in this recipe. Here are some substitution ideas.

Veggies: Try adding minced shallots, water chestnuts, dill pickles, chopped lettuce, or green onions.

Apples: I like using Granny Smith apples for this recipe and many others such as apple walnut salad with balsamic vinaigrette, but you can use Honeycrisp apples, Pink Lady, or Gala apples instead. You can also substitute the apples for cranberries or pears too.

Nuts: Trade the walnuts for sliced almonds, pecans, or cashews. Toast the nuts before adding them to the bowl.

Meat: This is a great recipe to put your leftovers to good use! Feel free to use leftover grilled chicken tenders or herb baked chicken for this salad. If using leftover bone-in chicken pieces, simply pull the meat off the bones and dice the chicken into bite-size pieces.

How to Serve

This chicken salad can be served in so many different ways.

Add a garnish. Add in a squeeze of fresh lemon juice or top with sliced green onion or blue cheese crumbles.

Wrap. You can roll it into a lettuce wrap or use your favorite tortillas.

Dip. Dice the salad ingredients really small and serve the salad with whole grain crackers for a snack or as part of your crudite platter.

Sandwich. Place a scoop of salad on one slice of whole grain bread for light lunch, or add another slice of bread for a full sandwich. You can even use a croissant in place of the bread and top it with lettuce and tomato.

Pair it with side dishes. Try fruit platter, roasted lemon asparagus, or baked potato fries.

How to Store

Keep leftover chicken salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-5 days.

You can make the salad up to one day ahead of time. It’s best when it had time to chill in the fridge.

FAQs

How much is one serving of chicken salad?

One serving of chicken salad is 4-5 ounces.

Can you freeze chicken salad?

It’s not a good idea to freeze this salad because the mayonnaise doesn’t thaw well. The texture of the mayo is grainy and separates after being frozen. It’s best to make the salad from scratch each time you want some for lunch. It tastes better the fresher it is.

Do you have to put hard-boiled eggs in chicken salad?

You don’t need to use eggs in chicken salad. In fact, this recipe doesn’t use them and is absolutely delicious. Ultimately it’s up to you if you’d like to add them or not.

How can I make chicken salad healthier?

This recipe is filled with fruit, vegetables, and chicken which is a good source of protein. If you want to make it even healthier, use quality mayonnaise made with good oil and without any added preservatives.

Besides that, you can replace the mayonnaise with Greek yogurt. The flavor will be tangier, but it will still taste great.