Keep reading to learn how to make this epic curry chicken salad in 5 minutes and all the tasty ideas to customize it!
Curry Chicken Salad
When I lived uptown in New Orleans, there was a gas station deli that wasn't known for much, except its curried chicken salad. That one item was unforgettable. I'm pretty sure the secret was in their curry powder. Eventually, I’ve found a blend that comes close, and now I mix it into juicy, cooked, shredded chicken to make this epic version at home.
Use the simple recipe below or add some add-ins, and now you have the perfect filling for sandwiches, wraps, and more!
Ingredients
To make this curried chicken salad recipe, you only need cooked shredded chicken, plus mayonnaise, curry powder, lemon, salt, and pepper for the dressing. For added flavor and texture, I also like to add chopped celery, red onion, and raisins.
How to Make Curried Chicken Salad
First, make the dressing by mixing the ingredients in a bowl. Once done, add the chicken and your choice of add-ins.
Laura’s Favorite Swaps and Add-Ons
This simple curried chicken salad is very easy to customize:
- Use any cooked chicken. You can shred a rotisserie chicken, use up chicken leftovers from other meals, use chicken breasts, or chicken thighs; anything goes!
- Swap the mayonnaise. Want a lighter salad? Swapping the mayo for plain Greek yogurt to keep the salad deliciously creamy.
- Add crunchiness. From celery and onions, as I do in this recipe, to sunflower seeds and chopped nuts, crunchiness is always a great idea to make this curried chicken salad even more epic.
- Swap the fruit. I like to include raisins for sweetness, but you can add diced apples, grapes, or dried cranberries instead.
Serving Suggestions
This curried chicken salad is perfect for filling sandwiches or croissants, making tasty chicken salad wraps to pack for lunch, or serving with crackers, lettuce cups, or on top of salad greens. My family also loves it when I use this salad for stuffing avocados or assembling quesadillas.
Curried Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked shredded chicken
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 1 ½ teaspoons curry powder, your favorite
- ½ lemon, juiced
- Pinch of salt & pepper
Add-ins:
- 1 rib celery, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons red onion, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons raisins
Instructions
Make the salad:
- In a medium bowl, combine the mayonnaise, curry powder, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Mix to combine the dressing.
- Add the chicken to the bowl and mix to coat the chicken with the dressing. Serve it by itself or add some of the add-ins you prefer, which will add both flavor and crunch.
Notes
- You can swap the mayo for plain Greek yogurt to make this recipe lighter.
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Gwen says
I just felt in love with this curried chicken salad. It’s TOO good!
Kim says
This curried chicken salad has so much flavor! Yum!!!
Katie says
This curry chicken salad was AMAZING!!! Loved the flavors, so much better than the other recipe I’d been using.