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Home » Recipes » Salads

Healthy Southern Chicken Salad Recipe

By Laura Fuentes Updated Oct 10, 2024

4.92 from 47 votes

Recipe

This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy here.

If you like chicken salad, you are going to love this healthy chicken salad recipe with a little kick! It's perfect for lunch over a bed of field greens, with crackers or in a sandwich.

Have you ever had a really good chicken salad sandwich on 7-grain bread, topped with crisp, fresh lettuce and tomatoes? If not, my friend, you are in for a treat.

This Southern Chicken Salad recipe is the perfect combination of chicken, chopped celery, and seasonings with a touch of mayo.

healthy southern chicken salad in a lunchbox with crackers, celery, and sliced apples.
Jump to:
  • Traditional Southern Chicken Salad
  • Healthy Ingredients and Substitutions
  • How to Make Healthy Chicken Salad
  • Healthy Ways to Serve Chicken Salad
  • Healthy Chicken Salad Recipe

While serving it in a sandwich is one of my favorite ways to eat this recipe, it’s also delicious as a protein-packed dip with crackers, veggies, or a topper for salad.

Traditional Southern Chicken Salad

Chicken salad is a near and dear recipe to the south. Traditionally, it’s made with leftover shredded chicken, celery, and pickle relish in a creamy mayo-based dressing. Some versions include slivered almonds, walnuts chopped apples, and even grapes.

Since I am NOT a fan of fruit or nuts mixed with chicken salad- I leave those out and use less mayonnaise for a healthier version of Southern Chicken Salad. No worries, it still has that perfect texture that’s easy to spread onto crackers or over bread, thanks to the food processor, but more on that later.

Healthy Ingredients and Substitutions

A creamy, flavorful dressing is super important for a good chicken salad, and my recipe has the perfect ratio of mayonnaise and spices. Lemon juice really brightens up the flavor and goes perfect with the smoky flavor of rotisserie chicken.

However, if you have leftover baked chicken on hand, by all means, use that! You’ll need about 3 cups worth or two large chicken breasts. Here’s everything you need for the southern chicken salad:

  • Shredded chicken: use leftovers or rotisserie chicken. More about how to cook chicken for chicken salad here.
  • Celery: the classic crunchiness this chicken salad calls for.
  • Lemon juice: adds a fresh and bright note that enhances the salad flavor.
  • Mayonnaise: or full-fat Greek yogurt to add tang and creaminess but with fewer calories.
  • Salt and pepper: for seasoning.
  • Creole seasoning: or you can use poultry seasoning instead.

You’ll find the measurements in the recipe card below.

Another Way to Make It: Spicy Chicken Salad

How to Make Healthy Chicken Salad

Everything gets tossed in the food processor and finely chopped to give it a thick, smooth texture. Don’t worry, we aren’t going to pureé the chicken– only pulse it a few times, to break up the meat and celery just enough. It’s how we get away with using only a little mayonnaise. 

Now, on with the recipe. Here’s how to make this healthy chicken salad in a food processor: 

  1. Pulse
    Place the chicken in the processor and give it a pulse to roughly chop. 
  2. Make the dressing
    Whisk together the lemon juice, mayonnaise, salt, pepper, and creole seasoning, until smooth. 
  3. Combine
    Transfer the chopped chicken to a large bowl and add the dressing. Fold to combine and it’s ready to serve. 

Check out how easy this salad is to make in the video below: 

How to Store Homemade Chicken Salad

Once you’re ready to put it away, transfer the chicken salad to an airtight container, seal, and refrigerate. 

Homemade chicken salad is good for up to 4 days in the fridge. It’s one of the biggest reasons I use this recipe as a lunch meal prep for the office and school.

I have so many recipes like this one that can be made ahead and turned into healthy lunches or meals later week, which you can check out in my new Meal Prepp’d eBook.

Meal Prep’d eBook

In this book, I share 70+ recipes that can be cooked ahead, stored in single-serve portions or frozen, and save you time and effort in the kitchen. 

Cook once and have ready-to-eat meals for an entire week. These nutritious and filling recipes can be enjoyed as dinner or packed for lunch. 

meal prep ebook displayed on a tablet
Buy the eBook

It has a ton of ideas and different ways to use everyday ingredients so you won’t get bored eating the same thing day after day. 

5 ways to serve chicken salad

Healthy Ways to Serve Chicken Salad

Speaking of! How many ways can you serve this Southern Chicken Salad? Well, let’s count below:

  • Over crackers- these would be perfect
  • With fresh, cut veggies
  • In a wrap
  • Between bread and lettuce
  • In a lettuce cup
  • Stuffed in the center of an avocado
  • Over a bed of lettuce and tomatoes

That’s 7 ways so far, can you think of any more?

Healthy Chicken Salad Recipe

Servings: 6
Prep Time: 10 minutes mins
Total Time: 10 minutes mins
If you like chicken salad, you are going to love this healthy chicken salad recipe with a little kick! It’s perfect for lunch over a bed of field greens, with crackers or in a sandwich.
4.92 from 47 votes
Print Pin

Ingredients

  • 1 whole roasted chicken, meat off
  • ½ cup finely chopped celery⁣
  • 1 lemon, juiced⁣
  • ⅓-1/2 cup mayonnaise⁣
  • ¼ teaspoon salt⁣
  • ½ teaspoon pepper⁣
  • 1 teaspoon Creole Seasoning⁣

Instructions

  • Put chicken meat in a food processor and pulse a few times to roughly chop. Continue pulsing for about 30 seconds until the chicken is finely chopped. *If you turn "on" the food processor, your chicken will become a "paste" instead, use the pulse method until it's very finely chopped.
  • ⁣In a bowl, combine lemon juice, mayonnaise, salt, pepper, creole seasoning. Blend well.⁣
  • ⁣Toss chicken into the bowl, combine a few times with a spatula and add finely chopped celery.⁣

Equipment

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printed papers of weekly family meal plan
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Dressing Bottle
Salad Dressing Twist Jar
avocado keeper
lettuce keeper

Nutrition

Serving: 1scoop | Calories: 241kcal | Carbohydrates: 0.7g | Protein: 23.5g | Fat: 15.4g | Saturated Fat: 3.1g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 75.1mg | Sodium: 251.2mg | Fiber: 0.1g | Sugar: 0.3g

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    Canned Chicken Salad
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    Curried Chicken Salad
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    Mexican Salad
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    Christmas Salad

Comments

    4.92 from 47 votes (32 ratings without comment)

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Rachel says

    March 10, 2025 at 4:00 pm

    5 stars
    This chicken salad is the best I’ve ever made! True southern style!

    Reply
  2. Valerie says

    February 24, 2023 at 11:42 am

    5 stars
    I make this chicken salad everytime I have leftovers. My kids eat it with crackers, but I LOVE to use it to fill sandwiches. I didn’t know about using the food processor to chop the chicken… brillliant!

    Reply
  3. Heather says

    August 03, 2019 at 4:16 pm

    5 stars
    This has become a weekly staple for us. Perfect for the kids’ packed lunches and quick bite snacking. Thx u Laura!

    Reply
    • Laura Fuentes says

      August 23, 2019 at 6:16 pm

      I’m so glad! It’s my fav too!

      Reply
  4. Shan says

    October 27, 2017 at 3:19 pm

    5 stars
    Would love to have the recipe for that sprouted grain salad in the picture !

    Reply
    • Laura Fuentes says

      October 30, 2017 at 10:17 am

      There is no recipe for that. It’s a package of sprouted beans I bought at the store tossed with some dressing. That’s it!

      Reply
  5. Marianne says

    March 03, 2014 at 4:20 pm

    5 stars
    What is the side dish (?chick pea salad) that is pictured with your recipe for Southern Chicken Salad? That looks yummy too!

    Reply
    • Laura Fuentes says

      March 03, 2014 at 10:13 pm

      in this post it’s just the Southern Chicken Salad. Either by itself or over a bed of baby greens….

      Reply
      • Brittany Murphy says

        January 05, 2017 at 11:37 pm

        1 star
        In your husbands lunch what is the bean salad

        Reply
        • Brittany Murphy says

          January 05, 2017 at 11:39 pm

          5 stars
          Whoops I wanted 5 stars,!!!!

          Reply
  6. Abbie says

    July 01, 2013 at 2:58 pm

    5 stars
    When I want a KILLER chicken salad, I “reverse engineered” one from Trader Joe’s. I put a little mayo/greek yogurt in there for creaminess, toasted sesame oil (a little goes a long way), rice wine vinegar, fresh rosemary, green onions, dried apricots (rehydrated in a little hot water, first) and some freshly grated ginger in it….. it’s an AMAZING Asian take on chicken salad!

    Reply
  7. Dana says

    June 27, 2013 at 5:56 am

    5 stars
    I roast chicken often with the intent of having extra for chicken salad. Could you tell me about how much chopped chicken you get from a whole roasted chicken? 5 cups? Thanks!

    Reply
    • Laura Fuentes says

      June 27, 2013 at 10:51 am

      Hi Dana! It really depends how big your chickens are… I’d say around 3-4 cups?

      Reply
      • J Arnold Burrell says

        July 16, 2019 at 7:07 pm

        5 stars
        If you use a Costco 3# Rotisserie chicken, you have to triple the other ingredients. I also added mustard.

        Reply
        • Laura Fuentes says

          July 25, 2019 at 4:59 pm

          You gotta love Costco, right?

          Reply
  8. Cristina says

    June 26, 2013 at 7:04 pm

    5 stars
    I have done chicken salad for years using the food processor because it was faster than hand chopping the chicken. Try adding grapes (it’s how I make mine), and use your food processor’s slicing blade to slice the grapes for you!

    Reply
    • Laura Fuentes says

      June 27, 2013 at 10:51 am

      I LOVE grapes in my chicken salad! 🙂

      Reply
  9. Rebeca says

    March 04, 2013 at 3:59 pm

    5 stars
    I cannot wait to try this recipe! One of my favorite restaurants has a chicken salad with this consistency. They add almonds, and craisins, top it with a bit of crunchy honey granola and a drizzle of raspberry vinaigrette and wrap it up in a whole wheat tortilla…yum!

    Reply
    • Laura Fuentes says

      March 04, 2013 at 9:06 pm

      Let me know how you like it Rebeca! I love love love the creamy texture of the chicken salad. 🙂

      Reply
  10. Marla says

    February 24, 2013 at 11:49 am

    5 stars
    Could this be frozen in individual portions after it’s made? I’m vegetarian but my son is not, and I’m always looking meat recipes in small portions.

    Reply
    • Laura Fuentes says

      February 25, 2013 at 2:04 pm

      Hi Marla! Absolutely! I make chicken salad sandwiches and freeze them made all the time! You can also freeze single salad portions.

      Reply
  11. Tiffany C says

    February 22, 2013 at 2:03 pm

    5 stars
    I LOVE chicken salad. I am not eating crackers right now, but I will try it with some veggies as a snack during my diet! Great recipe!

    Reply
    • Laura Fuentes says

      February 23, 2013 at 11:42 am

      i eat it with veggies too Tiffany!

      Reply
  12. Courtney says

    February 21, 2013 at 3:53 pm

    5 stars
    You can also use a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Works best when the chicken is hot. I made some last night using Greek yogurt instead of mayo and grapes & apples in it.

    Reply
    • Laura Fuentes says

      February 22, 2013 at 11:06 am

      sounds delicious courtney!!

      Reply

Hi! I'm Laura.
Certified Integrative Nutrition Health Coach, mom of three, and the woman behind the world’s best pancakes—here to help you ditch the mealtime drama with recipes your family will actually eat.

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