Better than traditional chicken salad, this Whole30 Chicken Salad Recipe is creamy, sweet, and a little smoky! This 15-minute Whole30 recipe is simple, addictive, and can be served as a side dish or a main. It’s also paleo, keto-friendly, gluten, and dairy-free!
I’ve been looking for more ways to add protein to my diet that don’t involve powders or just plain meat. This Whole30 Chicken Salad is just the ticket! It’s made with my ultra creamy whole30 mayonnaise recipe, grapes for sweetness, green onion for a little bite, and then I tossed in some oregano, garlic powder, black pepper, and smoked paprika for ALL of the flavor. It tastes amazing.
I stuck to ingredients that I had on hand to make this healthy chicken salad really easy. For the chicken, I shredded it in my instant pot which is my favorite way to cook chicken at the moment. I just set it in the morning and then came back to it when I was ready to cook. It fell apart perfectly and mixes into this whole30 chicken salad with ease.
Perfect for an easy whole30 lunch, you can serve this delicious whole30 chicken salad in many ways. I like popping it on top of sweet potatoes (like in the photo above), but it’s also excellent on a bed of spinach or arugula/rocket leaves, or even on its own as a side dish. Share it with friends at your next gathering!
Why you will love this Recipe
- Flavor: I packed as much flavor as possible using simple ingredients. Smoked paprika, spring onions, garlic, oregano, lemon, and ground black pepper all sing a note in this recipe.
- Quick: I threw this together in 10 minutes. All I had to do was quarter the grapes and slice the spring onions. I had already cooked shredded chicken on hand which helps a lot with time. Even cooking the chicken yourself, however, you would only need to add an extra 20 minutes or so for diced chicken. This is a very quick recipe!
- Easy: Toss everything in a mixing bowl and mix well. Adjust seasoning and mayonnaise to taste. It’s that easy!
- Pantry staples: All of the ingredients used were ones that I already had on hand, and pretty much always have on hand in my pantry.
- Meal prep: Whole 30 Chicken Salad holds up in the fridge really well so it’s perfect for meal prep at the beginning of the week for easy lunches. You can make a batch of this, plus bake some sweet potatoes to serve along with it, and your meal is sorted. Even easier, serve this chicken salad recipe with a side of greens like arugula/rocket or spinach.
- Healthy: Made with whole foods and healthy fats, this is a great option when you need to prep healthy meals for the week!
- Share it! This recipe travels well and is perfect for taking along to BBQs or potlucks.
Key Ingredients
- Chicken: I shredded my boneless skinless chicken breast using my Instant Pot Shredded Chicken recipe, however, you can use store-bought rotisserie chicken (check the ingredients if doing Whole30) or you can dice up the chicken breasts and pan-fry them at home. It’s also an easy way to use up leftover chicken!
- Mayonnaise: You can use store-bought whole30 compliant mayo (see my list below), or you can make your own homemade mayo with my Mayonnaise Recipe. It’s made with olive oil, tastes amazing, and is really very easy! I’ve included a video and step-by-step story in that post to make it even easier.
- Grapes: An amazing ingredient to add to this delicious chicken salad: grapes! Grapes add sweetness and a little crunch. I LOVE grapes in creamy salads. I added both green and red grapes. You can use both, one or the other – it’s up to you!
- Spring onion: I wanted a little fresh onion flavor without adding white onion as I find them to be a little overpowering when raw. Spring onion is the perfect solution! Red onion would be a great substitute.
- Lemon: Lemon juice is my favorite way of adding acidity to recipes and it is perfect in this Whole30 Chicken Salad.
- Spices and herbs: I skipped the fresh herbs and opted for dried oregano and garlic powder to add a little bit of a herby taste (plus garlic needs to go in most savory recipes in my opinion!), ground black pepper for a kick of heat and peppery-ness, and then I added smoked paprika which really adds a beautiful smoky layer to this dish.
How to make the best chicken salad
1. Add the chicken, mayonnaise, grapes, spring onions, lemon juice, oregano, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and ground black pepper to a large bowl and mix well.
2. Add extra mayonnaise, salt, and pepper to taste. Garnish with freshly chopped parsley if desired.
Storage Instructions
- Store: For best results, store in the fridge for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
- Freeze: You can freeze whole 30 chicken salad, however, the mayonnaise may separate when thawing. Freeze whole30 chicken salad for up to 3 months.
For in-depth details on how to store the chicken salad in the fridge, or freezer, or how long it will last at room temperature chicken out this post: How Long Does Chicken Salad Last? (6 things to watch out for!)
Recipe Notes and Tips
- If you’re not doing whole30, regular mayonnaise is absolutely fine to substitute and will work well in this recipe. I always will advocate for making your own mayonnaise though! I haven’t bought mayonnaise in years because it’s so easy to make at home and tastes much better than store-bought!
- This Whole30 Chicken Salad is a great way to use up leftover turkey or chicken from holiday dinners and Sunday lunches.
- Any color of grape will work in this recipe! Green, red, black, pink, yellow, or purple.
- You can omit the spring onions and swap them for a teaspoon of onion powder if necessary.
- Add a little Whole30 compliant hot sauce or 1/2 a teaspoon of hot paprika if you like heat!
What brands of mayonnaise are Whole30 compliant?
• Hunter & Gather Food’s Avocado Oil Mayo (UK link)
• Dr Will’s (UK)
• Tessemae’s (US link)
• Sir Kensington’s (US link)
• Chosen Foods (US link)
• Ojai Cook Lemonaise (US link)
• Real Mayonnaise by Trader Joe’s (US)
Vegan Whole30 Mayonnaise:
• Hunter & Gather Vegan Avocado Oil Egg Free Mayonnaise (UK)
• Avonaise (US)
What goes well with chicken salad?
• Baked Sweet Potatoes
• Roasted Vegetables
• Salad greens like rocket/arugula, spinach and romaine lettuce.
• Fruit: strawberries, blueberries, mango, apples, pears, etc.
• Other fresh vegetables: celery, cucumber, carrots, cherry tomatoes, radish, broccoli, cauliflower.
Is Chicken Salad good for you?
Do you eat chicken salad hot or cold?
How do you serve chicken salad?
There are so many great ways to serve chicken salad! Here are a few of my favorites:
Serve chicken salad in:
- A baked potato
- Baked sweet potato
- Lettuce wraps or lettuce cups
Serve Paleo Chicken Salad with:
- Potato Salad
- Fruit Salad
- Grilled meat and vegetables
Check out my post for over 50 ways to serve chicken salad!
More Whole30 recipes you will love
- AIR FRYER CHICKEN DRUMSTICKS
- WHOLE30 CHICKEN RAMEN RECIPE
- EASY WHOLE30 BREAKFAST SAUSAGE
- WHOLE30 RANCH DRESSING RECIPE
- THE BEST ROASTED TURKEY
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📖 Recipe
Whole 30 Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 4 cooked chicken breasts 1kg/2.5lbs, shredded or diced (click for my easy instant pot shredded chicken recipe)
- 2 cups whole30 compliant mayonnaise store-bought or homemade, plus more to taste (click for my recipe, see notes)
- 130 g grapes quartered 24 grapes, any colour
- 4 spring onions finely sliced
- 1/2 lemon juiced
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- plenty of ground black pepper to taste
- salt to taste I like pink Himalayan or sea salt
- chopped fresh parsley to garnish optional
Instructions
- Add the chicken, mayonnaise, grapes, spring onions, lemon juice, oregano, garlic powder, smoked paprika and ground black pepper to a mixing bowl and mix well.
- Add extra mayonnaise, salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with freshly chopped parsley if desired.
