Chicken Salad
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Whip up my classic chicken salad recipe, a tried-and-true favorite for picnics, gatherings, or simply turning last night’s leftovers into today’s lunch. It’s everything you love about deli-style chicken salad, only better!
This chicken salad recipe is simple, creamy, and packed with flavor—similar to the classic version you’d find at many delis, and without any “weird stuff” in it, as my kids would say. The secret is twofold. First: using both mayonnaise and sour cream in the dressing. The sour cream freshens things up and adds a subtle tang you won’t get from mayo alone. Second: starting with perfectly tender chicken. I typically use poached chicken, which has a mild flavor that works beautifully here, but a store-bought rotisserie chicken works well too, especially when time is short.
I’ve shared plenty of chicken salad variations over the years, but this is the one I make when I want the classic done right. Whether served on a bed of greens, tucked into a wrap, or piled into a hearty sandwich, it delivers every time.
“Probably the best chicken salad I have ever eaten…I think the sour cream is the trick.”
Classic Chicken Salad Ingredients
- Chicken: Start with chicken that’s tender and juicy. I prefer poached chicken breasts, but leftover roast chicken, grilled chicken, or rotisserie chicken all work well.
- Mayonnaise and Sour Cream: Together they form the creamy base of the dressing. The sour cream lightens the mayonnaise and adds a subtle tang. Use a good-quality mayonnaise, such as Hellmann’s or Duke’s.
- Lemon Juice and Dijon Mustard: Add brightness and tang to balance the richness of the dressing.
- Celery: Adds plenty of fresh crunch and is essential to that classic chicken salad texture.
- Scallions: Add mild onion flavor without overpowering the other ingredients.
- Dill and Parsley: Fresh herbs give the salad a big flavor boost. Dill adds its distinctive flavor, while parsley adds freshness and balances the dill.
- Sugar: Just a touch rounds out the acidity in the dressing without making the salad taste sweet.
- Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper: Season the salad and bring all the flavors together.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
How to Make Chicken Salad
Step 1: Make the dressing. Whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, lemon juice, mustard, salt, sugar, and pepper in a large bowl.
Step 2: Combine the ingredients. Add the chicken, scallions, celery, dill, and parsley to the bowl with the dressing.
Step 3: Mix and chill. Toss the ingredients together until everything’s well combined. Cover and refrigerate the salad until you’re ready to serve. It will keep in the fridge for up to 2 days before serving (I don’t recommend freezing).
Tips & Chicken Salad Variations
- Using Rotisserie Chicken: Store-bought rotisserie chicken is a great time-saver, but it tends to shred more easily. Be gentle when mixing it with the dressing so it doesn’t fall apart too much.
- Spicy Version: Add a few shakes of hot sauce, some diced chilies, or use blackened chicken instead of plain chicken.
- Lighter Version: For the best flavor and texture, use full-fat ingredients, but if you’re looking to lighten it up, Greek yogurt and light mayo will do the trick.
- Adding Extras: For crunch, try roasted nuts: walnuts, pecans, or almonds all work well. If you love the classic grape-and-nut combination, my chicken salad with grapes and almonds is built around it. Dried cranberries or diced apple add a touch of sweetness, and you can swap the herbs, too—chives, tarragon, or basil are all delicious options.
Video Tutorial
More Chicken salad Recipes You’ll Love
Classic Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup mayonnaise, best quality such as Hellmann's or Duke's
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice, from 1 lemon
- 1½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 4½ cups cooked shredded chicken (see note)
- 3 scallions, light and dark green parts, thinly sliced
- 2 ribs celery, finely diced
- 3 tablespoons fresh chopped dill
- 3 tablespoons fresh chopped Italian parsley
Instructions
- Make the dressing: In a large bowl, whisk the mayonnaise, sour cream, lemon juice, mustard, salt, sugar, and pepper.
- To the dressing, add the chicken, scallions, celery, dill, and parsley. Toss until evenly combined. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Notes
- Poached chicken, leftover grilled chicken, or roasted/rotisserie chicken all work well for this recipe. If you'd like to roast bone-in chicken, you'll need 3 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts. Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C) and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Arrange the chicken breasts skin-side up on the prepared baking sheet. Coat with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle both sides with 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Roast for 30 to 35 minutes, or until done. Let cool before shredding
- Make-Ahead Instructions: This salad can be made and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days before serving.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I make this salad once a week and it is a hit in my house. My husband and kids enjoy having this for lunch at work and school. They absolutely love it. For variation, sometimes I shred the chicken, other times I cut the breast in chunks.
Hey Jen still loving your recipes after all these years! Quick question how much dried dill and parsley would you use if do not have fresh on hand? Wasn’t sure if made a significant difference or not!
So glad you like the recipes! I’d use 1 tablespoon each of the dried dill and parsley. Enjoy!
Made your creamy zucchini soup with walnuts and dill, then this great chicken salad. Used half the amount of chicken and one apple, everything else as written. Subbed dried cherries for the raisins and a granny smith apple with peel on for added color, a glass of pinot grigio made this a perfect dinner for a hot night. Thanks Jenn
This was one Damn GOOD Chicken salad recipe Jenn!! I’ve made MANY over the years but THIS One HERE, was THEE BEST!!!
Ok so now for my one question?
What’s your estimate of tenderloin WEIGHT, that will produce what was it…4.5 cups of cooked chicken?
AND….
Thanks so much for ALL YOUR FABULOUS Recipes!!
So glad you liked it!! 4.5 cups would be the equivalent of about 2 pounds of chicken tenderloins or 3 pounds of bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts. Hope that helps!
I have made this three times already and its my go to chicken salad. Make it on a monday and use it all week for lunch. Thank you Jenn for being my go to site
Jenn,
I recently found your website and have tried 3 recipes so far and they have not let me down! They are all hits with family and friends! This Chicken Salad recipe is so yummy and the tastes aren’t overpowering! It tastes even better the next day. Thank you for wonderful, delightful recipes that aren’t “over the top” and too time consuming to make!
Hey Jen: Another WINNER big-time. I had never used chicken tenders before nor had I poached chicken. SO EASY and even though I halved the recipe (just us two seniors) there is LOTS for a few meals. I can’t wait to try your other recipes using the tenders and will likely make a full recipe next time.
Your recipes ALWAYS turn out perfectly and I am constantly returning to your cookbook for ideas. Keep doing exactly what you are doing. You are helping save our sanity and everybody enjoys a wonderful meal! Take care. Stay safe.
💗
I see no need to search for a chicken salad recipe ever again. I can’t imagine finding anything better than this. My whole family loved it!
How does this taste in relation to ur cookbook chicken salad recipe?
There are a lot of similarities, but the one in the cookbook has a slightly different flavor due to the cooking method (grilling versus poaching the chicken). Hope you enjoy if you try either one!
“This may be the best chicken salad you ever made!!” That quote is from my sweet husband who loves all my chicken salads, true, and I also make many different recipes. What a fabulous chicken salad!!
I happened to use leftover chicken from my freshly made batch of chicken soup. (I omitted the sugar, and loved it as is. I’m sure it’s even better with the sugar I’m just trying to be conscientious where I add it.)
Thanks Jenn!!! I love your recipe so much and add my voice to the chorus that I would love to watch you on Food Network TV. Thanks again for adding a new recipe to my rotation.