Classic 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!
Everyone should have a trusty classic chicken salad recipe in their back pocket—whether it’s for a sunny picnic, hosting friends for a mid-day meal, or simply transforming last night’s leftovers into today’s delicious lunch.
Over the years, I’ve shared several of my favorite chicken salad recipes with you, from curried chicken salad to chicken salad with grapes. Yet, this is the classic recipe that I turn to time and again. It’s simple, creamy, and packed with flavor—similar to the classic you’d find at many delis, but even better in my opinion, and without any “weird stuff” in it, as my kids would say.
The key is using tender, juicy chicken. I typically use poached chicken, which isn’t highly seasoned, but a store-bought rotisserie chicken works great too, especially when time is short. Whether served on a bed of greens, tucked into a wrap, or piled into a hearty sandwich, it’s a hit every time.
“There’s chicken salad and then there’s THIS chicken salad…My husband commented I should toss out my other chicken salad recipe because this is the one.”
Classic Chicken Salad Ingredients
- Creamy Base: Mayonnaise and sour cream make the tangy, creamy base that binds all the ingredients together. Make sure to use a good brand of mayo such as Hellmann’s or Duke’s.
- Fresh lemon juice: Provides a bright, acidic note that balances the richness of the mayonnaise and sour cream.
- Cooked shredded chicken: You’ll need 4½ cups of cooked chicken for this homemade chicken salad recipe. Make a batch of poached chicken, use some leftover grilled chicken, or pick up a rotisserie chicken at the store. They all work well.
- Flavor and crunch: Scallions add a mild onion flavor and a bit of crunch while celery amps up the crisp texture and adds a fresh, slightly bitter note. Fresh dill and parsley give a burst of freshness and color.
- 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. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. Cover and refrigerate until you’re ready to serve. The salad can be made and stored in the refrigerator 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. If you like your dishes with a bit of a kick, you can add a few shakes of hot sauce, add some diced chilies, or use blackened chicken instead of plain poached or grilled chicken.
- Lighter Version. For the best flavor and texture, I’d stick with 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. For a hint of sweetness, add dried cranberries, diced apple, or halved grapes.You can also switch up the herbs—chives, tarragon, or basil would all work nicely here too.
Video Tutorial
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Classic Chicken Salad
Meet your new go-to classic chicken salad—creamy, herby, and full of crunch. It’s perfect for sandwiches, picnics, or straight from the bowl.
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.
- Note: 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 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
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 431
- Fat: 38 g
- Saturated fat: 9 g
- Carbohydrates: 2 g
- Sugar: 1 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 20 g
- Sodium: 393 mg
- Cholesterol: 94 mg
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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Would the recipe still be good if I omitted the sour cream or yogurt substitute? My guest cannot have milk products.
Hi Beverly, I’m not sure I fully understand your question, but if you’re asking if you can substitute a non-dairy yogurt for the sour cream, I think it should work. If it doesn’t have the same thickness as sour cream, I’d put it in a sieve and let the extra liquid drain off. Please LMK how it turns out!
This recipe is a winner. I have tried to find a chicken salad recipe for a while, and just never found one I liked. I now make this almost weekly as a double batch, and it flies out of the refrigerator. You will not to be disappointed.
as a side note….I like to make salads fast,
I do all the vegetables in a Cuisinart, trying to not over chop, then put the Cuisinart stem in with larger vegetable slicing attachment and feed the cooked chicken through it. Its a little finer and not as elegant as the hand chopped, but excluding chicken cooking time, I can do a double batch in 10mins (15?)
I made this for the first time this Summer and it was fantastic. I used a flavored rotisserie chicken and served it on tomato slices with romaine and garlic bread and everyone loved it. So simple, delicious and easy to make!
Tastes amazing! I loved how easy it was to come together. Perfect for the beach.
I love chicken salad and this is the best ever! When we grill chicken breasts for dinner I make chicken salad from the extra breasts for the next night. I can’t stop eating this. If you are a chicken salad lover this is THE ONE!!!!
Thank you, Jenn!!! 🙂
I am embarrassed that I have not reviewed any of the incredible recipes from Jenn. When a friend introduced me to this site, it opened up a whole new world of easy, delicious, no-fail recipes that I rely on for entertaining. I have made this chicken salad several times for friends (perfect for boating), and everyone thinks I bought it from a high-end deli. It is simple but full of flavor. I especially appreciate the generous amount of fresh dill.
Jenn, do you have a few suggestions for what to serve the salad on? Breads, rolls, etc. Love your recipes and detailed instructions! Thank you, Kathleen
Hi Kathleen, the options that come to mind are a hearty toasted whole grain sandwich bread, as a wrap, on a croissant, or for a low carb option, over greens. Hope that helps!
Delish!!
Delicious chicken salad recipe! I used the recipe for the poached chicken and loved it. Very simple and easy and leaves you with tender and moist chicken. I used dried herbs because that’s what I had on hand. Next time, I will try the fresh herbs – I’m sure they are better.
Delicious recipe!! And tastes even better on the second day after the flavors meld together. Made the recipe exactly as written but used poached chicken breasts (cut into smaller pieces when poaching then shredded) since that was what we had, and cut the dill by 1/3 since my husband doesn’t like too much dill flavor. Just had one sandwich for lunch and I’m ready for a second…