This Chicken Salad is the best classic recipe made in the traditional way with grapes and toasted almonds. There's also a variation made with dried cranberries perfect for the winter months as well.
2poundsboneless skinless chicken breastsor 4 bone in skin on chicken breasts, 4-5 cups chopped cooked chicken
1cupavocado oil mayonnaiseor mayo of your choice
2tbspDijon mustard
3tbspfreshly squeezed lemon juicefrom 1 lemon
1/2tspsea saltadd more or less to taste
1/4tspblack pepperadd more or less to taste
1cupfinely diced celery
1/2cupthinly sliced green onions
2tbspchopped fresh basiltarragon, or dill
2cupshalved red grapes10 ounces, or 1/2 cup roughly chopped dried cranberries
1/3cuptoasted sliced almondsor other nuts of choice, see notes
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350ºF and toast the sliced almonds 6-10 minutes or until golden brown. Increase the oven temperature to 400ºF.
Place the chicken on a parchment lined baking sheet and roast until the chicken is done in the center, or a thermometer reads 165ºF. Boneless skinless will take about 20-25 minutes, and bone in will take about 40 minutes.
When the chicken is done set it aside until it's cool enough to chop.
Meanwhile mix together the mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, and lemon juice. Add salt and pepper, and mix to combine.
Chop the slightly cooled chicken into small bite sized pieces and place it into a medium sized mixing bowl. Add the celery, green onions, and herbs along with the dressing. Tossing the dressing with the warm chicken helps the flavors to develop and the whole salad is tastier.
Mix to combine, then season to taste with more salt and pepper if needed. Then stir in the grapes and toasted almonds if you're eating the whole salad right away. If you know you'll be storing part of the chicken salad, serve the almonds separately.
Allow the chicken salad to sit in the fridge for 20-30 minutes if you have time to allow the flavors to develop, then serve.
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Notes
I like to toast my sliced almonds by placing them in a cast iron skillet in a thin single layer. Then toast them in a 350ºF oven until lightly golden brown, 6-10 minutes. You can also toast them over medium-low heat on the stove top, but you'll need to stir them often to toast evenly and not burn.