This grape and apple chicken salad is a quick and easy meal that features a creamy dressing, delicious fruit, savory chicken, and an extra special crunch. It’s the best chicken salad recipe ever!
The first time I had chicken salad was when I worked at a bakery in high school.
Kind of a weird place to eat chicken salad, but it was because we made sandwiches for customers with the bakery’s fresh croissants.
That chicken salad had celery and a peppery Parmesan dressing.
It was very delicious, but after sampling a variety of chicken salad recipes over the years, I’ve discovered that I prefer a fruity chicken salad.
So I created this version with grapes, strawberries, and apples.
It’s savory, sweet, creamy, and has the perfect amount of crunch. Your family will love this grap and apple chicken salad!
Step-by-Step Instructions
Roughly cut 2-3 cooked chicken breasts until you get 3 cups of chicken.
Chop grapes, strawberries, and apples to get 1 cup of each fruit.
Combine chicken and fruit in a medium size mixing bowl along with 1/4 cup dried cranberries and 1/4 cup sliced almonds.
Add 1 cup mayonnaise to the bowl and stir well to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve chicken salad on your favorite bread.
Recipe Tips and Substitutions
You can use a variety of chicken for this chicken salad recipe. I’ve used shredded chicken cooked in an Instant Pot, rotisserie chicken, and even canned chicken!
This recipe is very customizable! Sometimes I’ll only do one or two of the fruits depending on what I have on hand.
You can also omit the sliced almonds or even swap them out for cashews or even candied pecans.
I find the easiest way to chop the apples is to use an apple cutter first and then cut 2-3 slices at once into smaller pieces.
For a healthy take on this chicken salad recipe, use Greek yogurt or any of these substitutes for mayonnaise!
For an extra crunch, add some celery or one of these celery substitutes.
I love to serve this recipe on croissants, ciabatta rolls, or wheat bread. You can also use lettuce leaves, apple slices, or sliced cucumbers!
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FAQs
As I mentioned above, you can leave the grapes out of this chicken salad and still have a very delicious dish thanks to the apples and strawberries. But if you’d like to replace the grapes in this (or another recipe) you can try:
-Pears
-Raspberries
-Blueberries
-Chickpeas
-Grape tomatoes
-Candied pecans
-Cucumber
-Celery
That depends on what you use for the base or dressing.
Full fat mayonnaise will obviously provide more calories and saturated fat per serving. If you’re looking for a healthier alternative to mayo, you can use Greek yogurt or a low-fat mayonnaise.
This chicken salad recipe is full of fruits, nuts, and lean protein and can be a healthy lunch or dinner when served on lettuce leaves or apple slices.
3-5 days when stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Be sure to only leave the chicken salad out long enough to serve, because any chicken salad left at room temperature for more than an hour should be discarded.
Yes! This recipe is best served cold and is prepared with cold ingredients.
Cooked chicken is perfectly safe to eat cold as long as it was properly cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit, cooled quickly, and stored correctly (in an airtight container or vacuum sealed).
I hope your family loves this chicken salad with grapes recipe! If you make it, be sure to take a picture and tag me on Instagram with @ashcroftfamilytable and use the hashtag #ashcroftfamilytable!
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Grape and Apple Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 3 cups cooked chicken, roughly chopped
- 1 cup chopped grapes
- 1 cup chopped apples,
- 1 cup chopped strawberries
- ¼ cup dried cranberries
- ¼ cup sliced almonds
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- Salt and pepper
- 8 buns, or 16 slices of bread
Instructions
- Add chicken, fruit, dried cranberries, and sliced almonds to a medium-size mixing bowl.
- Stir mayonnaise with the rest of the ingredients and mix well to combine. Sprinkle salt and pepper to taste.
- Create a sandwich with bread and 3/4 cup of the chicken salad.