Homemade Chicken Salad – Simple, Delicious & Customizable

A homemade chicken salad recipe that is simple to make and perfect for enjoying as a sandwich, on crackers or lettuce, or on its own.

This is a simple homemade chicken salad recipe that features shredded or chopped precooked chicken, celery, onion, and grapes coated in a creamy dressing. It’s a great way to use up any leftover or rotisserie chicken you have on hand from a previous meal.

It’s easy to make as well. All it takes is a little time to chop the main ingredients, stir in the dressing, mix it all together, and you are good to go!

The nice thing about this chicken salad is that you can really tailor the recipe to match your personal preferences. Don’t like red grapes? No problem! Swap them out for diced apples or dried cranberries, or leave them out altogether. Prefer a bit more crunch? Add in a few chopped walnuts or almonds. This recipe really makes for an excellent base that you can go off of from there.

The Main Ingredients For Homemade Chicken Salad

• Chicken – The best part of this recipe is that you can use pre-cooked chicken. I usually purchase a container of already-shredded chicken from our local grocery store’s deli. It saves me from having to cook and shred the chicken myself! (Even though that is a simple process to do.)
• Celery – The celery helps to not only add a bit of flavor but also provides a nice crunch element in the salad.
• Onion – The onion also adds a bit of crunch as well as a depth of flavor. Use either a red or a yellow onion here.
• Red Grapes – There is just something about the combination of this chicken salad with grapes! The pop of sweetness and juice that the grapes provide really put this salad over the top in my opinion!
• Dressing – The dressing consists of a base of mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. You can use either Dijon for an added depth of flavor or plain old mustard, like we do, since that is usually what we have on hand.

Optional Ingredient Swaps Or Additions

• Add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of chopped or slivered almonds, walnuts, or pecans for even more crunch and texture.
• If you aren’t a fan of grapes, swap them out for diced and peeled apples or even dried fruit like raisins or cranberries. Or, leave this ingredient out completely if you prefer.
• If you don’t have a red or yellow onion on hand, swap it for shallots or scallions.
• In addition to the garlic powder, salt, and pepper, add a small amount of dried dill weed to slightly alter the flavor of the dressing.
• Swap vinegar for the lemon juice if you don’t have any on hand. Use half the amount (i.e., 1 tsp) since the vinegar packs a stronger punch.
• For a lighter dressing, swap half of the mayonnaise for plain Greek yogurt. This will give the dressing a slight twang.

Instructions For Homemade Chicken Salad

Cook & Chop The Chicken

The “hardest” part of the recipe (if you can really call it that!) is to prep the main ingredients. Start by preparing the chicken first.

If needed, cook the chicken or rotisserie chicken until it reaches an internal temperature of 165º Fahrenheit (F). Allow the chicken to cool.

Take your cooked chicken and roughly chop or shred it into smaller pieces. To make the shredding process go a lot easier, I use this Chicken Shredder Tool Twist (Product Link). I don’t know why, but shredding chicken is something I loathe, and this tool makes it tolerable!

After shredding the chicken, chop it into bite-sized pieces if desired. Place the chicken in a large bowl.

Prep The Additional Ingredients

Next, wash and dry one to two stalks of celery. Chop the celery into small pieces. If you have a large rib of celery, cut it lengthwise down the middle before chopping. Add the celery to your bowl with the chicken.

Now it’s time for the onion. Dice the onion into small pieces. (Or, do as I do and buy a couple of onions when they are on sale. Dice all the onions at once, then place them into small freezer bags in 1/2 cup amounts. When a recipe calls for onion, you can simply pull one of the bags from the freezer without needing to chop it each time.) Add the onion to the bowl.

Lastly, wash the grapes and cut them either in half or into fourths. The size is totally up to you. If I have larger grapes, then I do fourths, but halves work just fine. Add the grapes to the bowl and set aside while you prepare the dressing.

Make The Dressing And Combine

In a smaller bowl, prepare the dressing. Add the mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and garlic powder to the bowl and mix well until it is smooth and creamy.

Pour the dressing over the other ingredients in the larger bowl. Mix well until all the ingredients are coated in the dressing. Cover the bowl with a tight lid and refrigerate until you are ready for serving.

While you can enjoy it immediately, I suggest making it an hour or two before serving. This allows the flavors to meld together. You can also prepare the chicken salad up to two days in advance. Any leftovers keep well in your refrigerator for up to two days.

Enjoy the chicken salad with toasted sandwich bread, croissants, pita pockets, English muffin bread, bagels, etc. It also works well on crackers or using leaf lettuce as the “bread”. Or, do like my husband does and enjoy it right from the bowl!