Rotisserie Chicken Salad Recipe

This rotisserie chicken salad is made with savory chicken, crisp celery, juicy grapes, and crunchy almonds.

And it’s all smothered in a rich and creamy dressing. Yum! The best part about this salad is how easy and affordable it is to make.

And it’s perfect inside a croissant sandwich, on top of a bed of greens, or inside a freshly-picked tomato!

Best of all, you can whip it up in 15 minutes or less.

This is my go-to chicken salad whenever I need something quick, easy, and healthy. So give it a try – I know you’ll love it too.

Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make this yummy chicken salad:

• Rotisserie chicken. Pick up your favorite rotisserie chicken from Walmart or another grocery store. Or use the leftovers from last night’s dinner (if you had enough left over). No need to reheat it; it tastes best cold in this recipe.

• Celery. Celery provides crunch, garden-fresh flavor, and plenty of nutrients.

• Grapes. Be sure to get seedless grapes, preferably red ones. You could use green grapes in this recipe, but they wouldn’t taste as good. Red grapes provide the perfect sweet-n-savory contrast to the salad.

• Almonds. You can purchase pre-sliced almonds on your local grocery store’s nut or baking aisle.

• Fresh parsley. The key word here is fresh. Don’t use dried parsley; it doesn’t have the same kick.

• Salt. Add more or less to suit your tastes.

• Mayo. Along with the heavy whipping cream, mayo acts as the salad dressing. It provides a bright tanginess that pairs well with everything else.

• Heavy whipping cream. This, too, is part of the dressing.

How to Make Rotisserie Chicken Salad

If you’re looking for a quick and easy recipe, you can’t beat this one. There’s no cooking involved and minimal prep work.

1. Prepare the chicken. Shred the rotisserie chicken using two forks until you have about 2 1/2 cups.

2. Whip the cream. Whip the heavy whipping cream in a medium bowl. Continue until it forms soft peaks.

3. Combine. Add the diced chicken and the other ingredients to the whipped cream. Mix well.

4. Chill. Place the chicken salad in the fridge to chill for at least a couple of hours. Then, serve on bread, lettuce wraps, or however you like. Enjoy!

Tips & Tricks

• Select the correct cream. Be sure to use heavy whipping cream instead of regular cream. Heavy cream has more milk fat content, making it hold its shape longer. Don’t use Cool Whip in place of heavy cream, either. It’ll make the salad too sweet.

• Toast the almonds. Toast them for 4-5 minutes to bring out their rich, earthy flavor. 

• Lighten it up. While it’s called a salad, this recipe is hardly on the healthy side. But you can make it a little lighter by using plain yogurt instead of mayo and fat-free whipping cream. 

• Don’t skip the chill time. While it’s tempting to eat this bad boy right immediately after making, give it some time to chill. This will allow the salad’s flavors to marinade further and therefore taste better. 

• Use cold chicken. Refrigerated leftovers are great. If your chicken is still warm, let it sit on the counter or in the fridge for a while before making the salad.

• Use all of the chicken. Don’t just stick to the breast. Use the dark and light meat to give your salad that wonderful savory flavor.

Chicken Salad Variations

• Vary the meat. This recipe calls for rotisserie chicken, but leftover roasted chicken or turkey will work fine too. Try to stay away from canned chicken, though.

• Make it zesty. Add a little Dijon mustard and lemon juice. Those two ingredients make a big difference!

• Don’t be afraid to customize. You can add as many toppings and herbs as you want. Some good additions include avocados, candied cashews, apples, walnuts, pecans, raisins, cucumbers, green onions, thyme, rosemary, and dried cranberries.

• Add some heat. Give it a little spice by adding some curry or cayenne pepper.

• BBQ chicken salad. Instead of mayo, use 2-3 tablespoons of BBQ sauce.

How To Serve Rotisserie Chicken Salad

We typically use rotisserie chicken salad as a sandwich filling, and for good reason.

The creamy dish just tastes so delicious with bread. Whether it’s regular white bread or delectable pretzel buns, you can’t go wrong.

This salad also tastes incredible as a filling to a tortilla wrap or a topping to your favorite chips or crackers.

Of course, you won’t need to know how to reheat rotisserie chicken here. This salad needs to be served cold!

But that doesn’t mean you can’t serve it in a warm croissant!

Or if you’re trying to go easy on the carbs, you can wrap it in lettuce instead! It’s just as good, minus all the guilt.

Storage & Freezing

Rotisserie chicken salad will last for 3-5 days in the fridge. Just be sure that it’s in an airtight container so it doesn’t absorb the scents and flavors of nearby food. 

Unfortunately, though, you cannot freeze this chicken salad. It just doesn’t do well in the freezer. The creamy dressing will separate if frozen and thawed.

Check out my post on freezing chicken salad for more info on freezing other types of chicken salad, though!