This 6-ingredient Whole30 Chicken Salad is one of my fast and easy Whole30 lunch go-to’s! Great to pack for lunch on the go. It’s simple to make ahead and take with you to work, school, or on a trip.
This recipe came from Gramma Carol – my husband’s grandmother. We often would visit her lakeside apartment in the summer. She would take us outside for a picnic and you could count on this chicken salad making an appearance. It’s so easy yet delicious!
Why We Love This Whole30 Chicken Salad
Most people don’t have a lot of time (any?) to make lunch. Often it’s leftovers or something that’s quick and easy. It only uses 6 ingredients, plus salt and pepper. And, it only takes 10 minutes to make!
This chicken salad is Whole30, Paleo, gluten-free, dairy-free, with nut-free and Keto options. It’s delicious in a butter lettuce wrap, on a bed of lettuce like a salad, or just straight up! I love using butter lettuce for my lettuce wraps, as it’s a soft lettuce that wraps better than other kinds. Or, these Coconut Wraps are also Whole30 and Paleo compatible and an easy wrap choice!
Tips and Tricks
- Really need it to come together quickly? Use canned chicken, as there are multiple Whole30-compliant brands.
- If I’m cooking chicken breasts, it’s fast and easy in your Instant Pot! Read this blog post on how to quickly steam and shred chicken in your Instant Pot.
- I also use my little Ninja chopper (pictured below) to quickly and finely dice my celery and onion.
Such a great fast protein option that (if you have a cooler) travels well too – it goes with us on many of our adventures!
Ingredients
- Shredded Chicken – See tip above for how I steam and shred my chicken quickly in an Instant Pot. Also, you can use canned chicken if that works for you.
- Celery – See tip above for how I get it finely diced easily!
- Onion – See tip above for how I get it finely diced easily!
- Pecans or Walnuts – I always prefer it with pecans, but walnuts work too if that’s more accessible to you. Or, you can use sunflower seeds for a crunch if you need nut-free.
- Grapes – I usually use red seedless grapes, as they are sweeter than green.
- Mayo – I always make my own mayo! It literally takes only 5 minutes and saves so much money. You can find my Whole30 5-Minute Mayo recipe here. Or, you can buy a Whole30 Approved mayo like this Primal Kitchen Mayo I get at my local Walmart.
Want more Whole30 Cold Lunch Options?
I had so many requests for Whole30 Cold Lunches, I made a whole blog post of them! Click HERE to find 10 of my favorite Whole30 cold lunches that I actually enjoy cold. A fantastic resource for your Whole30 travels or just simple meals at home.
Whole30 Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound boneless skinless chicken breast cooked and shredded about 2 cups; can use canned
- 2 tablespoons celery finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons yellow onion finely chopped
- 3-4 tablespoons chopped pecans chopped, can use walnuts or pepitas for nut-free
- 10-12 red grapes quartered
- 1/3 cup mayo enough to hold it together, make sure it's compatible if on Whole30
Instructions
- Mix chicken, celery, onion, nuts, and grapes in a medium bowl. Add mayo until it reaches your desired moisture and salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
Nutrition
I made this for my meal prep for the week and it was delicious. No nuts because of a nut allergy and not a fan of sunflower seeds, so left that out. But even without, it was amazing! Definitely making again.
I’m so happy it was an easy meal prep hit you want to make again! Thank you for the review.
I love making this recipe! I usually use red onion – it is the best!
I’m so glad this is one you love on the regular! Thank you for the review!
Yum!!!!
Can’t wait to try this! We love the Costco chicken salad, but it’s made with honey and just today I was looking for a whole30 option. Yum!
So easy and SO good! Loved using the food processor to get the celery and onion into small pieces. Ate it every day for lunch this week!
Happy to hear this was an easy and delicious win for you! Agreed, the food processor to chop the veggies makes this come together so fast. Glad you loved it! Thanks for the review.
Delicious!! Easy and yummy! I made my chicken in the crockpot, then shredded it in the Kitchen Aid!
I’m so glad you loved this easy one! And big YES to shredding chicken in the kitchen aid, so much faster that way. Thank you!
I chose to cook the chicken in broth with a hint of rosemary and leave out the onion. So yummy with the pecans, grapes and celery.
This recipe is so quick and easy. We use this as one of our “take along” meals for road trips or day trips. Pair it with her homemade Mayo recipe and it’s amazing and even more budget friendly.
I agree – great for trips and can be so budget-friendly. Thank you!
Delicious! Used chunky chicken this time, will try with shredded next time for a different texture! Yum!
Happy you enjoyed it, thank you!
We make this at least every other week…so easy and kids love it! I add a little dill and the juice of half a lemon as well. We have also used apples when we were out of grapes. Last week we used both! Thanks again! .
I love that this is a kid win too, my favorite kind of win! And great notes on other flavors you’ve enjoyed in this, thank you!
This is such an easy and budget friendly meal! I used Primal Kitchen’s pesto mayo for an added flavour. All of the flavours together are magical and I seriously look forward to making this on butter lettuce “wraps”. I’ve had it for the past two weeks and am planning it on making it again this week! This time I will try the canned chicken for an added budget friendly way. Thanks so much for this recipe!
I’m so happy you have been loving this on repeat! What a delicious idea to do this with the pesto mayo, yummm. Thank you!
This was delicious! I followed the recipe exactly and served it on slices of cucumber. My kids liked it too. Will definitely be adding this into my rotation!
I’m so happy this is one you want to put on the rotation, thank you!
So good! Very light and fluffy!