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This Whole30 Chicken Salad recipe is made with chicken and SIMPLE ingredients like mayonnaise and green onions to provide tons of flavor and none of the fluff. Five ingredients and ready in 30 minutes or less, it's a great recipe to prep at the beginning of the week and enjoy all week long.
True story: I’m addicted to this whole30 chicken salad recipe. Well, technically I’m addicted to all chicken salad — yes, really.
I know that if and when you're doing a Whole30, it's important to have a ton of variety, especially for lunches. This chicken salad may just be tied for my favorites, along with my avocado tuna salad and these Asian chicken lettuce wraps.
Why you'll love this recipe
- It requires minimal ingredients, meaning it includes all of the staples with none of the fluff.
- It does NOT include grapes. I know everyone has their own favorite way to make chicken salad, but my favorite way is without grapes.
- It's great for meal prepping and the recipe can easily be doubled in quantity so you can eat it all week long.
Ingredient notes
- Chicken breast - Make sure to use organic and free range chicken
- Whole30-compliant mayonnaise - At this point, all groceries should sell at least one avocado oil mayo. Make sure to read the label to see if it's Whole30 compliant. I tend to reach for Primal Kitchen.
- Celery and/or shallot - You can use one or the other, or both! I like my chicken salad onion-y, so I found the combination of celery and shallot to be perfect. If you have to choose just one, go for the celery.
- Avocado - Totally optional, but I think it adds a little "oomph" to this salad, along with healthy fats and makes this recipe even more filling.
Step-by-step instructions
Step 1: Cook the chicken. There are numerous ways you can do this, but for this recipe, I like to boil it. If you've never boiled chicken, it's one of the easiest ways to cook it because you don't have to keep an eye on it, and it only takes 20 minutes or so. Alternatively, you can cook it in the oven or in a skillet over the stove if you prefer.
Step 2: Shred the chicken. Once it's cooked, use two forks to shred the chicken, then place it into a large bowl.
Step 3: Add all remaining ingredients EXCEPT the green onion and avocado to the bowl with the chicken and stir so everything is combined.
Step 4: Add the green onion and diced avocado and eat everything right out of the bowl! Or, place everything on romaine or Boston lettuce leaves and eat it that way.
Tips & FAQs
- Buy organic chicken: Ok, this isn’t 100% necessary, but if you’re trying to follow Whole30 pretty closely, you’re going to want to choose organic meat when possible.
- Boil the chicken over the stovetop: If you haven’t tried this method for cooking chicken, you’re missing out. It’s one of the simplest and fastest ways to cook chicken when you’re just planning on shredded it up, like in a pulled chicken sandwich or, in this case, chicken salad.
- Serve with salad: My favorite way to enjoy Whole30 meat recipes is over salad. Or, you could use lettuce wraps instead! If you're NOT doing Whole30, serve it on sourdough bread (so good!).
How long will this last?
The chicken salad should stay fresh for up to 5 days, as long as you store it in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.
Do I have to include the shallot?
Nope! The salad already uses celery and green onion, so the shallot isn't 100% necessary. But, I think it gives it a little added punch and I really enjoyed it with the shallot, which is why I included it in the recipe.
More Whole30 recipes
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Whole30 Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 1 lb. chicken breasts
- 1/2 tsp salt & black pepper
- 1/3 cup avocado oil mayonnaise
- 1/3 cup stalk celery diced
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp green onion or more
- 1 tbsp shallot minced, optional
- 1 avocado diced, optional
- 1 head romaine lettuce for serving
Instructions
- Place chicken in a large saucepan filled with water; bring to a boil then boil chicken for 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked.
- Use two forks to shred chicken, then place chicken into a large bowl.
- Add the salt, pepper, mayo, celery, shallot (optional) and lemon juice to that same bowl, then stir until the chicken is coated.
- Scoop chicken mixture onto romaine lettuce, then sprinkle with green onions. Add diced avocado and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
UPDATE NOTE: This post was originally published in May 2019. It was updated with new text and photos in May 2020.
