This super-fast chicken salad with cranberries and walnuts is all about chopping and mixing a few ingredients. Tender chicken, crunchy walnuts and apples, sweet cranberries, and a tangy, creamy dressing โ the perfect fall salad.
One of our favorite ways of using leftover rotisserie chicken, this recipe for chicken salad with cranberries and walnuts checks all the boxes:
- Delicious
- Super quick
- Cheap
- Makes use of leftovers
- Filling
- Healthy
- Crowd-pleaser
Ingredients: 11 + spices
Working time: 15 minutes
You can make it for a quick lunch or dinner, pack it in a lunch box to take to school or the office or serve it at a picnic or a potluck party. Try another delicious potluck salad: Purple Cabbage Salad. Or make a delicious Dill Pickle Egg Salad.
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Recipe ingredients and substitutes
Chicken: Either leftover from roast or rotisserie chicken or freshly cooked breast.
Dried cranberries. You can substitute raisins, dried currants, or dried cherries for cranberries. If you bought a large bag, you can also make Cranberry Sauce Using Dried Cranberries or the Pumpkin and Couscous Salad.
Walnuts: Replace walnuts with pecans, pine nuts, or almonds.
Celery stalks: Leave them out if you don't like them.
Green or red apple: A crisp, juicy sort. Try Pink Lady, Fuji, Granny Smith, and so on. Replace apples with seedless, halved grapes; they are delicious as well.
Red onion. White or yellow onion or green onions are also ok.
Fresh parsley: You can also add other chopped herbs to the salad. How about fresh chives, dill, or basil?
Dressing: Mayonnaise, Greek yogurt, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper. The recipe doesnโt need a lot of mayonnaise, but you can make it even skinnier by using low-fat mayonnaise or only Greek yogurt. Sour cream is also an option. Replace Dijon mustard with any other mustard you like; grainy mustard is excellent as well.
See the recipe card for detailed instructions and full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to prepare the chicken for the salad?
The fastest way to make this chicken salad with cranberries is with rotisserie or leftover meat. Either youโve bought the cooked bird or roasted it yourself; if you have leftovers, you will be ready in about 10-15 minutes, depending on your chopping skills. However, if you donโt have leftovers, making this salad wonโt take ages, either.
- Poach: place the breast in a small pot. Cover with chicken stock or water and a little salt. Bring to a boil, turn down the heat, and simmer for about 5 minutes or until the internal temperature of 165ยฐF (75ยฐC) is reached. If you donโt have a meat thermometer, cut the breast in the middle; it should be white, not pink or red.
- Cook the chicken from frozen: place the frozen breast into a small pot. Cover with stock or water and a little salt. Bring to a boil, turn the heat down, and simmer gently for about 20 minutes or until the internal temperature is reached.
- Skillet: Heat a little oil in a nonstick or cast-iron skillet and cook the breast for about 20-25 minutes, turning it often.
How to make cranberry walnut chicken salad?
Step #1: If using freshly cooked meat, let it cool first. Shredd or chop it.
Step #2: Chop celery, apples, cranberries, walnuts, onion, and parsley.
Step #3: Mix all dressing ingredients. Adjust the taste by adding more lemon juice, salt, and pepper.
Step #4: Mix all the ingredients in a larger bowl. Cover and chill for about one hour before serving.
Tips
Roast the walnuts for even more crunch and flavor. Roast them in a dry skillet on medium heat. Stand by and shake the pan often; the nuts can burn within seconds if you are not paying attention. Transfer them immediately to a large plate and let them cool. If you let them cool in the pan, they will continue cooking and eventually turn too dark.
Chopping: The cranberry walnut chicken salad should be chunky, yet the meat pieces should be bite-sized, small enough to spread on a slice of bread without falling off it.
Make the salad with leftover turkey instead of chicken.
Storage
Refrigerate for 3-4 days in an airtight container. The fact that it keeps so well in the fridge allows you to make it ahead of time if you need it for a party or to take on a picnic.
I would not freeze the leftovers; mayonnaise and some of the fresh ingredients donโt keep well in the freezer.
How to serve?
Serve the chicken salad with cranberries and walnuts as it is with a few slices of sourdough or crusty baguette. For a low-carb dinner, leave the bread; the meal will still be completely satisfying.
One of my favorite ways of serving this dish is with crispbread, lettuce leaves, sliced tomatoes, and cucumbers - a delicious and super healthy dinner.
Make sandwiches using good bread, dinner rolls, or croissants. Serve it to guests with crackers on the side. Try our Turkey and Avocado Sandwiches or the Cottage Cheese Toast next!
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๐ Recipe
Chicken Salad with Cranberries and Walnuts
Ingredients
- 9 oz cooked chicken about 2 cups, Notes 1, 2
- ยผ cup dried cranberries
- ยผ cup walnuts chopped
- ยผ cup celery chopped
- ยฝ green apple Note 2
- ยผ cup red onion chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1-2 teaspoon lemon juice more to taste
- ยผ teaspoon fine sea salt more to taste
- ยผ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Chop the chicken into bite-sized pieces, not too large. Roughly chop cranberries and walnuts. Dice celery and apple. Chop the onion and the parsley finely. Mix everything in a bowl.9 oz cooked chicken/ 2 cups + ยผ cup dried cranberries/ 30 g + ยผ cup walnuts/ 30 g + ยผ cup celery/ 25 g + ยฝ green apple + ยผ cup red onion/ 40 g + 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
- Dressing: Mix all ingredients in a small bowl. Adjust the taste with salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Add to the salad and mix to coat the ingredients.3 tablespoons mayonnaise + 3 tablespoons Greek yogurt + 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard +1-2 teaspoon lemon juice + ยผ teaspoon fine sea salt + ยผ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Refrigerate for at least one hour before serving.
Notes
- Rotisserie or leftover chicken.
- Fresh chicken: If using fresh chicken breast, see the blog post for detailed cooking suggestions. You can poach it for 5 minutes or pan-fry it for 20-25. You can also boil it from frozen for about 20 minutes. Always check that the chicken is cooked through; the internal temperature should be 165ยฐF/ 74ยฐC.
- Apples: You can use red apples, a crisp sort.
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