Chicken Waldorf Salad is tender chunks of chicken mixed with celery, grapes, apples, toasted walnuts, and mayonnaise. This delectable recipe is one of our favorite chicken salad recipes. You can serve it on a bed of spring greens, stuffed in a sun-ripened tomato, or stuffed in a whole wheat pita.
The Best Waldorf Chicken Salad
This refreshing and healthy Chicken Waldorf Salad with Grapes is perfect for a light lunch or a delicious side dish. This easy recipe is full of flavor and texture from juicy grapes, crisp apples, tender chicken, and crunchy nuts.
It is scrumptious, easy, quick to prepare, and fancy enough for company. This delectable salad comes together in about ten to fifteen minutes. This recipe calls for already-cooked rotisserie chicken, which you can purchase at almost any grocery store or club warehouse, such as Costco or Sam.
Ingredients Needed
- Apple: Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, or Fuji
- Lemon juice: fresh is always best
- Chicken: cooked rotisserie chicken or see below on how to poach the chicken
- Celery: for a little crunch and texture
- Grapes: just make sure they are seedless. I prefer red, but you can use green
- Nuts: walnuts, pecans, or pistachios
- Mayonnaise: I love Duke’s mayo
How do you make Chicken Waldorf Salad?
First, grab a large bowl for mixing. Cut the chicken, celery, and grapes. Toast the walnuts in the oven for about five to seven minutes. Cut the apples and toss with the lemon juice in the bowl. Add the chicken, celery, grapes, toasted walnuts, and mayo to the bowl and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve over leaf lettuce, a thin bed of spring greens, or with crackers.
Variations and Substitutions
- If you don’t like walnuts or have them on hand, use other nuts, such as toasted pecans or sliced or slivered toasted almonds.
- Are you looking for a lighter version of Chicken Waldorf Salad? Substitute half of the mayo with non-fat Greek yogurt.
- Do you want to dress it up even more? Add half a cup of dried cranberries or dried cherries.
- Do you want to sweeten it up a little bit? Add two tablespoons of honey.
- Want to make a wrap or a sandwich with the chicken salad? It is delicious on pumpernickel, rye, or European whole grain.
- You can substitute seedless green grapes for seedless red grapes.
- You can use any crisp apple like Granny Smith, Cripps Sweet, Fuji, Honeycrisp, or Gala.
Can you substitute poached chicken?
Yes, you most certainly can. Add a couple of boneless skinless chicken breasts to a pot, cover up halfway with chicken broth, and add parsley, a small stalk of celery, a little piece of onion, and a clove of garlic. Bring to a boil, then turn to simmer.
Simmer uncovered for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cover for fifteen minutes. Now, remove the chicken breasts from the chicken broth, and you can cube or shred the chicken and use it in this salad and other salads.
This fantastic salad is easy, quick to fix, delectable and dependable. Put the ingredients on your shopping list today, and let me know what you think!
More Chicken Recipes
Chicken Waldorf Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 Granny Smith apple cored peeled and diced
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 cups chopped rotisserie chicken
- 2 stalks celery chopped
- 1 cup red seedless grapes halved
- ½ cup walnuts toasted and chopped
- ⅔ cup mayonnaise
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a bowl, combine the apple and lemon juice. Add chicken, celery, grapes, toasted walnuts and mayonnaise. Stir to combine. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
- Serve on a bed of spring greens or leaf lettuce.
Notes
- Don’t like walnuts or have them on hand. Use other nuts like toasted pecans or sliced or slivered toasted almonds.
- Are you looking for a lighter version of Chicken Waldorf Salad? Substitute half of the mayo with non-fat Greek yogurt.
- Do you want to dress it up even a little more? Add one-half cup of dried cranberries or dried cherries.
- Do you want to sweeten it up a little bit? Add two tablespoons of honey.
- Want to make a wrap or a sandwich with the chicken salad? It is delicious on pumpernickel, rye, or European whole grain.
- You can substitute seedless green grapes for the seedless red grapes.
- You can use any kind of crisp apple like Granny Smith, Cripps Sweet, Fuji, Honeycrisp, or Gala.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
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Va Anne Rome
I love finding a new recipe to try. I’m always so scared I am going to mess it up somehow. This looks easy enough for me though. Thanks!
Beth Pierce
That is a super easy delicious recipe! Enjoy!
Alexandra Cook
Wow, so delicious and easy recipe to make for the kids. I am sure my kids will love it like and will make their favorite.
Erica
This sounds like a quick and easy salad that can really be a whole meal.
Jasmine Hewitt
this looks really good! I like trying different chicken recipes
Lindsey
You can not beat a good salad, with Spring now officially here I’ll be eati more of these.
Lisa
I really love chicken waldorf salad but haven’t made it for a while. I’ll be trying out your recipe, it looks great.
Kami
This is so good, I’ve made a similar recipe and it’s definitely a favorite at our house.
Danielle
my boyfriend is a huge lover of chicken salad. this sounds absolutely perfect for him!
Katie
Yum! My mom used to make this and I haven’t had it in years. Thanks for the idea.
Beth Pierce
My pleasure Katie! I hope you enjoy it!
Heather
I’m not sure I’ve ever tried this before. I don’t eat meat and I’m not a huge fan of fruit and mayo together.
Deanna
Oh I love chicken waldorf. I was introduced to it when I worked at a European deli when I was younger. Your recipe sounds perfect.
Craig Silva
This looks so delicious. Love that there are granny smith apples in there. Would be so good on a pumpernickel bagel.
Beth Pierce
That sounds absolutely amazing! Delicious!
Stacie
Waldorf salad is one of my favorite things to serve my family. It’s a complete meal in and of itself, which means I save time and I get something super tasty on the table.
Monidipa Dutta
This looks yummy, tasty. I am pinning it so that I can make it on Sunday.
Beth Pierce
Thanks so much Monidipa. We love it so I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
Doris
Can the celery be replaced with something else?
Beth Pierce
I am sure you could replace with green pepper or small chopped broccoli.
Roshelle
“Two stacks” of celery – please explain. Is that to stalks?
Beth Pierce
Thanks for the heads up Roshelle! It is stalks. I am going to correct right now. Small puppy in the house has everything turned upside down.
Lena Williams
That means two pieces off the whole thing. Insted of lemon to keep the apples from turning brown yuo can buy a container called Fruit Fresh its in the canning aisle at the grocery store. I use it on bananas in my banana pudding it keeps the bananas from turning black. Awesome idea.