Almond Butter Chicken Salad
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Published Jul 29, 2016, Updated Aug 02, 2023
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This almond butter chicken salad skips the mayo and instead uses an almond butter and apple cider vinegar dressing!
I’ve shared a variety of healthy chicken salad recipes including a Greek yogurt chicken salad, this tasty Waldorf chicken salad and even a curry chicken salad, but today we’re switching things up a bit!
Almond Butter in Chicken Salad?!?
I know you’re probably thinking I’ve gone a little crazy with my nut butter obsession, but almond butter in chicken salad works… trust me on this one!
Combine almond butter with a little oil, some apple cider vinegar and mustard and you’ve got yourself a creamy nutty dressing to use instead of mayo!
Think of how peanut dressing is used in Thai or Vietnamese cuisine… now it doesn’t seem so weird, right? Even if it does, you certainly can’t knock it ’til you try it.
Making Shredded Chicken
Before I go into more details about this delicious almond butter chicken salad creation, let’s talk about shredded chicken in general.
I’ve recently discovered the magic of making large batch of shredded chicken early in the week and using it for a bunch of different meals.
And guess what? Making shredded chicken is SO easy!
I usually grill my chicken breasts (especially during the summer) but you can also make slow cooker shredded chicken or even cook the chicken in a saucepan.
Once the chicken is cooked you simply let it cool and shred it using 2 forks or your hands. Another super simple option… buy a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken!
Almond Butter Dressing
The almond butter dressing is rich and creamy (like my chili almond dressing) and it makes a great sub for mayo in this chicken salad recipe!
The salad also has a ton of tasty add-ins like red onion, celery, grapes, raisins and chopped almonds. It’s perfect because you’ve got some sweetness in there, as well as, a little crunch.
How to Serve Almond Butter Chicken Salad
It’s super easy to toss together and can be served on it’s own, over salad, in lettuce wraps or on sandwich bread. I did lettuce wraps because they’re light, fresh and lovely on a summer day when it’s literally too hot to even think about toasting bread.
Of course, you can always pile the chicken salad on top of a bed of greens as well. This option is probably ideal if you’re packing the salad for lunch considering lettuce wraps aren’t the most portable thing in the world.
More Ways to Use Shredded Chicken:
More Protein-Packed Salads:
- Tuna Salad
- Turkey Salad
- Curried Avocado Egg Salad
- Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad
- Salmon Salad
- Rotisserie Chicken Salad
If you make this almond butter chicken salad, please be sure to leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how it turns out. Your feedback is so helpful for the EBF team and other EBF readers.
Almond Butter Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cups shredded chicken
- 2 Tablespoons almond butter
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup celery, chopped
- ½ cup red onion, diced
- ⅓ cup grapes, halved
- ¼ cup raisins
- 2 Tablespoons roasted almonds, chopped
Instructions
- Make dressing: whisk together almond butter, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, mustard and salt in a small bowl.
- Combine: Add shredded chicken, celery, red onion, grapes, raisins and almonds into a large bowl and toss to combine. Add dressing and continue to toss until everything is coated. Serve right away or place in the fridge to chill before serving.
- Serve: Serve in lettuce cups, over salad or on bread.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I hate, with a passion, shredding chicken. HOWEVER, I now make a lot more recipes using shredded chicken because I found the best trick ever. When chicken is done cooking, and while it’s still hot, take a hand mixer, and “mix” (AKA Shred) away! It’s seriously the best kitchen hack ever. Sorry if this has been mentioned before. Love your blog 🙂
Someone else did mention this, BUT I still haven’t tried it so I’m glad you mentioned it as well. It gives me another reminder that I need to try it soon!! Thanks, Briana.
So your photos show diced red onion but your recipe fails to mention onion. I think onion is definitely needed and will probably add some innow after the fact. I’m a Vidalia gal though.
So sorry for the mistake. Red onion is definitely needed for the recipe. Just added it!
Best chicken salad ever! I have made it several times and it has become a family favorite! Thanks for all the great recipes!
Ahhh! This makes me so happy to hear, Pam! Thanks for coming back to leave a comment and star rating.
Made this weekend to take out in the boat and we loved it! So yummy. I used cranberries and pepitas. Will be on repeat for meal prep!
Woo!! So glad it was a hit, Liz! I love the addition of the cranberries and pepitas, sounds delish. Thanks for the review!
Rating this 5 stars because it doesn’t use canola or soybean oil, which are ingredients in so many recipes using mayonaise. Question: does anyone know if I could use an immersion blender to blend this recipe? Thanks so much for the recipe.
Hey Emily – I’m sure you could, but I haven’t tried it so I’m not sure how the salad will turn out. Let me know if you try it!
This is a wonderful healthy spin on a chicken salad! I used left over smoked Turkey and I give it a chefs kiss😘!
Oh this sounds like a brilliant idea, Angela. I am so glad that you are loving this recipe, thank you so much for coming back and sharing your review + star rating, it means so much to me.