Curry Chicken Salad
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Published May 27, 2019, Updated Dec 26, 2022
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This curry chicken salad recipe with celery, onion and raisins is super flavorful and comes together fast using shredded chicken. It’s an awesome salad to meal prep for lunches throughout the week.
If you’re looking for a delicious and budget friendly lunch idea, this curry chicken salad is for you! I love eating this on toasted bread, on top of a lettuce salad or in a wrap. It’s perfect to meal prep for the week ahead, to bring on an outdoor adventure or picnic or for a backyard dinner.
Quite a few people have been asking about budget friendly recipes and while I don’t share the cost breakdown of my recipes a lot of them are budget friendly! This recipe fits the bill.
When I’m looking for a budget friendly, quick and easy option, chicken salad always make the list. A couple other budget friendly salads that come to mind are this caprese pasta salad, my curried chickpea salad, avocado egg salad and this sweet potato tuna salad… they’re all super budget friendly.
Ingredients in Curry Chicken Salad
- shredded chicken
- celery
- raisins
- red onion
- mayonnaise (I like avocado oil mayo, but you can use whatever type you prefer)
- curry powder
- apple cider vinegar
- ground pepper
- sea salt
- cashews (optional)
How to Make Shredded Chicken
The first step is to cook your chicken and shred it. I know some chicken salads use chunks of meat, but I prefer it shredded. For the shredded chicken you can totally pick up a rotisserie chicken and use that. Just buy a plain rotisserie chicken and shred the meat while it’s still warm. Trust me, it’s much easier to get the meat off the bone when it’s warm compared to when it has been in the fridge.
Another super easy way to make shredded chicken is to cook boneless, skinless chicken in your slow cooker. This is what I do all the time and it is seriously so easy. I need to do a full blog post on this but here’s the basic recipe for slow cooker shredded chicken:
- Place boneless skinless chicken breasts inside of your slow cooker. I usually do 1 lb a time. Drizzle with a little olive oil (1 Tablespoon) and liberally sprinkle with sea salt and ground pepper.
- Set your slow cooker to cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 2-3 hours.
- Test to make sure your chicken is cooked through. You can use a meat thermometer to be 100% sure (the meat needs to be 165°F internally). I usually just make sure all the meat is white, cooked through and pulls apart easily.
- The last step is to transfer the cooked chicken to a plate and use 2 forks or a meat shredder to shred the chicken.
How to Make Curry Chicken Salad
Once you have the shredded chicken, the hard part is done and all you have to do is stir together your seasonings.
For curry chicken salad one of the key ingredients is curry powder, of course. This is what gives the chicken salad all the delicious curry flavor. Most curry powders are a blend of turmeric, chili powder, ground coriander, ground cumin, ground ginger and pepper. Different brands each taste a little different so find one you like and stick with it. I’m a big fan of Simply Organic curry powder.
Once you have your mayo, apple cider vinegar, curry powder, pepper and salt stirred together in a large bowl. Just add the shredded chicken, celery, raisins and red onion. Toss until combined and you’re done! You can enjoy the salad right away or if you prefer you can place it in the fridge to chill before serving.
How Long Can You Keep Homemade Chicken Salad?
Store your homemade chicken salad in an airtight container for 3-5 days in the refrigerator. Unfortunately chicken salad doesn’t freeze well so if you meal prep chicken salad plan to eat it within 3-5 days of making!
Is Chicken Salad Healthy?
Yes! I personally love that it is naturally balanced in fat, fiber and protein.
I think chicken salad can get a bad rap because it has mayonnaise. Mayonnaise is high in calories and fat, but a little bit goes a long way. I like using avocado or olive oil based mayos and look for brands made with organic eggs and without added sugar. My personal favorite is Primal Kitchen’s avocado oil mayo.
More Curry Favorites:
- Curried Tempeh Salad
- Tuna Curry Bowl
- Shakshuka
- Curried Pumpkin Soup
- Curried Chickpea Bowls
- Chicken Curry With Vegetables
More Protein Salads:
- Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad
- Tuna Salad
- Vegan “Chicken” Salad
- Avocado Egg Salad
- Turkey Salad
- Tuna Egg Salad
- Salmon Salad
Curry Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cups shredded chicken
- 1/2 cup chopped celery
- 1/4 -1/3 cup raisins
- 1/4 cup red onion, chopped
- 1/4 cup avocado or olive oil mayonnaise
- 1/2 Tablespoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
- 1/8- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 Tablespoons cashews, optional
Instructions
- In a large bowl, stir together mayo, apple cider vinegar, curry powder, pepper and salt.
- Add shredded chicken, celery, raisins and red onion to the bowl. Stir until well combined.
- Taste and adjust seasonings, if needed. If mixture seems too dry, add more mayo.
- Serve on bread as a sandwich, in lettuce wraps or over a bed of greens.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
That was a great article thank you so much.
I made the healthy chicken curry salad and it turned out delicious!! I can’t wait to have it over spinach salad for lunches or eat it with crackers. You won’t be disappointed!! 🙂
Yay!! I’m so excited that you liked the curried chicken salad. I’m hooked on it. 🙂 And thank you so much for taking the time to come back here and comment and leave a star rating. I so appreciate it!
Congrats on having this recipe featured on My Fitness Pal! I just made a big batch–it’s delicious!
Thanks Mindy! So happy to hear that you found and enjoyed this recipe. 🙂
Soooo yummy and super easy to bring together. I didn’t have any cashews so substituted pine nuts. Delish and perfect for a very hot Australian Summer’s day with salad greens.
Yay!! So glad you’re loving this chicken salad recipe, Sandee. Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment and star rating. I so appreciate it. <3
So yummy. I substituted craisins for raisons but gosh it all came together so lovely! Great flavors!
Yay!! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Leslie. Thanks for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I so appreciate it. <3
Yum!!!!! Had to add quite a bit more curry powder, but that could be because my is old and cheap. Excellent recipe. Easy and delicious!!
So glad you enjoyed this salad, Deb!! Thanks for making it and for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I really appreciate it. 🙂
This is so delicious!!
This was so tasty! I love chicken salad, but my husband doesn’t like it very much. However, this recipe was a bit hit with both of us! I’m off to make some more right now!
Woot woot!! That’s always a win when that happens. 🙂 So glad this recipe was a hit. Thanks for trying it and for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I so appreciate it!
It’s a HOT summer evening, so I made this for dinner and served it open face on a croissant. Very tasty. I’ll be making this chicken curry salad again.
So glad this was a hit, Bev! Thanks for making it and for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I so appreciate it. <3
My fiancée and I love this! We followed the recipe using rotisserie chicken. We eat it usually for snack with crackers and cheese. I’ve been making it each week for more than a month now. It’s now become a staple in our household! Thanks for this recipe!
Ahh yay!! So glad this recipe is a hit. Thanks for making it and for coming back to leave a comment + star rating, Grace. I so appreciate it. 🙂
This was great! I made as directed except used chopped pecans in place of the cashews and added a little bit of honey. So good! Been eating in lettuce wraps.
So pumped you’ve been loving this salad, Kris! Thanks for making it and for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I really appreciate it 🙂
Yummy!!!
Absolutely DELICIOUS!! I used dried cranberries instead of raisins…. made a big batch and have had it every day for lunch! So tasty!
Ahh yay!! That makes me so happy to hear, Lauren. So pumped you’re loving this recipe. Thanks for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I so appreciate it. 🙂
So yum! I wasn’t sure about curry powder cold with the raisins but I LOVE it! My husband is also a fan. So quick to whip up. Great lunch option!
Woo, so glad this salad was a hit!! Thanks for giving it a try and for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I so appreciate it, Amanda.
I loved this recipe, you never disappoint! I used black grapes and sliced almonds because that’s what I had on hand and it was still super yummy. Would Greek yogurt work well as a replacement for mayo to make it lighter?
So glad you loved it, Katlyn! And yes, I love using Greek yogurt as a sub for mayo in my tuna or chicken salads. 🙂 Let me know how it turns out if you try it!
Absolutely delicious! I love how the curry kicks the flavor up a notch while still tasting like chicken salad. My husband even requested it again!
Woo!! So glad you loved this salad, Kaitlin. Thanks for coming back to leave a review. I so appreciate it. 🙂
In an effort to eat a more wide variety of foods instead of the same lunch everyday, I decided to give this a try and it’s wonderful! I don’t like eating a heavy lunch because it makes me tired for the rest of the day, and this was light and energizing!
Yay! So glad this recipe was a hit, Kristen! Thanks for the review 🙂
Fantastic recipe. Great for lunch wraps!
Yay!! So glad you enjoyed this recipe, Jess! Thanks so much for the review 🙂
This was super easy and unbelievably delicious. I used a rotisserie chicken and avocado mayo. Served over a bed of spring salad. My husband is vegetarian so I’m going to try it using smashed chickpeas instead of the chicken. I coarsely chopped raw cashews which I think adds a great texture to the salad.
Yay!! So pumped this curry chicken salad was a hit, Paul! Thanks so much for trying it out and coming back to leave a review. It means so much to me!
So tasty! I swapped Greek yogurt for mayo and did sliced almonds instead of cashews. Served over romaine lettuce cups for a felicitous light lunch!
This is a great recipe and perfect for a low carb day! I added some shredded carrot and served it over lettuce, and it was delicious. Love your recipes!
YUM! Love the addition of carrots, Cammie. Glad you found this recipe and are loving it. Thanks for your review & star rating, I really appreciate it!