Apple Chicken Salad

A wonderful twist on your everyday classic chicken salad. This Apple Chicken Salad is made with crunchy apples and toasted cashews and then tossed in a sweet honey dressing for a mouthful of flavors and textures. This chicken salad with apples is an easy recipe that makes for a delicious lunch or light dinner. 

Once early fall is upon us,  flavors turn to apples.  I get so excited – apple is one of my favorite things to bake with, but apples aren’t just for baking. I made the most amazing chicken salad with them, and it packed a perfect fall punch – apples, chicken, cashews, and honey.

You’ll find this fabulous salad goes well on a bed of lettuce or turn it into chicken salad sandwiches and layer it on a croissant or toasted sourdough bread. It makes an easy lunch or light dinner, and I love to serve it at fall luncheons and showers, too.

If you love the idea of this salad, I bet you’ll love my Peach Chicken Salad and this Snicker Apple Salad recipe, too!

Why You’ll Love This Apple Chicken Salad Recipe

With fall in the air and apple season upon us, you won’t have a hard time finding fresh crisp apples to make this salad. 

You will love this Apple Chicken Salad for its tangy flavor and versatility. I find chicken salad recipes are so adaptable. You can add whatever vegetables you like, play around with different seasonings and herbs and serve it in many different ways. You definitely need this salad recipe in your repertoire.

Using Frozen Chicken In Chicken Salad

This post was originally written as a sponsored post for Tyson® Grilled and Ready® Chicken Breast Strips. Dicing them up when they are thawed and tossing them into a chicken salad is a brilliant and easy way to cut some time off of a recipe. 

Apple Chicken Salad Recipe Ingredients 

You will find the full printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.

For the Apple Chicken Salad Dressing

• honey – gives the dressing some natural sweetness
• mayonnaise – whichever mayonnaise you prefer will work in this recipe
• Apple Cider Vinegar

For the Apple Chicken Salad

• Tyson® Grilled and Ready® Chicken Breast Strips, thawed – you can also use your own grilled chicken breasts or leftover cooked chicken in this recipe. Also works well with leftover turkey after Thanksgiving and rotisserie chicken, too.
• salted cashews – toast them to bring out the flavor. Pecans or walnuts would also work well in this easy chicken salad recipe.
• apple – The kind of apple you use is up to you. I love to use Granny Smith apples, Pink Lady, Honeycrisp apples or fuji apples in this recipe. You can combine both red and green apples if you like.
• lemon juice – keeps the apples from turning brown.
• celery– gives a nice crunch to the salad.

How To Make Apple Chicken Salad

Making homemade chicken salads is really quite easy! This one comes together with only a few minutes of prep. Here are the step-by-step instructions:

Step One: Toast cashews by placing them in the oven on a baking sheet at 400 degrees for 5 minutes. Allow them to cool and then roughly chop them.

Step Two: Prepare the dressing: In a small mixing bowl whisk together honey, apple cider vinegar and mayo. Place the dressing in the fridge while you prepare the chicken mixture.

Step Three: Using a sharp knife cut chicken into bite-sized pieces.

Toss the diced apples with lemon juice.

Step Four: Add the chicken, celery, apples and cashews to a large bowl. Pour the dressing over, and stir to combine.

Chill until ready to serve.

Serve on a bed of greens, on rolls or croissants, or with crackers.

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Tips & Tricks For Making Chicken Salad

Keep a package of frozen grilled chicken in the freezer so you can make this salad without having to make a special trip to the grocery store. 

I suggest you use Granny smith, Honeycrisp, Fuji, or Gala apples in this recipe. Both red and green apples work well in chicken salad. 

If your honey has crystalized and become one big solid sticky mess, pop it into the microwave for a few seconds so it liquefies. Or place the bottle in a pot of warm water. This makes it way easier to measure and pour. 

How to Store Apple Chicken Salad 

This chicken salad will keep for about 3 days in an airtight container in the fridge. 

Variations of Chicken Salad

• Change up the nuts and add pecans or walnuts instead or use a combination of a few nuts.
• Cut up green or red grapes and add them to the salad.
• Throw in raisins or currants.
• Make apple cranberry chicken salad by adding dried cranberries. 
• Substitute turkey instead of chicken for a great way to repurpose Thanksgiving or other holiday leftovers. 
• Use frozen grilled chicken for a quick and easy salad. 
• Use rotisserie, leftover grilled, or barbecue chicken. Any kind of chicken will work. If you made some chicken soup you can also remove some of the chicken and make a salad out of it. 
• Garnish the salad with fresh dill, chives, or green onion. 

FAQs Abou0t Apple Chicken Salad

Do I have to peel the apples for this apple chicken salad recipe? Whether to peel or not is up to you. If you and your gang prefer peeled apples then go ahead and peel them. I always keep the peel on – that’s where the vitamins are! 

Is chicken salad okay for diabetics? If you are concerned that your food is affecting your diabetes it is best to consult with your healthcare provider. I am not a medical doctor and don’t want to steer you in the wrong direction though I don’t see any reason why someone with diabetes couldn’t eat chicken salad it is a good source of protein and depending on how you serve it can be low in carbohydrates. 

Is chicken salad good for weight loss? My mantra is everything in moderation so if you are looking to lose weight I think chicken salad can definitely be part of your diet. 

What is a chicken salad sandwich made of? A chicken salad sandwich uses cooked chicken as a base mixed with mayonnaise, diced celery, and other vegetables or fruits. It can be served on a croissant or your favorite bread.

Can I freeze chicken salad? I don’t recommend freezing this chicken salad. It will keep for a few days in the fridge so do your best to eat it up. 

Should I use white or dark meat to make chicken salad? You can use white or dark meat in a chicken salad recipe or a combination of both. 

Can I make chicken salad sandwiches the day before I want to serve them? I would suggest you make the chicken salad the day before but place the salad on the bread closer to when you will be serving the sandwiches. You don’t want the bread to get soggy. 

More Salad Recipes to Love:

• Bacon Cashew Broccoli Salad (pictured above)
• Grilled Chicken Waldorf Salad
• Chinese Chicken Salad
• Caprese Salad
• Columbia Restaurant’s 1905 Salad
• Italian Raw Veggie Salad

Here is the recipe for this easy apple chicken salad – enjoy!

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Print Recipe

Apple Chicken Salad

A wonderful twist on the common chicken salad, the crunch of apples and cashews, with a sweet honey dressing.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time5 minutes mins

Additional Time1 hour hr

Total Time1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Cuisine: American

Keyword: ACV, Apple Chicken Salad, apples, cashews, celery, chicken, chicken salad, honey, leftover chicken, leftover turkey, salad, sandwich

Servings: 3 cups

Calories: 283kcal

Author: Michaela Kenkel

Equipment

• Cast Magnesium Apple/Potato Peeler Corer by Spiralizer
• Stainless Steel Apple Corer
• Zyliss Easy Twist Apple Corer, White
• 12-Piece Black Sharp Knife Set with Covers, Cutting Board and Sharpener

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar
• 2 cups about 3/4 pound Tyson® Grilled and Ready® Chicken Breast Strips, thawed
• 1/2 cup salted cashews toasted, roughly chopped
• 1 apple (about 1 cup), cubed
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/4 cup celery chopped

Instructions

• Toast cashews by placing them in the oven on a baking sheet at 400 degrees for 5 minutes. Cool them, and roughly chop them.
• Prepare the dressing: Whisk together honey, apple cider vinegar and mayo. Place it in the fridge while you make the chicken mixture.
• Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces
• Toss the diced apples with lemon juice.
• Add the chicken, celery, apples and cashews to a bowl. Pour dressing over, and stir to combine.
• Chill until ready to serve.
• Serve on a bed of greens, on rolls or croissants, or with crackers.

Notes

This makes a great presentation for showers or luncheons.

Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 | Calories: 283kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 16g | Cholesterol: 25mg | Sodium: 211mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 16g

This recipe was originally posted on August 24, 2015. The post has been updated to improve user experience and reshared on September 2, 2022. 

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Tyson.