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Here is one of my favorite easy lunches to make…cranberry pecan chicken salad! It can be eaten with crackers, over lettuce, or as a sandwich in a croissant! The possibilities are endless, really.
What ingredients do I need to make this chicken salad?
- Whole pecans
- Chicken breast
- Celery
- Red onion
- Dried Cranberries
Dressing
- Mayonnaise
- Greek yogurt
- Apple cider vinegar
- Honey
- Salt
- Pepper
- Garlic Powder
Hope you enjoy this creamy salad!
Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad
Servings 6
Ingredients
Salad
- ½ cup whole pecans
- 3 cups cooked chicken breast diced (I used rotisserie chicken)
- ½ cup celery stalks finely diced
- ½ cup red onion finely diced
- ½ cup dried cranberries
Dressing
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon honey
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon cracker black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Toast the pecans in a small dry skillet over medium heat stirring constantly for 2-4 minutes or until browned and fragrant. Remove the pecans from the pan and set aside to cool while you prepare the dressing.
- In a small bowl, whisk together all of the dressing ingredients and set aside.
- Once the pecans have cooled, roughly chop them into pieces.
- In a large bowl, combine the chicken, chopped pecans, celery, onion and cranberries.
- Pour the dressing over the salad and mix to combine.
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving.
Notes
● Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to three days. The salad may develop a slightly pink hue the longer it is store from the cranberries, but it is still delicious.
● The Greek dressing in the dressing can be substituted for sour cream.
● The apple cider vinegar can be replaced with distilled white vinegar, champagne vinegar or even lemon juice.
● You can use maple syrup or granulated white sugar in place of the honey in the dressing.
● Keep an eye on your pecans when you are toasting them as they can go from toasted to burnt very quickly. Once they smell toasty and fragrant remove them from the pan to cool.
● Toasting the pecans intensifies their nutty flavor and also makes them crunchier which helps stop them getting soggy once added to the salad. I recommend toasting whole the pecans whole before you chop them this will allow them to toast more evenly. The small pointy edges of chopped pecans tend to burn quicker than whole nuts.
● The Greek dressing in the dressing can be substituted for sour cream.
● The apple cider vinegar can be replaced with distilled white vinegar, champagne vinegar or even lemon juice.
● You can use maple syrup or granulated white sugar in place of the honey in the dressing.
● Keep an eye on your pecans when you are toasting them as they can go from toasted to burnt very quickly. Once they smell toasty and fragrant remove them from the pan to cool.
● Toasting the pecans intensifies their nutty flavor and also makes them crunchier which helps stop them getting soggy once added to the salad. I recommend toasting whole the pecans whole before you chop them this will allow them to toast more evenly. The small pointy edges of chopped pecans tend to burn quicker than whole nuts.
