This healthy, no-mayo Greek yogurt chicken salad with celery, grapes, and pecans is perfect to meal prep on Sundays for a week's worth of healthy, delicious lunches! (gluten-free)
I don't do meal prep often, but I do love having chicken salad around for healthy lunches throughout the week. My husband and I both love chicken salad, and it's so easy to pull from the fridge and use in sandwiches or to eat with crackers. This is my easy, healthy, go-to chicken salad recipe. It uses no mayonnaise (if you've been around here a while, you know I can't stand the stuff), and is loaded with yummy add-ins like grapes and pecans. Whip some up on a Sunday, or anytime you have leftover chicken!
Why You'll Love This Healthy Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad
This healthy chicken salad is simply delicious! It's a family favorite, filled with tender chicken breast, crunchy celery, a hint of sweetness from grapes, and toasted pecans. It's perfect to prep for lunches, to make for showers or brunches, or to use up any leftover chicken you have! It's easy to make, and good for you!
What Makes This Chicken Salad Healthy?
This healthy chicken salad swaps the mayo out for a simple, lightened-up dressing made from Greek yogurt, which has less saturated fat and sodium, and more protein than mayonnaise. Chicken breast gives a healthy, high-quality protein boost, while added veggies and fruit like celery and onion add flavor, crunch, and fiber!
How To Make Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad
This Greek yogurt chicken salad is super simple to make.
- If you don't already have cooked chicken, cook a chicken breast in the oven. Let it cool and shred it into bite-sized pieces.
- Toast the pecans. (This step is optional but provides extra flavor!)
- Chop the onion, celery, grapes, and pecans.
- Mix everything together in a big bowl! You can mix the dressing separately if you'd like, but I never do.
How To Store Chicken Salad
Chicken salad should be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container. It will last 4-5 days. Chicken salad shouldn't be left at room temperature for longer than 2 hours for food safety reasons. I don't recommend freezing chicken salad - you'll end up with a watery, separated mess! It's best prepared fresh.
Ingredient Swaps
- If you don't like grapes in your chicken salad, leave them out. Or use raisins or dried cranberries if you like.
- I like to use walnuts or almonds if I don't have pecans. For nut-free chicken salad, leave out the pecans.
- This chicken salad is a great use for rotisserie chicken! You can also use canned chicken if you have it.
- Spicy brown mustard can be used in place of dijon. I don't recommend yellow mustard in this recipe.
More Healthy Chicken Salad Recipes You'll Love
- Apricot Chicken Salad
- Mayo-Free Coconut Curry Chicken Salad
- Orange Poppy Seed Chicken Salad
- Thai Chicken Salad Spring Rolls
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the comments!
PrintHealthy Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad
This healthy, no-mayo Greek yogurt chicken salad with celery, grapes, and pecans is perfect to meal prep on Sundays for a week's worth of healthy, delicious lunches! (gluten-free)
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: about 5 cups 1x
- Category: lunch
- Method: baked
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast (or 2 cups shredded cooked chicken)
- ½ cup diced onion
- ⅔ cup diced celery (1-2 ribs)
- ⅔ cup grapes, halved
- ½ cup pecan or walnut pieces (optional)
- ¾ cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 tbsp dijon mustard
- Pinch fine sea salt
- Freshly cracked pepper
Instructions
- To cook chicken, heat oven to 350° F. Season chicken with salt and pepper and place in a baking dish. Cover with foil and bake 20-30 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted into the center of the chicken breast reads 165° F and juices run clear. Remove from oven and cool before shredding with 2 forks. (Skip this step if using cooked or leftover chicken.)
- To toast pecans, place them on a baking sheet and toast at 400°F for 6-8 minutes. Watch carefully so they don't burn!
- Chop onion, celery, grapes and pecans.
- In a large bowl, mix together all ingredients, stirring until chicken is evenly coated.
- Store chicken salad in the refrigerator in an airtight container up to 4 days.
Notes
- For the best texture I prefer shredded chicken. You can also chop it into bite-sized pieces if you prefer a chunkier chicken salad.
- Leave the grapes out if you want, or swap them for raisins or dried cranberries.
- You can use shredded rotisserie chicken or canned chicken if you'd like.
Keywords: healthy chicken salad, greek yogurt chicken salad, no mayo chicken salad, healthy chicken salad with grapes
abbt says
hey i was just wondering what the serving size is in cups
Kaleigh says
It's calculated at about 1 cup.
Marie says
Thank you so much for all you do!!! Perfect for my intuitive eating lifestyle.
Kaleigh says
So glad you enjoyed it!
Mike says
What is the nutritional breakdown? I follow a strict diabetic diet and need to know what I’m eating. Thank you
Kaleigh says
I don't provide nutrition information but you can calculate it using one of the many online calculators or apps.
Marie Mastro says
I plan to prepare this for a baby shower next month, how early can I put together in sandwiches, will use cruissants, thank you
Kaleigh says
Hi Marie,
The chicken salad can be made up tp a couple of days in advance, but I wouldn't assemble the sandwiches more than a couple of hours ahead of time so that the bread doesn't get soggy. Enjoy!
Lindsey says
I just made this last night and plan to eat it for lunch for the next few days. It is delicious! It was easy to make and it tastes good.
Kaleigh says
Hi Lindsey,
So glad you like it! Thanks for stopping by!
The Copper Gnome says
Is this still good to eat all week?
Kaleigh says
Yes, it should be good all week as long as it is stored properly!