No Mayo Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad

This cranberry pecan chicken salad is made with chicken, apples, dried cranberries, pecans, and a creamy tahini dressing instead of mayo. Perfect for easy lunches, meal prep, sandwiches, wraps, or crackers.

Course Lunch

Cuisine American

Keyword cranberry pecan chicken salad, whole30 chicken salad

Prep Time 5

Total Time 5

Servings

Calories 535kcal

Ingredients

2 cups chicken, chopped or shredded
2 stalks celery, chopped
½ medium apple (Fuji, Pink Lady or Granny Smith), chopped
2 tablespoons red onion, finely chopped
3 tablespoons pecans, chopped
1/4 cup dried cranberries

Dressing

3 tablespoons tahini
1.5 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
4.5 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon dried sage
½ teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions

In the bottom of the bowl or in a separate container, combine all the ingredients for the dressing.
3 tablespoons tahini, 1.5 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 4.5 tablespoons water, 1 teaspoon dried thyme, ½ teaspoon sea salt, ½ teaspoon dried sage, ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Chop or shred the chicken, add it to a large bowl for mixing the salad.
2 cups chicken, chopped or shredded
Chop the celery and apple into a small dice, finely chop the red onion. Add to the bowl with the chicken.
2 stalks celery, chopped, ½ medium apple (Fuji, Pink Lady or Granny Smith), chopped, 2 tablespoons red onion, finely chopped
You can finely chop the pecans for smaller pieces in the salad or roughly chop them for larger more prominent pieces of pecans. Add the pecans to the bowl with the rest of the ingredients.
3 tablespoons pecans, chopped
Add the dried cranberries to the salad (soak them ahead if you want them to be plump in the salad).
1/4 cup dried cranberries
Add the dressing if it's not already in the bottom of the bowl and stir well to ensure all the salad ingredients are well coated in the dressing.
Serve immediately or store in the fridge for 30 minutes - 2 hours to allow all the ingredients to get really cold and the flavors to combine more.
Serve cold or at room temperature. See ideas for serving below.

Notes

Use any cooked chicken you have on hand - Shredded or chopped chicken both work well here. Rotisserie chicken is a great shortcut, just remove the skin before using.
Let the salad rest before serving if possible - For the best flavor, let the chicken salad sit in the fridge for 30 minutes to 2 hours so the flavors have time to come together.
Swap the onion if needed - If you don’t love red onion, green onion works great instead.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. If you’re using leftover chicken, be sure to factor in how long the chicken has already been stored before making the salad.

Nutrition