This Crunchy Strawberry Pecan Chicken Salad is a great way to celebrate berry season and beyond! Crisp celery, pecans and poppy seeds give this simple chicken salad a fun twist on the traditional chicken salad recipe.
This recipe was originally published June 2018 and copy was updated to include process photos and updated copy.
Summer time means a lot of things but in the kitchen it means a whole lot of berries to me! And I love all the berries in my chicken salad!
I love grabbing a rotisserie chicken because in our house that always means leftovers. This crunchy strawberry pecan chicken salad is my repeat recipe all summer. ( But If it's soup weather, then all my rotisserie chickens are going into this Chicken Noodle Soup 100%!)
Any recipe that allows me to use up leftover food is a hit. I like to use up every last morsel in the fridge if I can! Less food waste is best!
Fresh and crunchy--that is where it's at with this one!
Here's what you need to make this recipe:
- I typically use leftover rotisserie chicken for this recipe, but don't feel that you can't use another kind of chicken!
I always have just about all of this in the house other than chicken. So when I grab the chicken--I already know the plan!
How to make this recipe:
- Add the chicken, poppy seeds, celery, pecans, pepper, and onion into a mixing bowl. Toss to combine. (steps 1 and 2)
- Add in the mayo, dijon mustard, Greek yogurt and lemon juice. Stir to combine. If you don't have Greek yogurt, it is fine to just use all mayo. I love the extra tang you get from the Greek yogurt personally. I would not recommend skipping the dijon mustard though. (step 3 and 4)
- Fold in the strawberries. Enjoy right away or chill for about 30 minutes to allow the flavor to really kick in. If you aren't serving this rotisserie chicken salad within the hour or so, I suggest holding off on the strawberries until serving. (steps 5 and 6)
Notes:
- You don't have to use rotisserie chicken, any chicken will do. Just use 2 cups shredded chicken and you are just fine!
- If you don't plan on serving this until the next day or quite a bit of time after you make it, hold off on tossing the strawberries in until about 10-15 minutes before serving.
- If you have nut allergies, feel free to use sunflower seeds or another seed you enjoy for some more crunch.
- Sliced almonds are also amazing if you don't have any pecans around!
How to serve this chicken salad:
- Crackers! That's one of my musts when it comes to a good chicken salad.
- Toss this pecan chicken salad on some toast and you have got a nice sandwich with all the more crunch.
- Add some color by adding the chicken salad to lettuce wraps.
- Add it on top of a big salad.
- Eat it straight from a spoon--no extra anything required!
Check out these other salads you will love!
- Ramen Cabbage Salad
- Simple Pasta Salad with Grilled Lemon Garlic Zucchini
- Strawberry Arugula Goat Cheese Salad with Pretzel Crusted Chicken
- Simple Mayo-Free Egg Salad
- Chickpea Avocado Salad
- Caprese Farro Salad
DID YOU MAKE ONE OF MY RECIPES? LEAVE A COMMENT AND LET ME KNOW! I ALSO LOVE TO SEE YOUR LEMONS + ZEST RECIPES ON SOCIAL MEDIA–TAG ME @LEMONSANDZEST ON INSTAGRAM OR FACEBOOK!
Rotisserie Chicken Salad with Strawberries and Poppy Seeds
Ingredients
- 2 c shredded chicken
- 2 celery stalks, chopped into ¼ in. pieces
- 1 green onion, chopped thin
- 5-6 large strawberries, diced
- ⅓ c chopped pecans
- ¼ c mayonnaise
- 2 T Greek yogurt, plain
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 T poppy seeds
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Cut and chop ingredients accordingly.
- In a medium bowl, combine chicken, pecans, celery and onion. Stir to evenly mix.
- Add mayo, yogurt, mustard, poppy seeds, lemon juice and salt and pepper and mix well to evenly coat.
- Fold in strawberries.
- For best results, allow to chill for about 30 minutes before serving.
Notes
- You don't have to use rotisserie chicken, any chicken will do. Just use 2 cups shredded chicken and you are just fine!
- If you don't plan on serving this until the next day or quite a bit of time after you make it, hold off on tossing the strawberries in until about 10-15 minutes before serving.
- If you have nut allergies, feel free to use sunflower seeds or another seed you enjoy for some more crunch.
- Sliced almonds are also amazing if you don't have any pecans around!
Mindy says
I am not creative in the kitchen at all. This recipe sounds delicious, but we have a bit allergy in our family. What would you recommend as a substitute?
Lorie says
Hi! I’m assuming that was nut allergy?? Gotta love autocorrect. If that’s the case, you could skip the pecans all together, or you could add some crunchy sunflower seeds even. Let me know if it was something else!
Sherwood says
For some reason I can't pin this. I've tried different browsers, using the widget on the side, the widget on the picture, and the browser app button. They all say something's gone wrong. I tried when this initially came out and today. No change.
Lorie says
Hi Sherwood! I am having the same issue for some reason as well. I am working with my web people to see if they can figure out the issue. I will keep you posted!
Sherwood says
Figured I hadn't tried in a while, so I gave it another go. Finally got it!
Lorie says
So so so happy to hear! Thanks for letting me now!
jillain says
This looks soooo yummy!!! Saving the recipe!
Lorie says
Hope you love it Jillian! It’s turned into a big hit around here!
Gemma says
That is too funny! I love mayo but I know people who don't like it and prefer Miracle Whip. I enjoy both, depending on what I am eating it with. This recipe looks great, I need new ideas to liven up my chicken salad.
Lorie says
I know, crazy right??
Brooke Bolen says
Looks delicious! I never thought to take this twist to chicken salad!
Lorie says
I was quite pleasantly surprised! Thanks!
Jen says
What's better than fruit in chicken salad!? I love the touch of dijon here and those poppy seeds! Can't wait to add this to my summer lunch menu!
Lorie says
It’s perfect for summer!
candy says
I don't buy into the whole this isn't good for you type of thing anymore. There are so many different foods that have been bad for a person over the years just silly. We like our mayo and will enjoy it all summer and year long.
Lorie says
I love your outlook Candy! ❤️
Danielle says
Yummm - This looks like a real deli style sandwich. I love mayo so I won't have any mayo issues. I have my family coming to stay this weekend and I think this will be a great filling for the couple of lunches i will have to prepare! I will go and get a beautiful loaf of sourdough and it will be a super lush meal.
Lorie says
This will be perfect on sourdough!!!