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    Home » Main Dish

    Healthy Chicken Salad With Apples

    Published: October 15, 2019 - Last updated: February 10, 2023 by Erika

    healthy chicken salad with apples thumbnail picture.
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    This fresh and healthy Apple Chicken Salad delivers tender salad greens, crisp apples, succulent grapes, creamy blue cheese, crunchy walnuts, and juicy chopped chicken tossed in creamy apple cider vinaigrette. It’s the perfect protein and fiber-packed lunch or side dish.

    side view of chicken salad in a bowl.
    Jump to:
    • Why You'll Love This Recipe
    • Ingredients You'll Need
    • Step-By-Step Instructions
    • Expert Tips
    • Variations
    • Storing
    • Recipe FAQ's
    • More Healthy Salad Recipes
    • Healthy Chicken Salad With Apples

    Apples are often associated with sweet treats like my Caramel Apple Cupcakes and Glazed Apple Cider Donuts, but they’re also excellent incorporated into savory dishes. For instance, this chicken salad with apples showcases apples (and grapes!) with various savory ingredients that work incredibly well together.

    This spin on a deconstructed Waldorf chicken salad includes apples, grapes, walnuts, and a creamy mayonnaise-based dressing. However, unlike a Waldorf salad, this chicken salad is presented as a chopped salad tossed with salad greens and blue cheese crumbles.

    This simple chicken salad with apples is a must-make, especially for those that usually scoff at the idea of fruit and nuts in chicken salad. I’m sure everyone will find this chicken salad with apples, grapes, and walnuts sensational.

    top view bowl of chicken salad.

    Why You'll Love This Recipe

    • The tastes and textures. This dimensional salad is savory, sharp, sweet, and tangy. Your tastebuds will love the crunch from apples, grapes, and walnuts next to the creamy vinaigrette and blue cheese crumbles, delicate leafy greens, and juicy chicken.
    • The homemade dressing. It’s a 5-ingredient creamy apple cider vinaigrette, and it’s DELICIOUS.
    • The serving options. This chicken salad serves as both a side dish and a main course.
    • The flexibility. You can easily customize the mix-ins, dressing, and so on.

    Ingredients You'll Need

    chicken salad labeled ingredients.

    For the creamy apple cider vinaigrette dressing:

    • Mayonnaise: Mayo provides a thick, tangy base for the dressing. 
    • Vegetable Oil: Or any neutral mild-tasting oil, like avocado, canola, sunflower, or olive oil. 
    • Apple Cider Vinegar: Use raw, unfiltered, and unpasteurized ACV (like Bragg Organic Apple Cider Vinegar) if possible. Without the added ingredients, it delivers the purest, most natural flavor. 
    • Sugar: You’ll only need a teaspoon of sugar to balance the flavor, but if you’d rather use a natural sweetener, try agave, honey, maple syrup, or stevia here. 
    • Black Pepper: Use fresh, cracked black pepper if you can. It tastes so much better than pepper that has already been ground.

    For the salad:

    • Chicken Breast: Cooking a couple of fresh chicken breasts to chop up for chicken salad is super simple, but you can also use leftover chicken. Pulled rotisserie chicken would be perfect. 
    • Spring Mix: This usually contains various leafy greens like spinach, arugula, and radicchio, but you can use any lettuce blend here. 
    • Apples: Go with an extra crunchy variety that isn’t prone to brown too quickly. I used green apples, but fuji, honeycrisp, pink lady, and envy apples are also delightful tossed in salads. 
    • Grapes: For a Waldorf-inspired chicken salad, seedless red grapes are best, but you can use any sweet, seedless grape variety.
    • Walnuts: Chopped walnuts are a Waldorf-style salad staple. However, nuts like almonds, pecans, and pistachios are also satisfying in salads made with chicken, apples, and grapes. 
    • Blue Cheese Crumbles: If blue cheese is too much for your tastes, use feta, goat cheese, or freshly shredded parmesan or Swiss cheese instead.

    Step-By-Step Instructions

    four image process making chicken salad.

    Step 1: Cook chicken.

    Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat, then add the chicken and sear for 8 minutes, flip and cook on the opposite side until cooked through. Let rest, then chop into bite-sized pieces.

    Step 2: Mix dressing.

    Combine the mayonnaise, vegetable oil, apple cider vinegar, sugar, and black pepper in a small bowl and stir to combine evenly. Keep covered in the fridge until you’re ready to assemble and serve the salad.

    Step 3: Toss and serve.

    When ready, toss the lettuce blend and dressing together in a large bowl. Then, dice the apples, halve the grapes and add them to the bowl. Finally, toss in the chicken, walnuts, and blue cheese, and enjoy!

    NOTE: You can print the FULL recipe with all ingredients & detailed instructions below!

    chicken salad in a bowl.

    Expert Tips

    • If you’re using raw chicken, you can cook it any way you like (air frying, baking, grilling, poaching, etc.). Most important is that the chicken is cooked to a perfect 165 degrees F and allowed to rest for 5 minutes before chopping so that it’s tender and juicy. 
    • You can mix the dressing up to 24 hours in advance and keep it covered in the fridge. This gives the different dimensions of flavor more time to bind and blend. 
    • Do not chop the fruit and toss the salad until you’re ready to serve. The delicate apples, grapes, and salad greens will lose their crispness if coated in dressing too soon. Or, if you’d rather serve the dressing on the side, that works too.

    Variations

    This chicken salad with apples, grapes, and walnuts is full of flavors and textures that pair perfectly together, but there’s always room for more. Try sprucing it up with the following:

    • Dried cranberries
    • Dried raisins, sultanas, or currants
    • Chopped hard-boiled egg
    • Chopped celery
    • Thinly sliced green onion or red onion
    • Fresh chopped herbs like chives, dill, parsley, and tarragon. 
    • Sesame seeds (about 1 tablespoon mixed into the dressing)

    The creamy apple cider vinaigrette is the best, but you can experiment with other creamy mayo or Greek yogurt-based dressings if you like. For example, try a store-bought sweet vidalia onion dressing or my Creamy Citrus Ginger Dressing.

    Storing

    Once tossed, this chicken salad with apples is best served ASAP. However, leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. If you have extra dressing, it will keep in a covered container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.

    Recipe FAQ's

    How do I keep the apples from turning brown?

    The best way to prevent apples from browning is by chopping and adding them to your salad right before you eat it, but you can also slow the browning process by tossing chopped apples in fresh lemon juice before adding them.

    What goes with apple chicken salad?

    To bulk up the meal, try serving this salad with a side of seasonal fruit, thick & crusty bread, croissants, pita bread, or chips.

    Can I use Greek yogurt instead of mayonnaise in the dressing?

    Yes! Greek yogurt is the perfect healthy swap for mayo in creamy dressings. It has 89% fewer calories and 936% more protein than mayo.

    What is the best substitution for chicken in this salad?

    You would be in luck if you were hoping for a healthy apple salad with something other than chicken. The apple and walnut salad, tossed in creamy apple cider vinaigrette, is an excellent base for turkey (especially Thanksgiving leftovers!), shrimp, and steak. If you’re looking for plant-sourced protein options, try crispy tofu, chickpeas, or your favorite plant-based “meat.”

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    If you love this recipe, please leave a comment with a five-star rating — or simply hit the five-star button in the recipe card. Don't forget to signup for my newsletter.

    healthy chicken salad with apples thumbnail picture.

    Healthy Chicken Salad With Apples

    Erika
    This fresh and healthy apple chicken salad delivers tender salad greens, crisp apples, succulent grapes, creamy blue cheese, crunchy walnuts, and juicy chopped chicken tossed in creamy apple cider vinaigrette. It’s the perfect protein and fiber-packed lunch or side dish.
    4.93 from 26 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 mins
    Cook Time 12 mins
    Total Time 22 mins
    Course Main Dish
    Cuisine American
    Servings 4 Servings
    Calories 320 kcal

    Equipment

    • Apple Corer
    • Measuring Spoons and Measuring Cups
    • Stainless Steel Mixing Bowls (Set of 6)

    Ingredients
      

    For Dressing

    • ¼ cup mayonnaise
    • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
    • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
    • 1 teaspoon sugar
    • ¼ teaspoon black pepper

    For Salad

    • 4 cups spring mix
    • 8 ounces boneless chicken breast
    • 1 green apple diced
    • ½ cup red grapes cut in half
    • ¼ cup chopped walnuts
    • ¼ cup blue cheese crumbles
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    Instructions
     

    • Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat, then add the chicken and sear for 8 minutes, flip and cook on the opposite side until cooked through. Let rest, then chop into bite-sized pieces.
    • Combine the mayonnaise, vegetable oil, apple cider vinegar, sugar, and black pepper in a small bowl and stir to combine evenly. Keep covered in the fridge until you’re ready to assemble and serve the salad.
    • When ready, toss the lettuce blend and dressing together in a large bowl. Then, dice the apples, halve the grapes and add them to the bowl. Finally, toss in the chicken, walnuts, and blue cheese, and enjoy!

    Notes

    • If you’re using raw chicken, you can cook it any way you like (air frying, baking, grilling, poaching, etc.). Most important is that the chicken is cooked to a perfect 165 degrees F and allowed to rest for 5 minutes before chopping so that it’s tender and juicy. 
    • You can mix the dressing up to 24 hours in advance and keep it covered in the fridge. This gives the different dimensions of flavor more time to bind and blend. 
    • Do not chop the fruit and toss the salad until you’re ready to serve. The delicate apples, grapes, and salad greens will lose their crispness if coated in dressing too soon. Or, if you’d rather serve the dressing on the side, that works too.
    • Storing: Once tossed, this chicken salad with apples is best served ASAP. However, leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. If you have extra dressing, it will keep in a covered container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 320kcalCarbohydrates: 12gProtein: 11gFat: 26gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 207mgSodium: 207mgFiber: 2gSugar: 8g

    All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.

    Keyword Healthy Chicken Salad With Apples
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Harriet

      October 16, 2019 at 6:40 am

      I love how you've used yogurt instead of mayonnaise in this recipe, its so much healthier.

      Reply
    2. Ai | Ai made it for you

      October 16, 2019 at 2:14 pm

      Looks delicious! I love chicken salad with apple! So yum!

      Reply
    3. Beth

      October 16, 2019 at 3:32 pm

      This salad looks simple, flavorful and refreshing. The combination of the Dijon mustard and the yogurt must really wake up the taste buds and balance the sweetness of the apples. Yum!

      Reply
    4. Jacqueline Debono

      October 17, 2019 at 7:31 am

      I can imagine how creamy and crunchy this apple chicken salad is. I also like using apples in savoury dishes, especially salads. I often add them to my coleslaw!

      Reply
    5. Simone

      October 17, 2019 at 9:11 am

      I love the fact that you added variations for people to use in this recipe, which looks delicious by the way!

      Reply
    6. Sonila

      October 17, 2019 at 10:14 am

      I love salads that have apple and your apple chicken salad seems so easy and so perfect. Can't wait to try it:)

      Reply
    7. Nart | Cooking with Nart

      October 18, 2019 at 1:52 am

      I love Granny Smith apples . Seeing you also use Greek yogurt in your dressing I can already tell this salad won't disappoint!

      Reply
    8. Mean Green Chef

      October 18, 2019 at 12:21 pm

      Such a delicious healthy chicken salad! Love that you replace mayo with Greek Yogurt it's one of my favorites and makes everything so tangy and creamy 🙂

      Reply
    9. Lathiya

      October 22, 2019 at 6:29 pm

      I haven't had chicken salad but this one looks good. With apples and simple dressing, this recipe sounds perfect for me.

      Reply
    10. Emily

      November 20, 2019 at 2:59 am

      This apple chicken salad is so good! Love how it uses yogurt in it!

      Reply
    11. Erin

      November 20, 2019 at 3:18 am

      I can’t believe I’ve never put crunchy apple in my chicken salad. I think my kids would love this!!

      Reply
    12. Beth

      November 20, 2019 at 4:00 am

      My favorite apple would be cortland, my kids LOVE green apples! This looks so tasty and I like the suggestion of adding dried cranberries!

      Reply
    13. Beth

      November 20, 2019 at 4:42 am

      This is so fresh and fun! With the yogurt added, I could even eat this for breakfast! Yum!

      Reply
    14. Sapana

      November 20, 2019 at 5:05 am

      Such a delicious salad to take to work and one that will fuel the rest of your afternoon. Thanks!

      Reply

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    Hi and welcome! My name is Erika and I’m a huge foodie with an appetite for almost anything. I love all foods, especially desserts! I try to cook things that are simple, practical, and delicious. Read More…

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