Rotisserie Chicken Salad

This rotisserie chicken salad is the easiest way to make irresistibly delicious chicken salad at home from your leftover deli chicken. This recipe is full of moist, tender chicken, crisp veggies, and the best dressing. It’s the perfect light and healthy lunch or dinner to enjoy with your family.  

Jump to:

• ❤️ Why I Love This Recipe
• 🥘 Ingredients
• 🧂 Substitutions & Additions
• 🔪 How To Make Rotisserie Chicken Salad
• 💭 Angela's Tips & Recipe Notes
• 🥡 Storing
• ❓ Recipe FAQs
• 🍛 Other Amazing Recipes To Try
• 📖 Recipe Card
• 💬 Comments & Reviews

My classic chicken salad is an amazingly delicious recipe that you can easily add your favorite additions. A tangy mayo dressing coats tender chicken dotted with crunchy bits of flavorful celery and onion. It’s light, healthy, and makes for such a wholesome lunch or perfect summertime dinner.

This 2-step chicken salad recipe is so easy, too! It’s done in 15 minutes with no fuss and little prep. That makes it perfect for when you’re on the go and need a quick but nourishing meal.

This easy chicken salad is perfect for packing lunches, bringing on picnics, or taking on road trips! It’s light but hearty and filling enough to keep anyone satisfied for hours!

❤️ Why I Love This Recipe

• Easy Recipe. Mixing pre-cooked rotisserie chicken with veggies and the dressing is all you need for this simple recipe.  
• Satisfying. This protein-packed meal is going to keep you going all day long.
• Super Versatile. Try this recipe as is, then check out my variations to mix it up.

🥘 Ingredients

My easy rotisserie chicken salad uses no special ingredients. Just pick up a rotisserie chicken, and you’re ready to cook.

• Rotisserie Chicken – 2 cups of rotisserie chicken. Use any style of rotisserie chicken you enjoy! Pull the chicken from the bones and then chop it into coarse pieces.
• Mayonnaise – ½ cup of mayonnaise. I like to use a good quality mayo like Duke’s or Hellman’s (also known as Best Foods). These have the best flavor and don’t use undesirable ingredients like corn syrup.
• Celery – 1 rib of celery or use a celery substitute. The celery should be chopped as small or as fine as you prefer it.
• Green Onion – 1 green onion. Dice the green onion for this recipe! Alternatively, you can use finely diced red onion or chopped chives.
• Dijon Mustard – 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard or use a Dijon mustard substitute. Mustard adds a delightful tang to the dressing! I recommend using Dijon over yellow mustard - it just adds the best flavor.
• Salt & Pepper – ¼ teaspoon each, salt & pepper or according to your taste! You can also add any other seasonings you enjoy to your chicken salad (See Substitutions & Additions below).

🧂 Substitutions & Additions

Chicken salad is so versatile. There are endless variations that can be made with chicken salad, and they’re all absolutely delicious.  

• Fruit & Nut – For one of my all-time favorites, add ¼ cup of chopped apples, sliced grapes, or dried cranberries, along with ¼ cup of sliced almonds or chopped walnuts. You could also give my recipe for chicken salad with grapes a try!
• Bacon Ranch – Instead of salt & pepper, add ½ - 1 teaspoon of ranch seasoning mix and 3 slices of crisped chopped bacon. You can also add ¼ cup of shredded cheddar cheese if desired. This is one that is super popular with kiddos.  
• Buffalo – Try adding 1-3 tablespoons of buffalo sauce for a delicious, spicy kick!  
• BBQ – For an unexpected and tasty addition, mix in 1-3 tablespoons of your favorite BBQ sauce.  Try my Honey BBQ sauce.
• Classic Southern – Do a Southern spin and add 1 or 2 chopped, hard-boiled eggs, 1 tablespoon of sweet relish, and ¼ teaspoon celery seeds.
• Curry – Switch up the chicken salad by adding 1 teaspoon of your favorite sweet or hot curry powder to the dressing! I also like to add ¼ cup each of dried cranberries and sliced almonds to this variation.
• No Mayo – Make this healthy chicken salad even healthier by substituting the mayonnaise for 1 ripe, mashed avocado. Add a squeeze of lemon to keep this delicious avocado chicken salad green.    

🔪 How To Make Rotisserie Chicken Salad

No special equipment is needed for this recipe, it’ll come together in just two steps. You will need a rubber spatula, a large mixing bowl, a cutting board, and measuring utensils to get started.

This recipe will make approximately 6 servings. Feel free to scale up the recipe if you are needing to serve a larger crowd.

1. Combine Ingredients. Start by combining all your ingredients in a large mixing bowl: 2 cups of pulled, chopped rotisserie chicken, ½ cup of mayonnaise, 1 chopped celery stalk, 1 diced green onion, 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard, and ¼ teaspoon each of salt & pepper (or to taste). Then, stir until fully incorporated.
2. Taste & Serve. Next, taste your chicken salad and add more salt & pepper, if needed. Serve with your favorite accompaniments.

I love to serve this hearty, creamy rotisserie chicken salad as a sandwich, with crackers, or over mixed greens as a salad. However you decide to serve it, it’s going to be absolutely delicious. Enjoy!

💭 Angela's Tips & Recipe Notes

• Serve immediately or prepare ahead. You can serve this rotisserie chicken salad right away, but I prefer to place it in the fridge, covered, for up to an hour to let the flavors meld.
• Prefer tuna salad over chicken salad? You can make this easy recipe with a 1:1 substitution of drained, canned tuna! I like to use Italian tuna packed in oil for the freshest flavor.
• Use your favorite bread when making a sandwich! I love to use toasted sourdough or a toasted croissant for chicken salad, but feel free to use your favorite style of bread!
• Let the chicken cool before using. Hot chicken salad isn’t too tasty! I recommend letting your rotisserie chicken cool completely in the fridge overnight before making the chicken salad.
• Keep rotisserie chicken on hand! You can pull the meat from a rotisserie chicken and store it in your freezer for up to 4 months. I love to keep shredded chicken on hand for any time I want a quick, easy meal.  

🥡 Storing

Be sure to put any leftovers away immediately after serving to prevent spoiling. Store the leftover chicken salad in an airtight container for 3 to 5 days in your refrigerator. It’ll be the best quality if eaten within 1 to 3 days.  

Freezing

Did you know you can freeze chicken salad? Store the chicken salad in an airtight container or freezer storage bag for up to 1 month.

When you’re getting ready to eat it, let it thaw in your refrigerator overnight to keep it cool. You never want to let the chicken salad sit out at room temp for too long!    

❓ Recipe FAQs

🍛 Other Amazing Recipes To Try

• Mushroom Swiss Burger - A quick and delicious burger recipe that is ready to serve in just 15 minutes.
• Venison Chili - Perfectly seasoned venison meat is the star of this easy and tasty chili recipe.
• Chicken And Peppers - A classic main course that's quick, flavorful, and perfect for family dinner any day of the week.
• Cheesy Bacon Ranch Potatoes - Tender baked potato chunks are combined with sour cream, cheese, and crispy bacon.
• Dauphinoise Potatoes - Thin-sliced potatoes are layered with cheese, cream, and butter for a satisfying and delicious side dish.
• Tex-Mex Salad - This salad has so much flavor in it and only takes 15 minutes to make.

📖 Recipe Card