Avocado Chicken Salad – creamy and lighter!

At a glance

What stands out: Lighter avocado chicken salad makes a great lunch or light dinner entrée. The creamy dressing is made with Greek yogurt, avocado, and lemon juice (no mayonnaise!).

How long it takes: 20 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: small food processor or immersion blender, mixing bowl
Servings: 4

This avocado chicken salad is lighter, straightforward to mix, and most importantly, rich. The straightforward dressing is made from a heart-lighter avocado, Greek yogurt, and lemon juice. Don’t you just love the color of that dressing? (we also have a recipe for creamy avocado dressing that can be used in a variety of ways. Be sure to check it out!)

For some reason, we keep thinking of the familiar Dr. Seuss story, What Was we Scared Of? about the pale green pants (with no one inside them!). This salad is the exact same color. Our grandpa used to love reading that story to us – it totally cracked him up every time. Check it out sometime!

Creamy Avocado Chicken Salad

There’s no mayo in this dressing. Yet it’s amazingly creamy. You’ll be blown away by it, and you can feel good eating it, too. One generous serving of this salad (about one cup) provides 27 grams of protein but only has 304 calories. A typical chicken salad made with mayonnaise has about twice the calories!

It’s straightforward to mix. Avocado chicken salad isn’t more difficult to make than a salad made with a mayonnaise-based dressing but it does require a small food processor or immersion blender to get the avocado dressing smooth and creamy.

Mini Food Processor

We love this 2 cup Ninja food processor. It doesn’t take much room in our pantry and it’s straightforward to use. It’s reliable for making a speedy batch of chimichurri!

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What goes in

• Cooked Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts: Looking for a straightforward way to cook chicken? Try Instant Pot chicken breasts, poached chicken, or roasted bone-in chicken breasts. Rotisserie chicken is good, too. Make sure the chicken is cold before adding it to the salad.
• Avocados: You need ripe avocados for this recipe. If they aren’t soft and ripe, they won’t blend well to make the creamy dressing.
• Plain Greek Yogurt: We like to use full-fat Greek yogurt which, by the way, makes this recipe keto-friendly. Full-fat yogurt has a creamier mouth-feel and tastes better. However, if you prefer, 2% or nonfat Greek yogurt works well too.
• Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice: Lemon juice adds a bright note to the dressing and also helps keep the avocado from browning. Freshly squeezed is a must! If you don’t have a lemon, no worries! A splash of vinegar does a great job adding the same brightness that lemon brings.
• Celery: Finely diced celery is crunchy and flavorful.
• Red Onion: If you want to tone down the strong flavor of onion, soak the diced onion in ice water while you prep the rest of the salad. Drain it well and pat dry before adding it.
• Fresh Parsley: Chopped parsley is colorful and adds a nice herby flavor.
• Kosher Salt and Coarsely Ground Black Pepper: Season your salad to taste. Don’t skimp on the salt or your salad will taste bland.

How To Tell If An Avocado Is Ripe

Check the color: A ripe avocado is dark green or nearly black. The outer skin should feel bumpy.
Press it lightly with your fingertip. The avocado should be slightly softened but not mushy feeling.
Look at the stem end. There’s usually a nub that can easily be removed with your fingernail. If the flesh underneath it appears bright green, the avocado is evenly ripened. If it appears brown, the avocado is probably overripe.

How it comes together

Make the dressing. Begin by dicing the avocados right into the bowl of the food processor or a small bowl if you’re using an immersion blender.

Add the Greek yogurt and lemon juice and process until the mixture is smooth and creamy.

Prep the chicken and remaining ingredients. Decide whether you prefer the chicken diced or shredded. Either way is just fine. Chop the celery, onions, and fresh parsley.

Combine with the dressing. In a medium sized bowl, combine the chilled chicken, celery, onions, parsley, salt, pepper, and the dressing.

Mix until all the ingredients are covered with the lovely green dressing. Check the seasoning and add more salt and pepper if needed.

Refrigerate until ready to serve. At this point, you may either cover the salad and put it in the refrigerator or eat it right away.

How To Cut An Avocado

If you’re a little uncertain about how to cut these green gems, check out this short video. It’s only 46 seconds long and will show you how to remove the pit, peel, and slice an avocado. Did you know an avocado is actually a fruit and is sometimes called an “alligator pear”?

Ways to serve it

Serve avocado chicken salad on hearty whole grain bread or in a wrap, with leaf lettuce and pickled red onions. A bowl of creamy tomato soup or a side of crispy air fryer French fries goes great with a chicken salad sandwich. We also like to serve the chicken salad on a bed of crisp salad greens, or just on its own, too, with a side of crisp crackers and fresh fruit.

Ways to change it

You’ll love this recipe because there are so many ways to make it your own, depending on what you like and/or what you have in your fridge. Try one of these variations (see recipe card for suggested measurements!) or create a brand new one of your own.

• Guacamole chicken salad with lime juice, cumin, chopped cilantro and jalapeño pepper.
• Chicken salad with fruit with fresh tarragon, apple, sliced grapes, and golden raisins or dried cranberries.
• Garden chicken salad with dill, cucumbers, green peppers, and cherry tomatoes.
• Looking for a vegetarian salad? If you’re interested in a sandwich filling that isn’t made with meat, try our chickpea salad sandwich. The chickpea salad is great on lettuce, too.
  

Make-Ahead Ideas

Cook the chicken ahead. It’s a good idea to cook the chicken ahead of time because it needs to be chilled before adding it to the salad. Cooked chicken will keep in the refrigerator for up to four days or in the freezer for up to a month. Thaw it overnight in the fridge before using.

Keeping leftovers

Refrigerate: This chicken salad keeps well for at least two days in the refrigerator. You may wonder if the dressing will discolor since avocados tend to brown once they are cut. We found that the salad retained its lovely green color with no discoloration at all. The lemon juice and Greek yogurt are acidic which prevents the browning that usually occurs. Cover the chicken salad with plastic wrap or put it in an airtight container. Stir well before serving.

Pack and go lunch: Chicken salad makes a great lunch! Store it in serving sized containers in the refrigerator. Grab one on your way out the door.

Free Meal Plans

Interested in weekly meal plans that include this recipe? Take a look at our Meal Plan #7, Meal Plan #23, or Meal Plan #98. You’ll find a wholesome recipe for each weekday plus a categorized grocery list. Let us do the planning for you this week! We add a new meal plan weekly.

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• Yield: 4
• Prep: 20 minutes
• Total: 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 ripe avocados (medium sized), peeled and cubed
• ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt (use full-fat, 2% or nonfat)
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 3 cups shredded or cubed cooked boneless skinless chicken breasts, chilled ( 2 medium sized breasts)
• ½ cup finely diced celery
• ¼ cup finely diced red onion
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
• ¼ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper, more to taste
• ½ cup slivered almonds, toasted (optional)

Method

1. Combine avocado, Greek yogurt, and lemon juice in bowl of small food processor (or in a small bowl if you want to use a handheld/immersion blender). Blend until smooth.
2. In a large bowl, mix dressing with chicken, onions, celery, parsley, salt and pepper. Top with toasted almonds, if using.
3. Enjoy on bread, on a wrap, or on greens for a salad.

Notes

Nutrition information is for chicken salad only and does not include almonds or serving suggestions. It is calculated using full-fat Greek yogurt in the dressing.

Storage: Avocado chicken salad keeps well in the fridge for up to two days. Stir before eating.

Guacamole chicken salad: Omit lemon juice, parsley, and celery. Add 1 tablespoon lime juice, ½ teaspoon ground cumin, chopped cilantro and ¼ cup finely chopped jalapeño pepper. Omit almonds.

Chicken salad with fruit: Omit parsley; substitute chopped fresh tarragon. Add 1 chopped apple, ½ cup sliced grapes, and ¼ cup golden raisins or dried cranberries. Omit onion if desired.

Garden chicken salad: Add 1 teaspoon dried dill (or 1 tablespoon fresh dill) to recipe, along with chopped cucumbers, green peppers, and cherry tomatoes. Omit almonds.