Give your leftover lunch meat a makeover with this easy 10-minute Chicken Salad Recipe! Made with crunchy celery, creamy avocado, crisp red onion and more, you can enjoy your salad by itself or turn it into a crave-worthy wrap or sandwich. Keto, low-carb, paleo, Whole30 and gluten-free.
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Updated August 2022
Quick & Easy Keto Chicken Salad With Avocado
This healthy chicken salad is a convenient one-bowl recipe that gives last night’s chicken a glorious revival. Its wonderfully creamy consistency is perfectly contrasted by the pops of texture from the diced celery, sliced almonds and chopped red onion. With tons of different mix-in possibilities, you’ll be whipping up a different version of this dish whenever your fridge is stocked with leftover chicken!
Although it’s a staple at our house year-round, we especially enjoy making this salad in the summertime and having them in our arsenal for back-to-school lunches. There’s no need to turn on the stove or the oven since the meat has already been cooked! It’s so nice to be able to satisfy your hunger without having to heat up your house in the process and it works great for meal prep.
What makes this Chicken Salad healthy?
This wholesome salad is made with real ingredients and keeps the carbs to a minimum. In fact, it only has 2 grams per serving! The calories are also kept minimal and on top of that, each portion packs in the protein with a whopping 19 grams. This dish is entirely gluten-free, dairy-free, low carb, keto-friendly and Whole30 compliant.
What You’ll Need
Let’s talk about the ingredients that make up this healthy masterpiece. The exact amounts are included in the recipe card below this post.
- Cooked Chicken: Chopped or shredded. Go ahead and pick up a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store if you don’t have any leftovers hanging around. Alternatively, you can use three 5-ounce cans of premium chunk drained chicken breast in water.
- Celery: Diced.
- Red Onion: Finely chopped.
- Ripe Avocado: Cut into small chunks.
- Fresh Chopped Parsley
- Keto/Whole30-Compliant Mayonnaise: Make your Mayo From Scratch or use a trusted brand like Primal Kitchen. If you’re not Whole30, keto or paleo, feel free to use Greek yogurt instead.
- Dijon Mustard
- Lemon Juice: Freshly squeezed.
- Fine Sea Salt: Or pink salt, added to taste.
- Freshly Cracked Black Pepper: To taste.
- Sliced Almonds: Optional.
How to Make the Best Chicken Salad
This creamy chicken salad comes together in the blink of an eye. Here’s how it’s done!
- Shred or Chop Chicken: Add the chicken to a large bowl and shred it with two forks. If preferred, you can chop it up over a cutting board instead. You could also use your stand mixer to shred the chicken, setting it to medium speed.
- Prep Veggies: Chop up the onion, celery, parsley and avocado.
- Combine Ingredients: Add the chicken, chopped veggies, mayo, mustard, lemon juice, salt and black pepper to a large bowl. Use a fork or a spoon to toss and combine the ingredients. Fold in the sliced almonds if you’re using them.
- Season to Taste: Taste the chicken salad and adjust the seasonings by adding more salt, pepper or Dijon mustard if desired.
- Serve or Chill: You can eat your salad straight out of the bowl or chill it in the fridge for an hour so it gets nice and cold. If you choose to let it sit in the fridge, be sure to cover it well.
Tips for Success
Don’t start whipping up your chicken salad just yet – take a second to look over these helpful tips first.
- Do a Taste Test: I’m big on taste testing my food before I give it the official green light. That way, I can tweak the flavor if necessary before I portion it out and serve it.
- Chill the Salad: Another thing I’m big on? A cold and refreshing chicken salad. Chilling your salad for an hour before you dig in also allows the flavors to meld and blossom.
- Don’t Leave It Out at Room Temperature: This probably comes as no surprise, but it’s best to keep your salad in the fridge if you’re not enjoying it right away. Meat can get exposed to harmful bacteria if it’s left at room temperature for longer than 2 hours.
Add-In Ideas
There are tons of different things you can mix into this salad or use as a topping to switch it up. Try out one of the options below!
- Cucumber Slices
- Chopped Hard-Boiled Eggs
- Garlic Powder
- Sliced Green Onion
- Sweet Pickle Relish
- Red Pepper Flakes
- Chopped Pecans or Walnuts
- Sliced Cherry Tomatoes
- Smoked Paprika
- Raisins or Dried Cranberries (if not keto/low-carb)
Serving Suggestions
We love to use this chicken salad for lettuce wraps or Stuffed Avocados, but it’s also amazing on its own! If you’re in the mood for a sandwich, I highly recommend stuffing your salad between two pieces of this fluffy Keto Bread. Add some tomato slices and your favorite greens to complete the dish.
Once you’ve made a plan for your creamy chicken salad, it’s time to add a side dish to the mix. These Crispy Zucchini Chips are a fail-proof choice whether you bake them or roast them in the Air Fryer. If you’d prefer another recipe that requires zero cooking, this colorful Fruit Salad is calling your name!
How to Store Extras
Leftover chicken salad should be kept in an airtight container in the fridge. It will stay good for up to 3 days.
Does This Freeze Well?
Any salad made with mayo is not going to be freezer-friendly. If you tried to store your salad in the freezer, the oils would separate and make it soggy.
More Low-Carb Salads to Try
Give your leftover lunch meat a makeover with this easy 10-minute Chicken Salad Recipe! Made with crunchy celery, creamy avocado, crisp red onion and more, you can enjoy your salad by itself or turn it into a crave-worthy wrap or sandwich. Keto, low-carb, paleo, Whole30 and gluten-free.
- 2 cups cooked chicken chopped (leftover or rotisserie)
- 1/4 cup celery diced
- 1 tablespoon red onion finely chopped
- 1/2 ripe avocado cut into small chunks
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped
- 2/3 cup Keto / Whole30 compliant mayonnaise homemade or Primal Kitchen (can also sub with Greek yogurt if not Whole30, Paleo or keto)
- 2 teaspoons Dijon Mustard
- 2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- fine sea salt or pink salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons sliced almonds optional
SHRED OR CHOP CHICKEN: Add chicken to a large bowl and shred with two forks or chop on a cutting board. You can also use your stand mixer to shred the chicken on medium.
PREP VEGGIES: Chop the onion, celery, parsley and avocado.
COMBINE INGREDIENTS: Add the chicken, chopped veggies, mayo, Dijon, fresh lemon, salt and black pepper to a large bowl and use a fork or spoon to toss and combine. Fold in almond, if using.
SEASON: Taste and adjust seasonings by adding more salt, pepper and Dijon mustard to taste.
ENJOY RIGHT AWAY: You can eat it straight out of the bowl or chill it in the fridge first.
OR CHILL IN THE FRIDGE: Cover with plastic wrap or store in an airtight container with a lid and refrigerate for 1 hour or up to 3 days.
SERVE: Serve over a salad, in lettuce wraps or stuffed in avocados for a Whole30, Paleo or Low Carb version. For those who do not have dietary concerns: Make chicken salad sandwiches using your favorite croissants or keto bread.
Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Did you try this recipe?
Natalie -
Yum! This was so good! We make it once a week, thanks!