Avocado Chicken Waldorf Salad

Change up your lunch with this satisfying, mayo-free Avocado Chicken Waldorf Salad that’s chock-full of healthy fats and all the flavors.

A classic chicken salad with a healthy, fatty, delicious twist!

I love chicken salad. All kinds. In fact, I think we have about 6 different variations of a chicken salad here on our blog. Here’s what we have shared thus far: Curry Chicken Salad, Blueberry Chicken Salad with Rosemary, Classic Waldorf Chicken Salad, Strawberry Chicken Poppy Seed Salad, Asian Chicken Salad and now this one (and it probably won’t be the last)! When made wholesome with the right ingredients, chicken salads make for a very satisfying lunch option because they’re full of healthy fats, quality protein and they’re quite tasty if you ask me. All key components of a healthy meal!

Essentially, I took our scrumptious Classic Waldorf Chicken Salad and instead of adding a mayo-based dressing to coat the ingredients with, I made it mayo-free by making a delicious and flavorful avocado sauce. A sauce that’s complete with heart-healthy monounsaturated fats, fiber and antioxidants thanks to the avocado. 

This mayo-free avocado sauce is multi-purpose.

Not only does this sauce make for a tasty addition to this Avocado Chicken Waldorf Salad, it can be enjoyed in countless other ways. Allow me to name a few: slather on a burger or sandwich, use as a dip for veggies, pita, blue corn chips or crackers, use it in a tuna salad, serve it on top of an omelet or egg scramble, make a hummus with it by blending it with garbanzo beans and the list goes on.

You won’t even miss the mayo in this recipe!

Because the avocado sauce is that good, you really won’t even notice the absence of mayo! In addition, by making this recipe mayo-free, this also means that it’s egg-free. Woot! It’s the perfect chicken salad for those who avoid eggs due to a sensitivity or allergy as it’s not always easy to find an egg-free mayo that’s made with wholesome ingredients.

We love sharing recipes for all to enjoy, so if you’re one who has to avoid a certain food due to an allergy, please let us know so that we can continue to create recipes with those food avoidances in mind. If you want to make this recipe vegan-friendly/plant-based, feel free to sub a can of garbanzo beans for the chicken. I’ve tried this and it’s so good!

The perfect crunch and balance of sweet & savory.

You’re going to love the combination of walnuts, grapes, and avocado in this recipe. Avocado Chicken Waldorf Salad is full of heart-healthy fats with the avocado and walnuts, making for a very palatable, healthy and satisfying meal.

And I get it, chicken can get REAL boring, so this recipe is great for jazzing up leftover grilled, baked or rotisserie chicken. Leftover turkey works, too!

Side note: Because of the avocados, this recipe will slightly brown over time but I promise, it still tastes just as delicious. This recipe will last in the fridge for 2-3 days after it’s made.

And if you’re wondering how to make the perfect chicken breast…we’ve got you covered! Jess shows you how with a step-by-step photo tutorial in this post.

Serve Avocado Chicken Waldorf Salad on a bed of greens, in a lettuce wraps, on slices of veggies, on top of gluten-free crackers (not Whole30), in a gluten-free wrap (not Whole30) or by the fork-full.

However you choose, you’re going to love this recipe!

Recipe

★★★★★ 5 from 2 reviews

Avocado Chicken Waldorf Salad

This recipe takes leftover chicken to the next level. It’s a mayo-free twist on the classic Waldorf chicken salad and best of all, it’s simple and quick to make.

Prep: 10 minsTotal: 10 mins

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Servings: 4 servings 1x

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Ingredients

• 1 medium avocado, ripe – peeled and pit removed
• 3 Tbsp. fresh basil or 2 tsp. dried basil, roughly chopped
• 1–2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1/4 tsp. sea salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 1 3/4 cups cubed cooked chicken (~3/4 lb.) – leftover chicken or turkey works great!
• 1/3 cup diced celery
• ¼ cup diced red onion
• ½ cup grapes, halved or ¼ cup dried cranberries or cherries
• ½ apple, diced (~½ cup)
• ¼ cup walnuts, chopped or nuts of choice

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Instructions

1. In a blender or food processor, blend the avocado, lemon juice, olive oil, basil, salt and pepper until smooth and creamy, scraping sides as needed. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, combine chicken, celery, red onion, grapes, apples, and nuts.
3. Stir in avocado dressing with other ingredients. Add additional salt and pepper to taste.
4. Serve on top of a bed of greens, in a lettuce wrap or on top of cucumber slices.

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Nutrition Information

• Serving Size: 1/4 of recipe
• Calories: 243
• Fat: 16 g
• Sodium: 200 mg
• Carbohydrate: 10 g
• (Fiber: 3 g
• Sugar: 5 g)
• Protein: 22 g

Dietary

Dairy-FreeEgg-FreeGluten-freeGrain-FreePaleoWhole30

© The Real Food Dietitians

Recipe By: Stacie Hassing

Photo Credit: The photos in this blog post were taken by Jess of Plays Well with Butter. 

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