Curried Chicken Salad
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
This curried chicken salad is a perfect blend of savory, sweet, and a little spicy, with a satisfying crunch from grapes, cashews, and celery.
I originally shared this curried chicken salad on my salad column on Serious Eats in 2011. All these years later, it remains one of my favorites. Savory, sweet, and a little spicy—with lots of fresh crunch from grapes, cashews, celery, and scallions—it’s wonderful over greens, piled into a sandwich, or even as a lettuce wrap. The creamy dressing is flavored with curry powder, a blend of spices like coriander, cumin, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, and cardamom, to name just a few. I recommend using poached chicken to make the salad, but roasted chicken breasts or a rotisserie chicken work just as well.
Table of Contents
“I have been making chicken salad for years and this is the best of all my recipes!”
What You’ll Need To Make Curried Chicken Salad
- Mayonnaise: Creates a creamy base that holds the salad together. The mayo also adds richness to the overall flavor.
- Sour Cream: Lightens up the mayonnaise with a tangy note, contributing to a more balanced and smooth texture.
- Curry Powder: Infuses the dish with a deep, warm spice blend that gives the salad its distinctive curried flavor.
- Honey: Sweetens the dressing to balance the savory curry and sour lime juice, creating a more complex flavor profile.
- Lime Juice: Adds brightness and acidity, cutting through the richness of the mayonnaise and enhancing the fresh taste of the salad.
- Cooked Shredded Chicken: Provides the protein and substance for the salad, making it filling and satisfying. See recipe note for specific guidance on cooking the chicken.
- Celery: Adds a crisp, refreshing texture that contrasts with the creamy dressing and tender chicken.
- Seedless Grapes: Introduces a burst of sweetness and juiciness, complementing the savory and spicy elements of the dish.
- Scallions: Offers a mild onion flavor with a hint of sharpness, adding complexity without overwhelming the other ingredients. They also add a pop of color to the salad.
- Cayenne Pepper: Provides an optional touch of heat for those who like a bit of spice.
- Cashews: Adds a rich, buttery crunch with a slight saltiness, providing texture and a savory balance to the sweet and spicy notes.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
Make the dressing: In a medium bowl, combine the mayonnaise, sour cream, curry powder, honey, lime juice, and salt.
Whisk to combine.
Add the chicken, celery, grapes, scallions, cashews, and a pinch of cayenne pepper, if desired, to the dressing (if not serving immediately, hold off on adding the cashews so they stay crunchy).
Toss well, and then taste and adjust the seasoning, if necessary. (If using a rotisserie chicken, be careful when mixing so that it doesn’t fall apart too much.)
Chill the curried chicken salad until ready to serve.
Make-Ahead Instructions
This salad can be made and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Wait to add the cashews until right before serving, otherwise they will get soft.
You May Also Like
Curried Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- ½ cup mayonnaise best quality such as Hellmann's or Duke's
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- 1½ tablespoons honey
- 1½ tablespoons fresh lime juice from 1 lime
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 4½ cups cooked shredded chicken see note
- 3 large stalks celery diced
- 1 cup seedless grapes halved
- 3 scallions, light and dark green parts, finely sliced
- Pinch cayenne pepper (optional)
- ⅔ cup salted cashews
Instructions
- Make the dressing: In a large bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, curry powder, honey, lime juice, and salt.
- To the dressing, add the chicken, celery, grapes and scallions. Toss well to combine, then taste and adjust seasoning, adding the cayenne pepper, if desired. Cover the chicken salad with plastic wrap and chill until ready to serve. Right before serving, stir in the cashews (adding them at the last minute ensures they stay crunchy).
- Note: I use poached chicken for this recipe. If you'd like to use roasted chicken, you'll need 3 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts. Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Arrange the chicken breasts skin-side up on the prepared baking sheet. Coat with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle both sides with 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Roast for 30 to 35 minutes, or until done. Let cool. (You may also use a rotisserie chicken.)
- Make-Ahead Instructions: This salad can be made and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Wait to add the cashews until right before serving, otherwise they will get soft.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
This looks delicious! Question, do you chop the cashews or add them whole?
Thanks!
Hi Katie, I generally add them whole, but feel free to chop them if you’d like.
I have this recipe bookmarked and is amazing! Everyone that’s tried it loves it!
Loved this recipe! Flavor is amazing. I did add a sprinkle of cayenne pepper which added a little kick to it. I think I will try plain yogurt instead of sour cream the next time I make it just to save on calories.
Made this recipe with rotisserie chicken. Since cherries are great right now, I substituted cherries cut in half for the grapes. Otherwise followed the recipe. It was great!
Made as written. We both loved it. I did add the cayenne pepper for some zip.
This is a fantastic recipe! I added much more curry seasoning as a personal preference and the optional cayenne is a wonderful kick to an amazing recipe. Love, love, love it!!!
Hi, Love all your recipes! Your site is the first place I go to !
Question… I would like to serve your curry chicken salad for a lunch date. My question is what can I serve for a first course? I plan to serve the salad on butter lettuce in a bowl with bread, but would like a first course.
Any suggestions? Since I’m asking, what about desserts well?
Thanks for your help.
Deborah
Hi Deborah, You could do a fruit and cheese platter or a veggie platter with dip. Or if you want more of a classic first course, I think a cold soup would be nice. This golden gazpacho would be a great option, and I have a cucumber yogurt soup in my first cookbook that’s wonderful (happy to email you the recipe if you don’t have the book — just email me at jennifer@onceuponachef.com).
Having tested recipes for your first book (if you do a third, I’d love to be a tester again!), your recipes are a “go to” for me when I’m looking for inspiration. This chicken salad is outstanding! Like some others, I made one slight substitution and used dried cranberries instead of the grapes since I didn’t feel like running to the store. Last night’s dinner leftovers became today’s lunch and it is simply delicious! Thank you for being a inspiration and for creating simple yet elegant meals.
I didn’t think anything could be better than your chicken salad; then I tried the curried one. I wish there were more than five stars. What a delicious meal – with or without bread. So easy to poach the chicken ahead of time and then just toss it all together. Now I will have to try the almond one.
These are just amazing.
This was an instant success. The only change I made was to substitute plain yogurt for the sour cream. This is the fourth recipe of yours that I have tried and they were all perfect. I love to cook, and my answer to being stuck at home is to try new recipes. Thank you so much.