This lesson is 405 words, a 1 minute and 37 second read time. It is a part of Lunch 2.0 and The MaxF Meal Prep collection.
📍 Introduction:
Chicken salad is one of the most delicious, nutritious, versatile, and high-leverage meal prep items you can make. My parents typically keep some in their refrigerator, and as of last night, I’ve decided that I will do the same.
What’s excellent about chicken salad is that it’s a neutral base primed for creativity & experimentation. You have an ultimate say on add-ins, sauce flavorings, etc.
Go ahead and get creative. Chicken salad awaits!
📓 Ingredients Reference Guide:
Components
Chicken (cooked)
Sweet (e.g., diced apples, green grapes, dried fruit like raisins, cranberries, or cherries)
Crunch (e.g., cucumber, apples, diced white onion or scallion, nuts like chopped walnuts/pecans or slivered almonds )
Dressing:
Creamy (e.g., tahini, mayonnaise, yogurt, sour cream)
Tangy (e.g., dijon, other mustards, yogurt, lemon juice)
Spices (e.g., curry, turmeric, pepper, cayenne)
Herbs: tarragon leaves, dill, parsley
Salt: kosher salt, maldon flakes, fleur de sel
Base
Carbs: bread/toast, pasta, crackers
Greens: arugula, spinach, romaine, butter lettuce leaves
Prepped items: salad, sandwich, grain bowl
✅ Instructions:
Cook chicken (e.g., roast/bake, poach, sous-vide)
Once cool enough to handle, pull apart the chicken into bite-sized pieces
Prepare toppings (e.g., slice produce, toast nuts)
Make sauce & taste along the way
Add sauce gradually & mix everything
Serve, enjoy or save!
📝 Notes Tips & Tricks
For the most tender chicken possible, sous vide to 155°F
This is a great way to use up leftover roasted chicken.
Mix the sauce separately from everything else so that the spices don’t clump and stick onto individual ingredients
Toasted nuts have more flavor & crunch.
There are many ways to serve chicken salad (e.g., sandwich, wrap, lettuce wrap, on top of a salad, as a dip for crackers)
Room temperature is typically tastier than cold
Don’t leave chicken salad out for more than 4 hours.
Chicken salad lasts in the fridge for about a week (use sniff test)
🗂 Recipe Box
Michelle’s curry/traditional: sous-vide chicken breasts marinated/cooked in olive oil, salt, a few cloves of garlic and lemon juice (to 155°F) pulled apart into bite-sized pieces by hand, raisins, apples (sliced thin & small); sauce (50% yogurt/ 50% mayonnaise, curry powder, salt and splash of honey and lemon juice)
🎓 Further Study
Roasted Whole Chicken [Life School]
Toasted Nuts [Life School]
Tuna Salad 🎬📓 [Life School]
Building a Balanced Sandwich 🗝 [Life School]
How to Poach Chicken [Downshiftology]
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