Chicken Waldorf Salad
Chicken Waldorf Salad is a classic salad made with apples, grapes, pecans and celery in a light, creamy dressing. It’s the perfect combination of sweet, savory and nutty with complimentary creamy and crunchy textures.
Chicken Waldorf Salad
For a quick lunch, I like to serve over a bed of greens such as baby arugula and baby spinach, or a chicken salad lettuce wrap, or with a whole grain roll or wrap. Other salads I like to whip up are Creamy Shrimp and Cucumber Salad and Tuna Salad Wraps.
Originating from the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City in 1893, this salad is filled with lean protein, fruit and heart-healthy nuts, lightened up using a mayo and Greek yogurt creamy dressing. This is a Fall favorite, especially when apples and walnuts are in season. It’s also the perfect fruit salad any time you have leftover chicken or even turkey like the day after Thanksgiving.
Waldorf Salad Ingredients
- Apples
- Grapes (seedless)
- Celery
- Walnuts or pecans
- Chicken (poached) or
- Mayo
- Leafy greens like arugula and baby spinach or romaine lettuce
- Salt and pepper
How To Make Waldorf Chicken Salad
More Chicken Salad Recipes You Make Like:
- Cilantro Chicken Salad
- Chicken Salad with Lemon and Dill
- Lighter Classic Chicken Salad
- Houston’s Grilled Chicken Salad
- BBQ Chicken Salad
Chicken Waldorf Salad
Ingredients
- 7 oz 1 breast poached chicken breast (recipe follows)
- 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 medium apple, peeled and cut into small cubes (I used Granny Smith)
- 1 cup red seedless grapes, cut in half
- 1/2 cup celery, chopped
- 1/4 cup light Hellman's mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp 0% Greek yogurt, I like Stonyfield
- Kosher salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp pecans or walnuts
- 6 cups mixed baby greens like spinach and arugula
Instructions
- To poach chicken breast: Cover chicken breast in broth in a small pot, add water if it doesn't cover the chicken.
- Add salt and pepper, a piece of celery and it's leaves (you could add herbs like parsley, garlic, onion, or whatever you want) and bring to a boil.
- Reduce to a simmer and cook 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat, cover tight and let it sit for 15-20 minutes or until thickest part of the breast registers 160 degrees. Chicken will be cooked through.
- Drain, let it cool and cut into small cubes.
- Combine mayo, yogurt, salt, pepper and mix well.
- Add chicken, grapes, apples, celery, and let it chill in the refrigerator until you are ready to eat it.
- Mix in pecans right before serving.
- Serve over baby greens.
Video
Nutrition
Photo Credit: Jess Larson
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Loved it, and didn’t think I liked Waldorf salad, but we loved this one. Husband back for seconds. my raw chicken breast was 11 ounces, but did use it all in recipe, ( 8 ounces cooked) like easy poaching. Added dried tarragon to mayo/yogurt. Had variety of roasted nuts to try, let pick own. Husband fond of cashews. I did a few pistachios. So any nut is good. Such a nice salad on a hot day. I used a spinach arugula mix. Plan to make for company, nice lunch. Thank you
So this is simple and delicious! I used pre-shredded chicken from the grocery store. Added all the ingredients except for the Greek yogurt (because I am doing Whole30) and the chicken mixture tastes DIVINE! I am looking forward to lunch this week, that’s for sure!
could we substitute roast turkey for the chicken? Trying to find a way to use up the left over turkey from Thanksgiving. Thank you.
This salad is delicious 😋
The poached chicken is a game changer! The salad was very flavorful!
Thank you, Gina
You’re welcome! 🙂
This was delicious! Can I freeze leftovers?
Can leftover salad be stored in the freezer without changing the consistency/taste?
That was very good. I had a scoop on my plate. My hubby made a sandwich.
My boyfriend couldn’t believe I was going to make this, as I never ever like fruit in salad. But we had a bunch of extra grapes and celery and I love chicken salad so I gave it a whirl. It’s delicious and nutritious! My chicken turned out a bit chewy and dry, which was surprising to me using the poaching method. I’ve never poached chicken before but thought it was the alternative to boiling to retain moisture. I’ll have to work on it. Also, I added red onions, Italian parsley, dried dill, and sunflower seeds. I like a lot of crunch. I feel like I’ve expanded my horizons today enjoying not one but TWO kinds of fruit in a salad! Thanks 🙂
Nice light and refreshing meal that filled me up!
I needed to make this dairy free so used a dairy free yogurt. Was worried it would not taste as good, but it was great! My college aged daughter couldn’t get enough of it.
Love this recipe, which I have made often, but I really HATE having to fight my way through over DOZENS fo pop-up ads [I lost count after 20] embedded within the recipe text as well as along the right side and along the bottom of the screen. I know advertising is how you make a living wage, but there are hundreds of recipes websites that don’t bombard you with multiple animated ads that interrupt and distract from the flow of the content. I haven’t encountered this kind of interruption on your site before, so if this is something new, I may have to cancel my subscription to your site — a very sad loss since I cook your meals several times a week.
i agree the pop up ads stop me from searching
I’m not a big fan of mayonnaise but this turned out fantastic! Will make again and again.
Best lunch I’ve had in a while, so delicious! I baked my chicken in the oven the night before and then put the rest together in the morning. Was able to take enough for 4 salads worth. So tasty and my husband loves it too.
Made this morning for lunch. Subbed light sour cream for the yogurt. Had leftover chicken from whole rosemary chicken in the slow cooker. Love your recipes.
Winner winner! I made a 1 1/2 batch to prep mason jar salads for my workweek, and Monday’s lunch was so delicious that I can’t wait til lunch tomorrow! I sauteed the chicken instead of poaching, as I was cooking up a whole bunch to have on hand frozen for a couple of weeks, and put the pecans in a separate small container to keep them crisp. Definitely a recipe going into regular rotation!
Loved it! Even my boyfriend, who doesn’t usually like salads, loved it!
Hey Gina- How many servings does this make? I’m doing meal prep for the week and my husband is not in town so I’m tweaking things in order to not over-cook. 🙂 . Thanks!
Love it!
Very yummy! I had a very small leftover grilled chicken breast so I combined that with some leftover rotisserie chicken and made this recipe. It was easy and is tasty. I ate it with butter lettuce and it was a delicious, easy lunch.
Wonderful recipe to avoid getting into a rut eating grilled chicken. I use 12 ounces of chicken and poach it in 4 cups of broth. I like to have 4 ounces of chicken per serving. I left everything else the same. (I strain the broth after the chicken is cooked and use it for Dad’s Favorite Cauliflower Soup or other soup recipes.) I have served this with lettuce as written, have used Good Thin Corn Crackers for a quick lunch, and have added mini croissants when I had 8 lunch guests. All my guests wanted the recipe. I can’t count the number of times I have made this chicken salad.
Easy and so yummy! Brought to a pot-luck and everyone loved it! I used leftover chicken I had on hand from grilled chicken breasts on the grill the other night. Made the recipe even easier!
This was a huge hit! My husband asked me for it again this week for his lunches! Thank you!
I’ve made this every week for the last 3 weeks because of the heat! So good! I use store bought rotisserie chicken to make my life easier!
This is really just the best chicken salad ever. My husband and I are obsessed with it. The flavor is amazing, it’s like this combination of sweet and salty that works so well. We like to have a triple batch so we have lunches for an entire week. We either eat it with crackers or on a wrap, but I’ve also had it over lettuce and it’s delicious that way too. I modify the fruit slightly to my preferences, using green grapes and some variation of a red apple (gala, Fuji, etc.). I have made this with shredded chicken, rotisserie chicken, canned chicken – it’s always perfect! Both types of nuts are great on top too, although I think it’s best with walnuts.
Made the Chicken Waldorf Salad this morning. It was simple and so good! Love your recipes.
I love all your recipes and use the meal planner all the time. I may tweak some of the suggestions to fit my families likes but basically use yours. The grocery list is the bomb!
I make this recipe all the time. One of my favorites from Skinny Taste. I buy the cooked Rotisserie chicken from Costco,
Love this recipe! So simple yet so delicious!
I’ve made this recipe frequently. If I’m in a pinch for time I usually sub in canned chicken and it’s still really good that way too.
How long will this salad be good for if it’s kept in the refrigerator?
Such a great combination of flavors and a unique chicken salad.
I have made this many times and love it. Costco sells Rotisserie chicken meat in a sealed bag. I divide it in 3rds and use one and freeze the other two. That way I always have chicken ready.
Thanks for the awesome tip about the Costco chicken! Great idea!
Made this for our lunches this week and it was delicious! I ate mine with both pita bread and over greens. This is now in our lunch rotation! I followed the recipe exactly and really liked how the chicken turned out. It was super moist and easy to cube.
This salad is divine. I was skeptical about poaching the chicken – sounded so . . . boiled! But I cooked it exactly as specified in the recipe, adding onion, celery, salt & pepper, and a little fresh oregano and thyme from the garden. Super moist chicken – I am now a convert for cooking chicken in this way for a salad. Doesn’t need any additional tweaks for me as its delicious just the way it is. Going on the regular rotation!
Made this recipe yesterday and it was so good!!! Followed the recipe as written. I cook for one and am always looking for recipes that I can easily adapt for smaller servings. With the help of your delicious recipes I have lost 25 pounds!!! I am in my late 70’s .and am thrilled !!!!
Congrats Helen! That is awesome!
Thank you! I tried this and it is delicious! I am having a baby shower for my daughter and will increase the recipe for 30 people. Shouldn’t be too hard do you think? Thank you again!
I figured this on my weight watchers app using the nutritional info and it came out to 8 points??????
The only accurate way to determine any recipe’s SmartPoints® value is to plug the ingredients into the recipe builder on the Weight Watchers website (Click on “My Foods,” select “Recipe,” and click “Create a recipe.”)
The SmartPoints® calculator isn’t meant for recipes and will often give you the wrong points (usually higher) because it’s counting 0 points foods such as eggs, chicken, fruits and vegetables. So if you see a recipe with a SmartPoints® value that’s different from what the calculator tells you, that is why.
QUESTION: Would you be able to make this ahead of time as a Mason Jar Salad? I am a teacher wanting to meal prep 🙂 Thanks so much!!!
I can’t stop eating this for lunch! I am from the Deep South where chicken salad reigns, and I have never had a better healthy version of one of my favorite meals. I make everyone who comes over try it for themselves.
Can not wait! Made this tonight for lunch tomorrow.
I just tried this recipe, very good.
Thanks for keeping me inspired.
The only change I made was to leave the peel on the apple. It was delicious! The dressing has just the right amount of sweetness and tang. I put the salad on a mixture of romaine and arugula and thought the bite of the arugula was perfect with the salad.
Gina – do you let it cool in the broth? Important point and confusing in your directions.
Never mind – I found your poaching technique. Sorry!
Drain to cool
Can this be made ahead of time to eat through our the week?
I made this recipe last night and it was a hit! Super easy and great as a make ahead lunch or dinner. One cup over baby greens was the perfect amount for my dinner. I will be making this again while the grapes are still in season. Thanks Gina!
This salad was delicious but it is DYING for some red onion. I added some to the remainder of the bowl and the next servings were perfect
Made this for dinner tonight and we loved it. My son had 3 servings in a wrap. Used miracle whip lite and with lite mayo for a little sweetness. Thanks for all the delicious recipes you give us?
Can someone help me!
The recipes follow both Freestyle Points and Points+. When I log the recipes on the WW app, it seems to follow the Points+. Is anyone else experiencing this?
I seem to be having a similar issue – when I enter in the nutritional info above my app actually shows me 1cup is worth 8 points
The only accurate way to determine any recipe’s SmartPoints® value is to plug the ingredients into the recipe builder on the Weight Watchers website (Click on “My Foods,” select “Recipe,” and click “Create a recipe.”) which does not count fruits and vegetables in recipes in the calculations as they are now 0 points.
The SmartPoints® calculator isn’t meant for recipes and will often give you the wrong points (usually higher) because it’s counting the fruits and vegetables. So if you see a recipe with a SmartPoints® value that’s different from what the calculator tells you, now you know why.
Oh my goodness— this is amazing! I love love love this recipe— I made it even easier by using rotisserie chicken so there was no real cooking involved. Otherwise, I followed the recipe exactly. Perfect for a light and healthy summer lunch.
It’s looks so yummy, thank you for sharing this amazing recipe!
Easy and delicious. Used vegan mayo and added some lemon juice to the dressing. Will definitely be a constant at home. Thanks for sharing!!!
I’ve made this for years, without apples, for chicken salad sandwiches. I’ll have to add the apples from now on.
I make this all the time. It is delicious.
I am flashing back to my mother’s chicken waldorff salad. Thank you for lightening it up without losing the wonderfulness of the original!
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Made this for dinner this week and OMG. My fiance is a notoriously finicky eater and he has been devouring the leftovers (of which there are many, if you’re doing sandwiches!) all week and telling me enthusiastically that I should make this again.
Instead of poaching the chicken, I cooked it in the 2 cups of fat-free broth with the celery, salt, and pepper using my crock pot (4 hours on high). I also added a bit of thyme. The chicken turned out tender and delicious even before mixing it in with everything else.
Hi! Sounds wonderful, but not sure of the Freestyle points…do you know the amount?
Smart points have been updated to reflect the free style program.
Is this bone in breast or boneless?? Doesn’t specify
I made this for my lunch this week and it is delicious! I have lost 23 lbs so far with the help of your recipes. Thank you!
That is awesome!!! Congrats!!
How long can this last in the fridge? I make my lunches for the week on the weekend and eat them throughout the week would this last?
I made this for lunches earlier this week…I used Spectrum canola mayo because that is what I have on hand. It was very good! The flavor seemed to have more depth than I was expecting seeing as the dressing was just yogurt, mayo and s&p.
For some reason the Spectrum mayo is super rich, so next week I am going to try and reverse the amounts and use 1/4 c yogurt and 2 TBS mayo. I did use chopped walnuts instead of whole and I mixed them all in with everything else.
Is the serving one cup of the chicken mixture, or does that include the lettuce as well??
Is the serving one cup of the chicken mixture, or does that include the lettuce as well??
Looks very appetizing! 🙂
This salad is delicious- I just finished a portion! I went with Pecans (don't care for walnuts) and man it really hit the spot! We try to cook lunch and breakfast for the week on Sundays, so we made a big double batch of this and I am glad we did! We used chicken that we had cooked in the crockpot for the pistachio cinnamon chicken salad (that was last week's lunch), and we chose butter lettuce for our greens. Fiance loved it, and so did I. I wonder though – if you have 7 oz of uncooked chicken, how much pre-cooked chicken should be used?
Fantastic! I went lighter on the mayo and heavier on the Greek yogurt. I did forget the pecans, but it was delicious without it!
Just made this — it's delicious! I've always strongly disliked mayo, but lately I've had the most intense cravings for mayo-laden salads (macaroni, potato, chicken…and no, I'm not pregnant haha!) However, I'm trying to lose weight so I decided to try your lightened-up version…this tastes great and I can't wait to enjoy it over a bed of spinach for dinner tonight!
This was really good. Not too crazy about the sauce because I could taste the mayo but maybe I put too much mayo.
Gina, I put this in half of a cantaloupe, loved the sweet addition and no points added!
Just tried this today. Very good. Thanks! I think it made it to MyFitnessPal.com's database so it totally helped out my diet plan today!
I made this today for lunch! delicious!!
You must have put it in the calculator wrong, it's 6 points plus. Just updated!
Sorry redid it and it came out to 6 points plus. 🙂
You don't have the points plus here so I tried to figure it out using your other stats (carbs, protein etc.) I must have done something wrong it came out to 25 points. I don't have any of the profile things so i am anonymous. 🙁
When I saw this I thought "I think I really should try eating healthier food from now on" I will try make this one. Looks really delicious.
Really, really delicious! I made 3X the recipe and had enough all week for salads and sandwiches. Also have never poached chicken before – so worth the work!
Well, i am now craving to taste this delicious waldorf salad, thanx for all this.
This recipes was best the second day. The juices really settled and melded together in a way that made it pop! Will make again.
This salad is delicious! I serve it with spinach lasagna! I do not put sugar in the dressing, Fuji apples and raisins make it pretty sweet.
I love it! I added a little cinnamon to enhance the flavors.
Very easy salad to make and delicious. Didn't have walnuts so used chopped almonds.
I added red onions and left out the golden raisins and it was a great balance of sweet/salty/sour
Awesome! I usually substitute regular raisins for the golden raisins… but other than that – it's a great recipe for a summer lunch.
and textures. I served this over a bed of baby arugula and baby spinach, but this is also wonderful on a whole grain roll or in a healthy low carb wrap.
When I was a kid, I remember helping my mom make waldorf salad. I remember cool whip, miracle whip, walnuts , grapes and diced apples. I don't remember much else that she put into it. All of the recipes I have found has celery in it. I remember hers did not have it in it. I wish I would have gotten her recipe, kind of late for that. Please if you have a recipe to share. This was also served more as a dessert, not as a base for a chicken/turkey/etc. salad.
This is pretty cool recipe, looks so fresh. Thanks for posting a recipe like this. I will love it for sure.
I think i will love it. I better bake it too. Thank you for the idea and the recipe looking forward to learn more recipes.
I really like your recipe. Thanks for the share.
Well, I am now hooked with your yummy blogs! Post more! Thanks for the share.
Well, I have made it a couple of times and each time I have used a different flavored yogurt, a great fruit salad without the meat also. thanx for posting.
I think The mayonnaise dressing is perfect and a bit different, with apple juice, yogurt, and celery seeds mixed in. Thanx for the post.
This is a great recipe for this classic salad chock full of apples, walnuts, celery, and grapes. The mayonnaise dressing is perfect and a bit different, with apple juice, yogurt, and celery seeds mixed in.
I Used regular yogurt because it's what was in the fridge. Two thumbs up…my husband said I could make it anytime. thanx for sharing.
I made this, didn't have any mayo–light or otherwise and so I put a small container of lite flavored yogurt, I loved it, it was even more fruity, and I have made it a couple of times and each time I have used a different flavored yogurt, a great fruit salad without the meat also.
@Andrea- Sorry if you didn't understand, you cover it with the lid, the steam in the pot with the flame off cooks the chicken. And yes, you can shred it for chicken enchiladas.
When you poach a chicken, what do you cover it in after cooking in a pot? you stated "Remove from heat, cover tight and let it sit for 15-20 minutes or until thickest part of the breast registers 160 degrees." Will the chicken shred easy so I can use it in the chicken enchilada recipe???
This is a great recipe for a hot summer day. Thanks for sharing! I have never used greek yogurt in a recipe so this will be a first.
Had this for lunch today! Used regular yogurt because it's what was in the fridge. Two thumbs up…my husband said I could make it anytime!
Ohh no… I am now craving to taste this delicious waldorf salad. I am now hooked with your yummy blogs! Post more! Thanks
This looks great! I don't eat mayo, what do you suggest I use for an alternative? Low fat creamy Italian? How does that alter the points? Thanks!
Greek yogurt!
Thank you so much for this wonderful site!! Absolutely fantastic!!! thank you for sharing and for all your work!!
I think I really should try eating healthier food s from now one. I will start with this salad. It looks delicious.
looks good – this may just be part of my weekend recipes.
Thanks
Yum- I love waldorf salad but haven't had it in years because it's so naughty! Thanks for lightening it up1
That looks so good!! I am going to have to try it out 🙂
mmmmm one of my favorite salads! YUM!
I've bookmarked this to give it a try. Perfect for summer.
What is Greek yogurt?
looks good think I will try it too
i love waldorf salad! i think i'll try this & put it in a low-point pita! 🙂 yum!