Healthy Cashew Chicken Salad (dairy Free)

When in doubt, just go with chicken salad. Whenever I am in a food rut, this is a go-to of mine. This healthy cashew chicken salad is perfect for food prep and is great for sandwiches, or to eat as is. You can’t go wrong with delicious ingredients like cashews, apples, and celery mixed with a perfectly creamy dressing. 

Keep It Clean… It’s All About the Dressing

There are so many recipes for chicken salad (and I’m sure they are all

delicious… it’s hard to mess up chicken salad), but this one my friends is all

cleaned up. How? It’s all about the dressing.

I still use mayonnaise in this cashew chicken salad, but it’s the kind of mayo that really matters. I also use some Greek yogurt to balance the flavor. 

Mayonnaise – Mayonnaise gets a bad wrap since most of them are made from unhealthy oils and sugar. In order to keep your healthy chicken salad clean, you need to buy the right mayonnaise and sweeten with a natural sweetener.

Both  Primal Kitchen and Sir Kensington’s make great avocado oil mayonnaises (avocado oil is a very clean oil). But always check the ingredient label to make sure the only oil used is avocado oil. Some may say “made with avocado oil”, but they also contain canola or other unhealthy oils.

Greek yogurt – I use Kite Hill unsweetened Greek style yogurt (plain/unsweetened) since I limit dairy as much as I can, but you can use regular Greek style yogurt if you’re not dairy free (just make sure it’s unsweetened and preferably organic).

In addition to mayonnaise and Greek yogurt, you’ll need fresh lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, honey, dry mustard powder, and salt & pepper. Clean ingredients and a natural sweetener.

Is Cubed or Shredded Chicken Better?

I’ve made it both ways, but I prefer shredded chicken. And the key to the BEST shredded chicken is using a hand-held blender to shred it! Yes, I said a blender. Trust me! If you’ve never shredded your chicken using a blender you need to try it!

Using a blender

shreds the chicken in an entirely different way, I can’t really explain it. But

it keeps the chicken super moist (hate that word, but I had to use it) and creates

a whole different texture for the chicken (it’s almost “soft”). Sounds weird,

but give it a try!

And remember to let your chicken fully cool before shredding or cutting into cubes. And if you do use a hand-held blender to shred it, cut the chicken into smaller pieces first… this just makes it easier to shred.

What to Eat with Cashew Chicken Salad

You can’t go wrong with a good sandwich! Since I am gluten-free, I like making little chicken salad sliders with Simple Mills Artisan Bread mix… use this to make buns and it’s perfect for chicken salad sliders!

Or, it’s great just thrown over a bed of lettuces, add some avocado, tomatoes, or any other veggies and you have a perfect salad!

How Long Does This Healthy Chicken Salad Last?

Chicken salad is great for food prep! Keep in an air-tight container in the fridge and it will last for up to 5 days.

The cashews do get a little soft once they have sat in the salad for a day or so. If that bugs you, add the cashews right before you are going to eat it.

Looking for more salad options? Check these out!

Healthy Broccoli Salad

Butternut Squash and Apple Salad

Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad

Did you make this healthy cashew chicken salad? Please let me know what you think! Leave a comment below, give me a star rating, and/or share a photo on Instagram and mention @CleanPlateMama!

Eat Clean.Be Healthy!