This light and refreshing homemade Chicken Salad with Bacon is loaded with fresh ingredients. It is a perfect lunch to serve in a sandwich, greens or all by itself. You will never make chicken salad any other way after one bite.
Lately, I haven’t been able to get enough chicken salad. My favorite being the pre-made version from Costco. If you want to use rotisserie chicken, go ahead. I prefer to boil a few chicken breasts and shred it myself. This way the meat is juicier and doesn’t dry out during baking.
Adding bacon crumbles to the chicken salad is a game changer. Paired with the finely chopped apple bits, you get a sweet and salty mix in each bite. Not sure why I didn’t think of that before. Most chicken salad recipes call for fruits like grapes or cranberries. However, not many mention using apples. I found that using apples doesn’t overpower the salad in sweetness. It gives the scallions, dill and mustard a fair shot at flavor. Bottom line – bacon and apples just work in this chicken salad.
Depending on your dietary preference, this chicken salad can be served over a green salad, in butter lettuce wraps if you want to keep it low carb. If you love lettuce wraps, like I do, check out these chicken lettuce wraps. Also, it’s tasty over toasted bread or simply with a fork on its own. You can’t go wrong either way!
Just a side note, you can swap the light mayo for greek yogurt. The yogurt gives the salad a slightly different taste, but it won’t take away from the flavor of the overall dish. Now, onto the recipe!
Want more great salad ideas?
- Melon Ball Prosciutto Salad
- Healthy Chicken and Strawberry Salad
- Frog Eye Fruit Salad
- Five-Minute Fruit Salad
- Antipasto Pinwheel Salad
- Healthy Greek Chickpea Feta Salad
- Steak Salad with Cilantro Avocado Dressing
| Servings | Prep Time |
| 6 servings | 15 minutes |
| Cook Time | Passive Time |
| 25 minutes | 35 minutes |
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This light and refreshing homemade Chicken Salad with Bacon is loaded with fresh ingredients. It is a perfect lunch to serve in a sandwich, greens or all by itself. You will never make chicken salad any other way after one bite.
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- 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1/2 cup finely diced apple (skin-on red or green)
- 4-5 slices bacon (crumbled)
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- 2 scallions, thinly sliced (white and green parts)
- 2 tbsps fresh dill, chopped
- 3/4 cup light mayonnaise (or plain greek yogurt)
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp pickle juice or lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Freshly ground pepper
- In a large pot, add chicken breasts. Cover chicken with chicken broth. Add 1 tbsp of minced garlic and pinch of salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, uncovered. Once boiling, cover and reduce heat to low.
- Cook chicken for 25-30 minutes. When meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F, remove chicken and let cool. Shred with two forks and set aside.
- In a small bowl, mix together apple bits, scallions, dill, celery and bacon.
- In a large bowl, mix together mayo, dijon mustard, pickle juice or lemon juice. Add shredded chicken and stir to coat. Add the ingredients from the small bowl and mix until combined.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. Use within 3-5 days. Enjoy!
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