This Chicken Salad with Grapes is anything but ordinary! It’s filled with diced chicken, crisp celery, grapes, and green onions — all tossed in a rich and creamy dressing.
Chicken Salad with Grapes
When it comes to chicken salad, this is our family’s favorite! I could eat this chicken salad with cream cheese all year long, and it makes a big batch so there are plenty of leftovers.
And since it does make a large amount, it’s perfect for bridal showers, luncheons, baby showers, or pretty much any gathering.
This recipe for chicken salad with grapes comes from my aunt — she served it at my bridal shower as sandwiches, but it would also be great served in lettuce cups.
Why You’ll Love This Creamy Chicken Salad
- Ready in minutes
- Great way to use up leftover chicken
- Perfect balance of savory and sweet, moist and crunchy
- Easy to customize
- Serve as sandwiches, wraps, or a dip
Key Ingredients to Make This Chicken Salad Recipe with Grapes
- CHICKEN – I like to use whatever leftover chicken I may have, typically from this Oven Roasted Rotisserie Chicken. A rotisserie bird from the store would work as well!
- VEGGIES & FRUIT – There are so many options here, but I like celery, grapes, green onions, and a surprise ingredient….water chestnuts. You can also add a little bell pepper to chicken salad with grapes for crunch and color.
- DRESSING – It’s a pretty simple mixture of real mayo and cream cheese plus seasoned salt. Sure, it’s a little decadent, but it’s oh-so good! Be sure to soften the cream cheese first for easier mixing.
Instructions to Make Chicken Salad with Cream Cheese
This chicken salad recipe with grapes is about the easiest thing you’ll ever make. A few minutes of prep and mixing, then your meal is ready!
PREP INGREDIENTS: Slice grapes in half, then chop the celery and green onion. Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Drain the water chestnuts and chop those as well.
MIX THE DRESSING: Combine softened cream cheese, mayonnaise, and seasoned salt in a large bowl. It’s easy to do by hand, but you can use an electric mixer if preferred (and you may need it if you didn’t soften the cream cheese).
ADD REMAINING INGREDIENTS: Add the cubed chicken plus chopped fruits and veggies to the same bowl. Mix by hand until everything is thoroughly combined. Serve cream cheese chicken salad immediately or chill for later.
Recipe Variations
Feel free to make this chicken salad with cream cheese your own by making a few easy swaps/changes!
- Add some toasted nuts such as almonds, pecans, or walnuts. I like to sprinkle some sliced almonds on top of lettuce cups for a pretty presentation.
- Change the fruit: Swap out the grapes for diced apples or even dried fruit such as cranberries or apricots.
- Use red onion instead of green onion. Just be sure to chop it up just as small.
FAQ
Grapes offer some sweetness to balance the savory flavors, plus some extra moisture to keep the mixture from becoming dry. Along with celery and green onions, they add a nice crunch to this creamy chicken salad.
If you don’t have any leftover rotisserie chicken, no worries! Here are some other options to try:
– Poached: Place chicken breasts in a pot of simmering chicken broth. Cover and cook until you reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
– Baked: Place on a baking sheet and season lightly with salt and pepper. Bake at 400 degrees F for 25 minutes or until you reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
– Slow Cooker: Place chicken breasts in the bottom of a slow cooker. Add about 1/2 cup of broth and season lightly with salt and pepper. Cover and cook on LOW for 3-4 hours or until you reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
– Canned: While this is not my favorite, it will work in a pinch. But I will say I definitely prefer fresh over canned for my chicken salad recipe with grapes.
First, there’s the obvious — as a sandwich. Grab your favorite sandwich bread, or spoon chicken salad with grapes onto a sliced croissant or inside a pita pocket.
You can also serve cream cheese chicken salad in lettuce wraps or on top of a green salad. And when all else fails, scoop it up with some crackers!
Serving Suggestions for Cream Cheese Chicken Salad
- Vegetable Tray
- Fruit Tray
- Homemade Lemonade
- Peach Ice Cream for dessert
More Easy Chicken Recipes
- Cilantro Lime Chicken
- Chicken Avocado Tomato Salad
- Sheet Pan Parmesan Chicken and Veggies
- Chicken Fajita Kebabs
Thanks so much for reading! Let me know what you think about this chicken salad recipe with grapes!
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Easy Chicken Salad with Grapes
Ingredients
- 1 cup (240g) real mayonnaise
- 1 (8oz)(226g) package cream cheese, softened
- 1 tablespoon season salt
- 3 cups (450g) cooked and cubed chicken
- 3 cups (360g) chopped celery
- 3 cups (480g) red or green halved seedless grapes
- 1 (8oz)(227g) can water chestnut, drained and chopped
- ¾ cup (75g) chopped green onion
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine the mayonnaise, cream cheese, and season salt. Add in the remaining ingredients and gently combine.
- Serve immediately as a salad or sandwich–or make in advance (which I think it tastes even better the next day!)
Notes
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
The other day I had no grapes, onions or water chestnuts. But needed something quick. Made basic recipe with Costco rotisserie chicken, 2 cups raisins and I used 2 tablespoons Everything Bagel Seasoning, served on croissants as sandwiches. Again, no grapes, onions or water chestnuts Wow. Everyone loved it. So easy. Thank you.
Thank you so much for sharing! So glad you liked the chicken salad!
This was outstanding! I wanted a recipe for chicken salad with cream cheese in it, and this was the one I opted to try — and I’m so glad I did! Truly delicious, and I’ll be making it regularly.
Thank you very much!! It’s a long time family favorite recipe!
My family loved this! Thank you so much for the recipe, we’ll be keeping this one for sure!
So glad you liked it! Thank you very much!
I loved this chicken salad for my daily lunches. It is so light and refreshing, I’ll definitely be making it often!
Thank you very much! And yes, it makes a great lunch!
Loved the dressing on this. It’s a keeper.
Thank you very much!
This recipe didn’t disappoint! I love chicken salad!
Thank you! I love a good chicken salad too!
Could the chicken salad sandwich filling be frozen
Hi Sheila! I am not sure. I haven’t tried freezing it before. If you do try I recommend freezing it without the grapes in it.
I am making Chicken salad for around 50 tomorrow. I am using diced chicken breast and plan to add Greenberg’s onions, pecans, grapes and celery. I love the idea of using cream cheese and mayo. I was wondering if I could mix that up today and season and then assemble salad tomorrow. Also how many cups of mayo & ounces of cream cheese should I mix for 20# chicken breast?
Hi Deb! When I weighed 3 cups of chopped chicken it was almost a pound. So, for 20 pounds of chicken you will need about 160 oz. of cream cheese and 20 cups of mayo. Also, i would mix up the chicken salad today because it always tastes better the next day. Let me know how everything turns out!
I love the origin of this recipe! I also never would have thought to add cream cheese to chicken salad, but now that I’m thinking about it, it sounds amazing!
Thank you so much! It really is good with the cream cheese!