This Avocado Chicken Salad Recipe has so much flavor and the perfect texture! We swap mayonnaise for fresh avocado, so it’s creamy but light and satisfying. I know, I know classic chicken salad recipes usually have mayo, but you will never miss it!
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Helpful Reader Review
“This salad is always on rotation, my son asks for it and he loves the leftovers for lunch the next day. It really is hearty and yummy!“ – Eva ★★★★★
Easy Avocado Chicken Salad Recipe
This avocado chicken salad recipe is a winner, and it is well-loved by adults and children. Since I first posted the video, it went viral with over 50 million views, making it one of the most popular recipes on my blog. Funny enough, this recipe came about from a craving I had driving home from my night shift back when I worked as a Registered Nurse!
It’s quite a bit different than our classic Chicken Salad, but everything about this is good, from the tender bites of chicken, creamy avocado, sweet corn, and crunchy bacon. Plus, you’ll want that fresh lemon dressing on all of your salads.
My son is particularly smitten with this chicken avocado salad and requests it for his birthday. It was in his top 3 requests, so you can imagine I made it for his birthday and as often as I can throughout the year. By the way, his other two were this Shrimp Dip and Caesar Salad. I love this kid.
Avocado Chicken Salad Video
You’ll love my lighter chicken salad with avocado. It’s just as creamy, flavorful, and filling as using mayo, but this is a dish you’ll feel great about eating often! If you’re lucky enough to have leftovers, this chicken salad tastes just as good the next day – perfect for a to-go lunch. You all are always requesting work and school lunch ideas, and I hope you love this one!
Ingredients for Avocado Chicken Salad
This Avocado Chicken Salad has such simple ingredients, and you may already have everything you need to make it (I just love it when that happens)!
- Chicken – shredded or cubed. I use rotisserie or Roast Chicken to make prep easier, but you can also use well-drained canned chicken or Bake Chicken Breasts before shredding or cutting them into bite-sized pieces.
- Avocados – I use two avocados. You’ll want nearly ripe or perfectly ripe avocado for this salad.
- Corn – You’ll need 1 cup, or 1 ear of corn. You can rinse canned corn, cook frozen corn, use Grilled Corn or Boiled Corn. You can also microwave unshucked corn for 3-4 minutes. If you want to keep this salad Paleo, just omit the corn.
- Bacon – I prefer lean cuts of bacon (see how to cook bacon without a mess). If you’re looking to cut fat, I use turkey bacon instead.
- Herbs – Dill and Chives – If you prefer you can swap the dill with cilantro or the chives for green onions
- Dressing ingredients – lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper
- Hard-boiled eggs – Optional, but these add great protein to the salad. Peel, cut, or quarter, and then add to the salad ingredients.
Substitutions/ Variations
We love this just as it is, but you can use these easy substitutions to make it your own.
- Protein – omit the chicken or swap with hard-boiled eggs, leftover shrimp, or chickpeas
- Veggies – swap the corn or add other seasonal veggies like tomatoes, cucumbers, or red peppers
- Pasta – Try mixing in a cup of bowtie pasta or any small-shaped pasta.
- Add heat – chop jalapeno or add a shake of red pepper flakes to the dressing.
Helpful Reader Review
“Stellar recipe!! Used turkey bacon for the first time ever and could NOT tell a difference, thanks for the tip! Also used a cup of frozen corn and just heated It up in pan until it got a little char to it. D-E-L-I-S-H😋” – Sam ★★★★★
How to Make Avocado Chicken Salad
- Dice or shred two chicken breasts or 2 cups of rotisserie chicken into a mixing bowl.
- Peel and dice avocado into bite-sized pieces. Careful! I’ve met too many people with avocado-cutting injuries. Add the pieces to the bowl.
- Add the corn, onion, bacon, and dill to the bowl.
- Mix the dressing ingredients in a small bowl and then pour over the salad ingredients. Toss to combine. Add the hard-boiled egg if using, but don’t stir too vigorously after adding them.
How to Serve Avocado Chicken Salad
This avocado chicken salad is deliciously versatile. It is a protein-packed salad so it’s perfect for work lunch or meal prep and the lemon keeps it fresh and vibrant. Serve this chicken salad:
- As a main course salad alongside crusty Sourdough Bread
- In Croissants, Pita Bread, Hamburger Buns, Tortillas, or Sourdough Dinner Rolls
- Or scooped up with Pita Chips or Sourdough Crackers
- In lettuce cups for chicken salad lettuce wraps
Make-Ahead and Storage Tips
This is a great salad to Make-Ahead because it tastes even better once the flavors meld the next day.
- Make-Ahead: If you know you won’t be serving it immediately, wait to cut and add the avocado until right before serving. Mix the salad and cover. Refrigerate overnight or until ready to serve.
- To Refrigerate: Cover leftovers with plastic wrap directly over the surface of the salad. This will help to slow the browning of the avocados. Refrigerate for up to 3-4 days.
This Avocado Chicken Salad recipe is one of my (and my son’s) very favorite salad recipes; seriously tasty and easy, hearty but feel-good food at the same time. It’s a win-win-win! Try this easy chicken salad today.
Avocado Chicken Salad
Ingredients
Avocado Chicken Salad Ingredients:
- 2 large cooked chicken breasts, shredded or chopped
- 2 large avocados
- 1 cup corn, from 1 cooked cob
- 6 oz lean bacon, cooked and chopped
- 1/4 cup Chives , (or green onion), chopped
- 2 Tbsp Dill, chopped, or to taste
- 2 hard-boiled eggs, Optional, halved or quartered
Lemon Dressing:
- 3 Tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp sea salt, or to taste
- 1/8 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Dice or shred the 2 large cooked chicken breasts and place them into a large mixing bowl.
- Peel and pit 2 large avocados, slice into bite-sized pieces and add to the mixing bowl.
- Add 1 cup of cooked corn (freshly cooked corn is best), toss in chopped green onion, chopped bacon, and fresh Dill.
- Make the dressing – add the ingredients in a small bowl and stir to combine. Drizzle the dressing over your salad and toss to combine. Serve with slices of hard-boiled egg if desired.
Notes
**For a healthier salad, you can use uncured turkey bacon which tastes amazing but has less fat. Make-ahead – Mix all the ingredients except the avocado and hard-boiled egg. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Add the avocado and egg just before serving. Storage – To store leftovers, cover the dish with plastic wrap, ensuring the wrap is touching to top of the salad to slow the browning of the avocado pieces. Store in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
More Easy Salad Recipes
- Asian Chopped Salad
- Maroulosalata – Greek Lettuce Salad
- Cucumber Tomato Avocado Salad
- Taco Salad
- Classic Tuna Salad
- Caesar Salad
- Creamy Cucumber Salad
What’s the nutritional info…??
Due to time constraints, I don’t typically include nutritional info, but check out this nutrition analyzer – you can plug in the ingredients from any recipe, select the serving size and it will give you nutritional info, calories, etc. I hope that is helpful to you Tammy!
Can’t wait to try this! It looks so yummy ❤️
It is popular for good reason! Please let me know what you think Mary!
I made this Avocado Chicken salad last night. It is soooo good!!! I will be preparing this quite often, from now on!
Thank you so much for recipe.
You’re welcome Linda! I’m glad you love the recipe! Thanks for sharing your fantastic review!
I tried this recipe and loved it! I am on a new diet (when aren’t we), so I didn’t add the bacon. I also cheated and, instead of using corn on the cob, I used a frozen package of corn after microwaving it. This was simple to make, and I’ll probably try it with the bacon next time to compare.
That’s great to hear Tracey! Thanks so much for sharing your wonderful review!
How many smart points is ths per serving?
Due to time constraints, I don’t typically include nutritional info, but check out this nutrition analyzer – you can plug in the ingredients from any recipe, select the serving size and it will give you nutritional info, calories, etc. I hope that is helpful to you Beth!
So good! Thank you
My pleasure Lu! I’m glad you like it! 🙂
Do you have the nutrition information for this meal. I’m a new type 1 diabetic and I’m looking for meals that are low in carbs. And I just found my love for avocado 😍
Due to time constraints, I don’t typically include nutritional info, but check out this nutrition analyzer – you can plug in the ingredients from any recipe, select the serving size and it will give you nutritional info, calories, etc. I hope that is helpful to you Aubrianna!
So delicious!!
I’m glad you love it Katie! Thanks for sharing 🙂
So I used baby corn, hearts of palm and artichoke hearts in addition to the regular ingredients. I didn’t use dill, and I used my homemade Italian dressing. It was yummy.
I love the sound of all those changes. Thank you for sharing! 🙂
I think I will try it with the baby corn, hearts of palm and the artichoke hearts because I am (sadly) deathly allergic to avocado .
How long does this keep in the refrigerator?
Hi Rachelle, I have kept it refrigerated up to 2 days. I think this is the very best when it is served the same day but the avocados will be fine until the next day because the lemon juice in the dressing preserves them. To be safe, I would suggest placing plastic wrap directly over the salad to keep the air out which is what causes the avocados to brown.
Made this salad tonight, delicious! And I am not a fan of advocados. Used as a main course, lots of veggies, protein, and good fats. A new favourite. Thanks.
You are welcome Denise and thank you for making it 😬
I made this twice already – I baked my own skin on bone in chicken breasts – I switched the doll out for cilantro – you could also buy lime juice instead of lemon. It was delicious and a keeper
That’s great to hear Marcella! I’m glad you enjoy the recipe! Thanks for sharing your review and suggestions with other readers!
Totally tasty!! I’m not terribly keen on corn so I used red pepper instead and it was lovely! Pretty easy and quick to put together. Looking forward to having leftovers for lunch tomorrow!
I’m happy to hear that! Thanks for sharing your wonderful review!
Hi,Natasha.
I’d try few of your avocado salad recipes.I’m love them so much.Easy and taste good.
Thank you so much for sharing the recipes.
Hello Rachel! I’m glad you are enjoying the recipes! Thanks for following and sharing your great review!
Making tonight for dinner. I know it will be yummy, this salad has all my favorite ingredients.
It is popular for good reason! Please let me know what you think Jenny!
I made this salad tonight and it was delicious. I used a rotisserie chicken so my chicken ingredient was larger than two chicken breasts. I used the same measurements for the dressing and it was enough to coat all the ingredients. My recipe file is vast so I hope I remember to make this salad again!
I’m glad you enjoy the recipe Cheryl! Thanks for sharing your great review!
If I use a whole rotisserie chicken, should I double the recipe?
Hi Alex, it depends on how large your chicken is. It would be alot of salad but it wouldn’t hurt to double it and add the dressing to taste. I hope you love the recipe! 🙂
Hi! I’m making this tonight, I got a little under a pound of already shredded rotisserie chicken, will that be enough?
Hi Arial, yes that will work 🙂
Do you know the calories per serving on this dish?
Sierra, I don’t typically include calorie counts because of the time constraint that I have. I really need to hire some help to do that for me! When I need a quick answer though; I have used Caloriecount.com (their recipe analyzer is free).
I made a half recipe and used my digital scale which also gives food item calories. It worked up to 1017 calories. It made enough though that I can divide into 4 servings (for wraps) so approximately 254 cal for 1/8 of the original recipe amounts. This is really good, but I like more spice for mine. Adding Mrs Dash fiesta lime did it for me!
OOPs forgot to mention that I used turkey bacon!
Thank you for sharing! 🙂
WhAt is the serving size.
Hi Johnna, this serves 4 as a main course and 6 as a side salad.
Actually I meant by size like one cup or 1/2 cup.
Oh Ok, I see. I didn’t measure that way but I would guess about 6 cups of salad.
This was really delicious, everyone in the family loved it even the kid who never eats avocados, thank you 😉
Oh now that is just awesome! I’m so happy to hear that 🙂