I was definitely slow to get on the curry bandwagon. In fact, I distinctly remember not liking curry spices for the first 20 years of my life. Luckily, people grow and change over time and I eventually came around to curry (thanks to recipes like quick curried chickpeas!). Now I just want to put curry in everything, like this Curry Chicken Salad!
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Out of all of the recipes I’ve made with curry spices, this Curry Chicken Salad might just be my favorite. Something about the curry with the creamy mayo/yogurt dressing is just perfect! Not to mention the subtle sweetness of the raisins to balance the earthy spices and ALL THAT CRUNCH. …Mmmm.
Chicken salad is never really “cheap”, but when you get your chicken on sale, it approaches affordable. And then when you consider the fact that you can sometimes pay $10/lb. for pre-made chicken salad at the deli, this is actually quite a steal. So, even if you have to save this for a special occasion, bookmark this recipe because you won’t be sorry you did!
Mayo-Yogurt Combo Magic
I chose to use both mayonnaise and yogurt in the dressing for this Curry Chicken Salad because they each have their own unique flavor qualities that they bring to the party. Yogurt is light and tangy and is a classic pairing with curry spices, while mayonnaise offers a deep creaminess. If you need to you, you can just use yogurt or just use mayonnaise, but I’m telling you that the combination fo the two is magic. ;)
Can I Use Rotisserie Chicken for this Curry Chicken Salad?
Absolutely. If you don’t want to go through the process of cooking your own chicken breast or happen to have leftover rotisserie chicken, go ahead and chop it up and use it in this recipe. You’ll probably want about 3 cups of chopped chicken for this recipe.
Love chicken salad? You might also like Chicken Salad with Apples or Broccoli Cheddar Chicken Salad.
Curry Chicken Salad
Servings 4 1 cup eachIngredients
DRESSING
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise ($0.41)
- 1/4 cup plain yogurt ($0.19)
- 1 tsp lemon juice ($0.02)
- 1/2 tsp honey ($0.02)
- 1 tsp curry powder ($0.10)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- freshly cracked pepper ($0.02)
SALAD
- 2.5 cups chopped cooked chicken* ( $2.95)
- Pinch salt & pepper ($0.05)
- 2 stalks celery ($0.34)
- 3 whole green onions ($0.12)
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds ($0.87)
- 1/2 cup raisins ($0.57)
Instructions
- Make the dressing by stirring together the mayonnaise, yogurt, lemon juice, honey, curry powder, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Taste the dressing and adjust the curry powder or salt if needed.
- Season both sides of the chicken breasts with a light sprinkle of salt and pepper. Cook the chicken breast in either a countertop grill or in a skillet until cooked through. Allow the cooked chicken breast to cool while you prepare the rest of the salad.
- Finely dice the celery and slice the green onions. Place the green onion, celery, sliced almonds, and raisins in a large bowl.
- Chop the chicken into small cubes and place them in the bowl with the celery, onion, almonds, and raisins. Stir to combine. Pour the dressing over top and stir to coat.
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Notes
Nutrition
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How to Make Curry Chicken Salad – Step By Step Photos
To make the dressing for the Curry Chicken Salad, combine 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 1/4 cup plain yogurt, 1 tsp lemon juice, 1/2 tsp honey, 1 tsp curry powder, 1/4 tsp salt, and some freshly cracked pepper.
Stir the dressing together, give it a taste, and adjust the salt, honey, or curry powder if needed (every brand of curry powder is a bit different, so you may prefer more or less). Refrigerate the dressing until you’re ready for it.
You’ll need about 2.5 cups chopped cooked chicken, which for me was two chicken breasts, or about 1.5 lbs. when raw.
Season the chicken with a pinch of salt and pepper, then cook it using a grill or in a skillet. I used a grill pate that fits on top of my range top, but you can also use something like a George Foreman Grill, or a cast iron skillet. Another easy option is to use a store bought rotisserie chicken.
Allow the chicken to cool while you prepare the rest of the salad, then chop it into small pieces.
While the chicken is cooling, you can prepare the rest of the salad. Finely dice 2 ribs of celery and slice 3 green onions.
Add the chopped chicken, diced celery, sliced green onions, 1/2 cup sliced almonds, and 1/2 cup raisins to a large bowl (I used golden raisins).
Add the prepared curry dressing…
Then stir until everything is coated in dressing. And then it’s ready to eat! I ate a bunch just by itself with a fork, but it would also be good with crackers or stuffed into a pita.
Nice case. I love this recipe. My friends will love much. I will try at weekend and be back with reviews.
Just made this dish and was not something I’d typically make but it turned out super super yummy and would totally make again! Reminds me of a dish from England called coronation chicken. 5 stars on this one!
Curried chicken salad is a standard in the south, and I’ve never met a version I didn’t at least like. One thing that will up the flavor is a tablespoon or so of mango chutney–or Major Grey–added to the dressing. If there are large lumps of mango, I chop them up a bit. It will add sweetness and a lot of flavor. Predictably, I usually use a spicy version of the chutney. I normally use almonds, but cashews are another traditional addition. Always raisins, and I prefer the golden raisins, but a friend adds craisins to her version. It’s all good, and thank you for reminding me that it’s been way too long. I’m going to follow your practice of half yogurt to cut the calories and omit the honey because I will be adding some sugar with the chutney.
Yum, mango chutney sounds AMAZING in this!
Curried chicken salad is a standard in the south, and I’ve never met a version I didn’t at least like. One thing that will up the flavor is a tablespoon or so of mango chutney–or Major Grey–added to the dressing. If there are large lumps of mango, I chop them up a bit. It will add sweetness and a lot of flavor. Predictably, I usually use a spicy version of the chutney. I normally use almonds, but cashews are another traditional addition. Always raisins, and I prefer the golden raisins, but a friend adds craisins to her version. It’s all good, and thank you for reminding me that it’s been way too long. I’m going to follow your practice of half yogurt to cut the calories and omit the honey because I will be adding some sugar with the chutney.
This looks absolutely fantastic. I love the addition of little micro greens. Looks so fancy 🙂
This is just perfect – thanks!
I tried ur curry recipe and it was great. My normal chicken salad is always delicious but I really enjoyed the change. My husband and daughter love it also. The only thing I did was leave at the almonds for allergy reasons and replaced the raisins with grapes.
This recipe looks amazing! If I make this for lunches on Sunday, will it keep until Friday? I’d love to try this out for my husband and I!
Sunday to Friday is a bit long. I try to keep things like this for a max of four days.
Hi, Im so keen to try this recipe but I noticed in the ingredients list it says 1/4 cup for yoghurt but in your step by step, it says 1/2? Thanks!
Whoa, thanks for catching that typo! It’s 1/4 cup of each.
I can’t believe I haven’t commented on this one already. I’ve made this chicken salad three times, it is so, so good! The only change I ever make is to double the amount of curry powder as I love curry and mine is pretty mild. You have such a great palate and sense of flavors. Your recipes are always terrific, this is one of my favorites!
This is my first time trying Curry Chicken Salad, and honestly, it’s delicious. I had to make a few changes regarding the recipe. I added 2/4 cup of mayonnaise to make up for the yogurt because I didn’t have any available in my kitchen. I skipped the celery, raisins and almonds, but added the green onions. I’m looking forward to taking the chicken salad with me to work this week. Thank you for this amazing recipe, Beth!!! :-)
I FINALLY tried this recipe tonight. I made a double batch as my meal prep for my husband and I and oh my goodness, it is heavenly. It totally beats out the curry chicken salad mix from Trader Joe’s. This is just the perfect thing to have for summer. It’s cool and refreshing and the golden raisins were a good call flavor-wise. We ate them with some crackers, then gave some to my neighbor and he said he’s going to make a wrap for his lunch tomorrow. I’m sure I’ll think of other ways to eat it over the next few days. Thanks a bunch!
I just made this up for lunches for the week… My boyfriend who doesn’t like chicken salad LOVED it!! Thanks for the great recipe! I did sub out sour cream for yogurt, dried green onions for fresh, celery for carrots, and dried figs for raisins.
I’ve made this salad twice since you posted it and I love it! It’s great as a lettuce wrap for work lunches. I doubled the curry powder and added 1/2 c. chopped apple. I also used less of the dressing than this calls for the second time because I like my salads a bit less gooey, but it was good both ways. I think this will make it into my regular rotation, especially for the summer.
I love curry and salad but never thought of mixing them together. Your salad looks so delicious! I have to make a salad revolution soon 😍