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Home » Lunch » Easy Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad

Easy Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad

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Recipe Cost $11.99
Recipe Serving Cost $1.50
Jump to Recipe Pin Recipe
This Easy Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad recipe is creamy, delicious, and some serious comfort food. It's a great year-round recipe that everyone loves! via @easybudgetrecipesThis Easy Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad recipe is creamy, delicious, and some serious comfort food. It's a great year-round recipe that everyone loves! via @easybudgetrecipesThis Easy Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad recipe is creamy, delicious, and some serious comfort food. It's a great year-round recipe that everyone loves! via @easybudgetrecipesThis Easy Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad recipe is creamy, delicious, and some serious comfort food. It's a great year-round recipe that everyone loves! via @easybudgetrecipesThis Easy Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad recipe is creamy, delicious, and some serious comfort food. It's a great year-round recipe that everyone loves! via @easybudgetrecipes

This Easy Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad recipe is creamy, delicious, and some serious comfort food. It’s a great year-round recipe that everyone loves! 

This Chicken Salad serves eight and costs about $11.99 to make, which is only $1.50 per serving. This recipe is a perfect cold salad for those summer months but is dressy enough with the addition of pecans and cranberries for holiday luncheons. Serve it alongside our Instant Pot Corn on the Cob during the summer or our Christmas Beef Chuck Roast during the holidays. 

Chicken salad with cranberry and pecans on a croissant with lettuce.

Easy Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad Recipe

Chicken Salad is a classic recipe that everyone needs to have on hand. It is so versatile because you can serve it at a summer picnic, BBQ, potluck, or holiday party. Make it ahead of time and serve it for lunch or dinner. Keep your cooking to a minimum this summer and save the oven for the main event during the holidays!

The best Chicken Salad recipes are made with simple ingredients that are full of flavor. An easy and flavorful recipe is what we are bringing to you today! Serve it as a cold side salad or as the creamy filling in a croissant. Either way, you will LOVE it!

How long is homemade chicken salad good?

As long as you store the chicken salad in an airtight container, it will stay fresh for 3-5 days. 

Can I eat cold chicken salad?

Homemade chicken salad is made using cooked chicken. It is perfectly safe to eat the salad cold. Use up your leftover grilled chicken or shredded chicken in this recipe.
An overhead picture of chicken salad on a wooden spoon.

How can you tell if the chicken salad has gone bad?

There are a few things to look at if you are concerned with the status of your chicken. First, check the smell. If it smells unpleasant, do not eat it. Two other things to look for are the color and the texture. If either of these is off, then do not eat it. 

How much will this Chicken Salad with Cranberries and Pecans recipe cost to make:

RECIPE COST: $11.99

PRICE PER SERVING: 

  • 2/3 cup plain Greek yogurt – $2.32
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream – $0.48
  • 2 teaspoons orange zest – $0.17
  • 2 teaspoons poppy seeds – $0.24
  • 3 cups shredded chicken – $3.12
  • 1 cup chopped celery – $0.18
  • 1 Tablespoon butter – $0.10
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans – $1.42
  • 1 cup dried cranberries – $1.32
  • 8 croissants – $2.64

To find out more about how we price our recipes, check out Budget Recipes Explained. 

How do you make chicken salad from scratch:

STEPS ONE AND TWO: First, put the chicken in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Next, mix the Greek yogurt, cream, orange zest, and poppy seeds until combined.

Chicken in a large bowl with salt and pepper on it.

STEPS THREE AND FOUR: Stir the creamy mixture and chopped celery into the chicken. Cover well and refrigerate for one hour. 

A spoon mixing together the cream mixture and celery

STEPS FIVE AND SIX: Meanwhile, melt some butter in a pan and add nuts to cook until toasted. Cook them for about 2-3 minutes. Stir in toasted nuts and dried cranberries just before serving. 

The chicken mixture in a bowl with pecans and dried cranberries.

STEP SEVEN: Serve on split croissants with lettuce (optional). 

Chicken salad on a split croissant with lettuce.

Cook’s Tools:

  • large mixing bowl
  • wooden mixing spoon
  • small skillet

The Flavor and Recipe Variations

Instead of dried cranberries, you can use sliced grapes or pomegranate seeds.  

You can also use chopped walnuts or sliced almonds instead of pecans. 

How long is it good for:

Serve: As with most recipes with dairy products in them, you shouldn’t leave this Chicken Salad out for longer than 2 hours. 

Store: Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. 

Freeze: You can freeze the chicken salad for up to 3 months. 

How to get the kids involved with this recipe.

Ages 2-3: Have your kiddo help stir together all of the ingredients. They will love mixing everything in the large bowl.

Ages 4-5: Help your kiddo with some math skills by letting them help measure and count out the ingredients for the salad. 

Ages 6-8: Teach your child proper knife safety to help you chop up the celery. They can also help chop the pecans to prep the salad.

Ages 9-11: Supervise them while they prepare the entire recipe. Remember to have them read it twice before beginning the recipe. 

Ages 12+: Let them prepare the entire recipe, unsupervised, while you do the happy dance in the corner!

A closeup picture of chicken salad in a croissant.

More chicken recipes:

Grilled BBQ Chicken Breasts

Panda Express Orange Chicken Copycat

Homemade Chicken Fingers 

Crock Pot White Chicken Chili

Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas

BBQ Chicken Braid

One Pan Cheesy Broccoli Chicken Rice

Jenna’s Chicken Pillows

Chicken Noodle Soup

Inside Out Chicken Pot Pie (Deconstructed Chicken Pot Pie)

An overhead picture of easy chicken salad in a white bowl.
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5 from 2 votes

Easy Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad

Recipe Cost $11.99
Recipe Serving Cost $1.50
This Easy Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad recipe is creamy, delicious, and some serious comfort food. It's a great year-round recipe that everyone loves!
Prep Time10 mins
Chilling Time1 hr
Total Time1 hr 10 mins
Course: Main Course, Salad
Cuisine: American
Keyword: chicken
Servings: 8 people
Calories: 493kcal
Author: Easy Budget Recipes Original!

Equipment

  • large mixing bowl
  • Wooden mixing spoon
  • small skillet

Ingredients

  • 3 cups shredded chicken
  • Salt and pepper
  • ⅔ cup plain Greek yogurt
  • ½ cup heavy cream
  • 2 teaspoons orange zest
  • 2 teaspoons poppy seeds
  • 1 cup chopped celery
  • 1 Tablespoon butter
  • ½ cup chopped pecans
  • 1 cup dried cranberries
  • 8 croissants
  • lettuce for servings
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Place chicken in a large bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste.
  • In a large bowl, mix Greek yogurt, cream, orange zest, and poppy seeds until combined. Stir in chicken and season to taste with more salt and pepper.
  • Add chopped celery and mix until combined. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
  • In a small pan over medium heat, melt butter. Add nuts and cook until toasted, about 2-3 minutes (they should be a little more than lightly browned, and you’ll begin to smell them).
  • Stir in toasted nuts and dried cranberries just before serving. Serve on split croissants.

Nutrition

Serving: 1sandwich | Calories: 493kcal | Carbohydrates: 41g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 28g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 103mg | Sodium: 340mg | Potassium: 294mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 17g | Vitamin A: 765IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 78mg | Iron: 2mg
Did you love this recipe?We'd love to hear from you, follow us on our Facebook page @EasyBudgetRecipesOfficial and let us know how it turned out in the comments below!
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Filed Under: $10 Recipes, Lunch, Main Dish, Salads Tagged With: butter, celery, cranberries, croissants, Greek yogurt, heavy cream, orange zest, pecans, pepper, poppy seeds, salt, shredded chicken

Previous Post: « Instant Pot Corn on the Cob
Next Post: Taco Rice Casserole »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Gina

    August 11, 2020 at 12:33 pm

    5 stars
    My new favorite way to make chicken salad!

    Reply
    • Jess Jankowski

      August 12, 2020 at 8:05 am

      Gina, so glad you enjoy it!

  2. Nellie Tracy

    August 11, 2020 at 12:40 pm

    5 stars
    Love this recipe! So light, makes a perfect lunch item!

    Reply
    • Jess Jankowski

      August 12, 2020 at 8:05 am

      We love having it for lunch!

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Beth, Jill, and Jess of Easy Budget Recipes

We’re Beth, Jill, and Jess, and we’re the team of sisters-in-law behind Easy Budget Recipes!

Combined, we have over 50 years of cooking, meal planning, and budgeting experience. Each of our recipes serves at least six people, and we have broken down the cost of every recipe for you so that it’s easier to budget your shopping list every week!

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