Healthy Pecan Chicken Salad

One of the easiest meal preps is also one of my favorites--Healthy Pecan Chicken Salad. Toasted pecans, scallions, grapes, and fresh tarragon make this chicken salad so flavorful that you’ll hardly believe that it is only 4sp WW SP for a full cup serving.  

This is a perfect lunch meal prep for when you need a quick grab and go lunch.

There is so much flavor and so many different textures, and, honestly, it's nice to have a quick grab and go lunch that doesn't have to be reheated. This chicken salad is anything but your grandma’s boring chicken salad. This is an extra as hell, Pecan Chicken Salad that will make Linda from HR (or whomever you eat lunch with) insanely jealous.

Why pecan chicken salad is fancier

Typical chicken salad is mayo, chicken, celery, and onion. It's fine, but it isn't fancy. The added grapes, tarragon, and toasted pecans really elevate this into something you can serve at parties, brunch, or just when you're feeling slightly extra.

If you are new to tarragon, the tarragon gives this a distinct, fancier flavor that can be described as faintly anise, but in a way that makes sense--especially with lite mayo and grapes, since they're sweet. Ina Garten does this, and I trust Ina when it comes to all things fancy.

How to shred chicken

There are a few ways to shred chicken for this healthy pecan chicken salad. Of course, you can pull it apart by hand once it cools. You can also use two forks and shred it apart in a large bowl. The quickest way to shred chicken, however, is to put the hot chicken breasts in a stand mixer and mix the cooked chicken breasts using the paddle mixer. I do this whenever I am prepping a large batch of chicken for weekly meal prep.

Want more recipes with shredded chicken? I love having shredded chicken for meal prep. Some of my favorite recipes are:

• Skillet Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuits
• Chicken Cordon Bleu Pasta Bake
• Buffalo Chicken Pizza
• BBQ Chicken Pizza
• Chipotle Chicken Pasta Salad
• Chicken Enchiladas (ebook exclusive)
• Baked Chicken Tacos (ebook exclusive)
• Spinach and Artichoke Chicken Lasagna Rolls (ebook exclusive)
• Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadillas (ebook exclusive)

How to toast pecans

The pecans add just enough crunch and nutty, almost maple flavor which rounds this out and adds a level of extra I can really get behind. To toast the nuts, add them to a dry frying pan and cook for a few minutes until you can start smelling the pecans. As soon as you smell them, take them off the heat. It is 100% optional because this will still taste amazing without the nuts being toasted.

Yield: 4

Healthy Pecan Chicken Salad

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Everyone knows sliced grapes in chicken salad is the definition of classy, but the added toasted pecans give the chicken salad a crunch and slight almost-maple nuttiness that elevates it to true luxury status. The addition of fresh tarragon rounds out the sweetness and establishes that you’re the ultimate classy meal prepper.

Blue & Purple - 4 WW SP

Green - 7 WW SP

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 2 minutes

Total Time 7 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 lb shredded and cooked boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 1 cup grapes, sliced
• 1/2 cup scallions, chopped
• 1/2 cup Greek yogurt (FAGE preferred)
• 1/2 cup Light Mayonnaise (Duke's is my favorite)
• 1.5 tbsp fresh tarragon (you can use fresh thyme or sage too)
• 1 oz Chopped Pecans, preferrably toasted but not required
• Kosher Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Combine ingredients and serve. This recipe yielded 2lb of chicken salad.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1 cup (about 1/2 pound)
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 347Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 123mgSodium: 618mgCarbohydrates: 26gFiber: 1gSugar: 9gProtein: 39g