20+ Keto Chicken Salad Recipes Perfect for Picnics
Warm, summer days always give me a craving for chicken salad. It works for both picnics in the park or an easy weeknight main course when it’s too hot to turn on the oven.
What I love is that chicken salad is incredibly versatile and almost always Keto friendly! Starting with a base of just cooked chicken and a healthy fat as a binder (like a Keto-friendly mayonnaise), you can add your favorite ingredients to create a healthy salad that will last for days in the fridge!
Need a little inspiration for your salad? I’m here to help! I’ve put together a list of some of my favorite Keto-friendly twists on the traditional salad recipe. From classic flavor combinations like the cranberry walnut chicken salad to innovative recipes like jalapeno popper chicken salad (yes, it’s a real thing!). You’re sure to find your new favorite salad!
Check out this super easy, basic recipe to get started:
Here are just a few of the Keto Chicken Salad Recipes we’ve included:
- Keto Chicken Salad with Lemon and Strawberries
- Ketogenic Curried Chicken Salad
- Easy Chicken, Bacon, Avocado Caesar Salad
- Greek Chicken Avocado Salad
- Chicken Cauliflower “Couscous” Salad
- Chicken Salad Picnic Eggs
If you click or tap any of the links above, it will instantly take you to the recipe below. Or download the entire list by clicking on the green button below.
Keto Chicken Salad Recipes with Fruits
Keto Lemon Blueberry Chicken Salad Recipe [Dairy-Free, Paleo]
– Keto Summit
Ingredients: blueberries or other berries, medium onion, sliced, salad leaves, olive oil, lemon juice, chicken breast, coconut oil, salt, pepper.
Salads are easy and highly nutritious keto meals. By tossing together lots of leafy greens, meat, healthy oils, and berries, you can create a delicious keto salad in just a few minutes!
Keto Chicken Salad with Lemon and Strawberries
– Keto Summit
Ingredients: salad greens, chicken meat, strawberries, olive oil, lemon juice.
The fresh tastes in this great ketogenic chicken salad make it perfect for lunch on a warm day! This is a good way to use up leftover roast chicken as you are shredding the meat for this dish. The strawberries add a fruity note and juicy texture, but you are only using two per serving so it doesn’t add in too many carbohydrates.
Ketogenic Curried Chicken Salad
– Keto Summit
Ingredients: chicken breast, red bell pepper, zucchini or cucumber, pumpkin seeds, blueberries, coconut cream, curry powder, salt, cilantro, coconut oil, lettuce leaves.
Here is a light and delicious ketogenic meal that the whole family can enjoy, right down to the youngest ones! Imagine sitting down to a bowl of curried chicken salad, scooping it into lettuce leaf wraps and munching it down – perfect for picnics, lunches with friends or packed in a lunchbox to take to work. You can choose how hot the curry powder is, so spice it up to suit your own palate.
Paleo Cranberry Chicken Salad
– The Health Nut Mama
Photo Credit: The Health Nut Mama
Ingredients: organic chicken, red onion, celery stalks, dried cranberries, Primal Kitchen Mayo or homemade mayo, sea salt.
Here is another fantastic fusion of fresh flavors that set the chicken off so well! This salad is a combination of tender chicken, crunchy veggies and bittersweet cranberries that can be served as a keto and paleo-friendly lunch. You can serve this with keto crackers for an extra bit of crunch, or with cucumber slices to keep things really low carb.
Fiesta Lime Chicken Salad
– Adventures in Partaking
Photo Credit: Adventures in Partaking
Ingredients: limes, olive oil, sea salt, dried marjoram, ginger powder, chicken breasts, avocados, strawberries, cilantro leaves, red onion.
The fusion of colors and textures in this salad just make you want to dive in with a fork! It has the freshness of lime contrasting the chunky chicken and smooth avocado, with a hint of sweetness from the strawberries. This recipe uses cilantro, but kale or spinach would also work well here. This would be lovely served for a super keto lunch on a summer day as it involves no cooking at all.
Cranberry Walnut Chicken Salad without Mayonnaise
– Low Carb Yum
Photo Credit: Lisa from Low Carb Yum
Ingredients: chicken breast halves, celery, sugar-free dried cranberries, California walnuts, avocados, lemon juice, salt, pepper.
Unlike some other chicken salad recipes, this keto-compliant dish has no mayo but uses avocado to give the creamy texture. You have loads of flavor from the chicken and walnuts and fresh crunchy celery, all mixed together and jeweled with dried cranberries to add a fruity taste. This salad tastes amazing served on lettuce wraps for a low carb lunch.
Keto Chicken Salad Recipes with Avocado
Green Chicken Salad
– Adventures in Partaking
Photo Credit: Adventures in Partaking
Ingredients: avocado, chicken, red onion, parsley, baby asparagus, cucumber, sea salt, baby spinach leaves.
Because of the green color of the avocado and asparagus, this would be a fantastic lunch dish to serve on St. Patrick’s Day, especially if you are entertaining. The avocado gives this salad a creamy texture and this keto recipe would be perfect for those of you who prefer a recipe without mayo. You can either serve this on a bed of spinach leaves or in lettuce wraps.
Chicken, Bacon and Roasted Asparagus Salad
– The Healthy Foodie
Photo Credit: Sonia from The Healthy Foodie
Ingredients: bacon, fresh asparagus, baby spinach leaves, chicken, avocado, extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, fresh thyme, fresh rosemary, Dijon mustard, Himalayan salt, black pepper.
When you serve a low carb salad to guests, it is often a worry that it will look a bit boring, but this one will blow them away! It looks so luxurious and is a blend of the most amazing textures. The flavors are so rich and there is an extra creaminess because of the avocado. If you are using balsamic vinegar, try to get the best one you can afford as the flavors are better in the top-of-the-range vinegar.
Avocado Chicken Salad
– Low Carb Maven
Ingredients: chicken, Hass Avocado, celery, red onion or scallion, cilantro, avocado oil, fresh lemon juice, salt, pepper.
Because of the high amount of healthy fats in avocados, they make the ideal ingredient for keto and paleo salads as an alternative to mayonnaise as they give the creamy texture you need and help to hold the salad together. If you are adding in chopped onion, I would advise you use red onion as it adds a lovely crunch and a fantastic color to the dish.
Southwestern Chicken Salad w/ Bacon & Avocado
– I Breathe I’m Hungry
Photo Credit: Mellissa from I Breathe I’m Hungry
Ingredients: chicken, poblano peppers, raw jicama, avocados, green onions, cilantro, bacon, mayonnaise, lime juice, ground cumin, garlic powder, ground coriander, salt, pepper.
Chicken and bacon are so good together in loads of recipes, and in salads like this one, they are great because they set off the creamy avocado and poblano peppers. This would be great served in lettuce wraps, or as a salad on its own and is a good way to use up leftover chicken from a previous meal. You can even pack some in a box and take it to work for a tasty low carb lunch.
Easy Chicken, Bacon, Avocado Caesar Salad
– Wicked Stuff
Photo Credit: Amanda from Wicked Stuffed
Ingredients: avocado, chicken breast, bacon, caesar dressing.
It can be a good idea to batch-cook chicken breasts, especially if you find them on special offer, then you will have ready-cooked meat for salads like this one, cutting down on your cooking time. Chicken and bacon are great partners and they go so well in this creamy Caesar salad. A good tip to know if you are serving this is to drizzle the avocado with a little lemon juice to stop it from turning brown.
Greek Chicken Avocado Salad
– Adventures in Partaking
Photo Credit: Adventures in Partaking
Ingredients: chicken breast, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, dried oregano, pink Himalayan salt, white cabbage, cucumbers, onion, celery, black olives, avocado, lemon juice.
If you like olives you are going to love this chicken salad! It has tons of flavor from the marinated chicken and the olives give it a lovely hint of Greek cuisine. Olives are a good source of healthy fats, as is the avocado, so this is a great dish if you are following the AIP or keto route. The apple cider vinegar adds makes it a great gut-healthy dish.
This salad is still fresh the next day so any leftovers could be packed in your lunchbox!
Other Keto Chicken Salad Recipes
Keto Chicken Shawarma Salad
– Keto Summit
Ingredients: olive oil, lemon juice, salt, ground black pepper, chicken breasts, cumin powder, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, avocado oil, romaine lettuce, cucumber, red onion, fresh parsley.
This super summertime favorite features all of the shawarma with minimal carbs. It’s so delicious you won’t even miss the pita wrap.
Chicken Cauliflower “Couscous” Salad
– Paleo Flourish
Ingredients: chicken breast, cauliflower, cucumber, red pepper, lemon juice, olive oil, fresh parsley, green onions, garlic powder, cumin powder, salt, pepper.
There are so many reasons to get more cauliflower in your diet. Registered Dietitian Brianna Elliott, RD says, “It is a great source of nutrients, including a few that many people need more of. Plus, cauliflower contains unique antioxidants that may reduce inflammation and protect against several diseases, such as cancer and heart disease.”
Just like in traditional couscous recipes, the cauliflower takes on the flavors of the seasonings but does not have the grain content, making this salad a lighter option that will not cause any inflammatory issues. You can experiment with this dish adding in other seasonings, and I like to use lime instead of lemon juice for an even fresher flavor. I also sprinkle some chopped chives on the top for added color.
Chicken Salad Picnic Eggs
– Wicked Stuff
Photo Credit: Amanda from Wicked Stuffed
Ingredients: eggs, chicken, mayonnaise, dijon mustard, onion, celery salt, dill, lemon pepper seasoning, old bay seasoning.
Here is a slant on deviled eggs that can be served for breakfast, a keto-friendly lunch or even as finger food for a party! The seasonings give a bit of a kick to the chicken salad and these would be a great way to use up leftover chicken from a roast. Lemon salt is not available everywhere, but you can get it online and it is well worth it as it adds a special boost to the flavor.
Basic Chicken Salad
– Low Carb Yum
Photo Credit: Lisa from Low Carb Yum
Ingredients: chicken breasts, celery stalks, mayonnaise, salt, pepper.
Although this is a basic recipe, it is suitable for the keto diet as it is low carb and very easy to make, which can be handy for people who have busy lives. This salad can be ready to eat in just ten minutes and makes a tasty lunch or snack. If you want to bulk it up you can add in some other vegetables like chopped red onion or scallions and turn it into a main course for dinner.
No Mayo Cilantro Chicken Salad
– Meatified
Photo Credit: Rach from Meatified
Ingredients: cooked chicken, zucchini, coconut cream, garlic, cilantro, lemon juice, salt.
Here is a keto recipe that would be the perfect way to use up leftover cooked chicken! Although it does not involve mayo, you still have a wonderfully thick and creamy dressing to coat the chicken pieces. This salad is best eaten right away as the zucchini will release too much liquid if it is left to sit in the refrigerator. If you don’t like cilantro you can use Italian parsley instead.
Dill Chicken Salad
– Peace, Love and Low Carb
Photo Credit: Kyndra from Peace Love and Low Carb
Ingredients: chicken breast, celery, onion, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, fresh dill or dried dill, sea salt, black pepper.
Chicken salads are a great idea as they are quick and easy to prepare and if you have a leftover roast or grilled chicken from a previous meal they can be economical too! In this great keto recipe, you are using dill to give a subtle aniseed flavor which complements the chicken and goes so well with the celery. If you don’t like celery you can add in some chopped and peeled cucumber instead.
Low Carb Chicken Salad (Contains Dairy)
– Keto Connect
Ingredients: chicken thighs, mayo, sour cream, lemon juice, celery, pecans, parsley, chives, pink salt, black pepper.
One of the best things about a delicious keto-friendly chicken salad like this one is the combination of flavor and textures which make sure this dish is never boring! You have tender chicken, crunchy pecans and celery all wrapped in an herby, creamy sauce made from mayonnaise and sour cream. Yummy! This would be a great recipe for students as it can be quite cheap to make as you are using thighs instead of breast meat.
Paleo Thai Minced Chicken Herbal Salad
– I Heart Umami
Ingredients: ground chicken breast, coconut oil, garlic, shallots, grated ginger, fresh lemon zest, red chili pepper, fish sauce, lime juice, lime zest, coconut aminos, sea salt, cilantro leaves, mint leaves, spring onion.
Wow! This is definitely not a boring old chicken salad! This Thai-inspired keto and paleo dish is so full of flavor that I am sure it will become your go-to salad this summer. It has all the traditional taste of Thai cuisine as it uses fish sauce, lime and lemongrass and it would be the perfect appetizer for a Thai meal. If you are not too keen on cilantro you can garnish with flat-leaf parsley instead.
Loaded Chicken Salad
– Buns In My Oven
Ingredients: shredded chicken, eggs, dill pickles, chopped pecans, yellow onion, mayonnaise, yellow mustard, hot sauce, white vinegar, fresh dill, salt, pepper.
This is a great keto recipe if you like your chicken salad a bit more filling than some. It has boiled eggs in it which boosts the protein level and this could even be served as a main, however, it also makes a great dish for parties served with keto crackers or veggie slices. I know some of you don’t like dill pickles, so just leave them out if they are not your thing!
Jalapeño Popper Chicken Salad
– PaleOMG
Ingredients: chicken, bacon, jalapeños, red onion, Primal Kitchen avocado mayo, hot sauce, garlic powder, salt, black pepper, chives.
The salad in this great recipe is like deconstructed jalapeño poppers and is full of the same flavors and textures. This paleo salad is a mix of chicken, bacon, and peppers in a mayo dressing that is spiced up with some hot sauce. Don’t worry about this dish being super-spicy as roasting the peppers gives them a milder spice level but a more intense flavor.
Warm Chicken “Grain” Salad with Butternut Squash & Greens
– Meatified
Photo Credit: Rach from Meatified
Ingredients: butternut squash, coconut or avocado oil, ground chicken, salt, garlic powder, ground sage, dried rosemary leaves, onion, Swiss chard, spinach, lemon juice.
This great keto recipe gives you chicken salad with a difference – you are processing the chicken into little ‘grains’ and mixing these through the rest of the ingredients! What a great idea! This recipe takes a bit more prep than some, but the results are really worth it as this is such a pretty dish with pops of color from the squash and chard.
Easy Low Carb Chicken Salad Wraps
– My Keto Kitchen
Ingredients: chicken thighs, pepper, salt, garlic powder, olive oil, celery, parsley, mayonnaise, romaine lettuce leaves.
Lettuce wraps can be a great way to encourage picky eaters in the family to enjoy more healthy food, and loading the leaves with a delicious chicken salad can make the perfect family lunch. This is a budget-friendly keto recipe as you are using cheaper thigh meat, but leftover roast chicken would work here too. You can also add in other vegetables like chopped red onion for added crunch.
Keto Chicken Salad
– Perfect Keto
Ingredients: chicken breast, celery, mayo, brown mustard, pink Himalayan salt, fresh dill, chopped pecans.
Keto chicken salads are a fantastic source of healthy fats and protein that can be enjoyed by the whole family, young and old alike, as it can be adapted to suit your own needs. For example, this recipe uses pecans but if you have a family member with nut allergies, simply swap the nuts out for some bacon bits to keep the mixture of textures in the dish or have some fun experimenting!
Curried Chicken Salad
– Autoimmune Wellness
Ingredients: garlic “mayo”, apple-cider vinegar, lemon juice, powdered turmeric, powdered ginger, sea salt, chicken breast, red onion, parsley.
Believe it or not, this amazing recipe gives you instructions for making mayonnaise that is actually AIP and keto-compliant and is egg-free! flavored with some Indian spices, this makes a wonderful curried sauce for the chicken in this super salad. This would be perfect as an appetizer for an Indian-themed meal, or served with veggie slices and used as a party dip.
By the way – If you love the health benefits of turmeric but don’t see yourself eating it every day, consider trying our Turmeric Soothe supplement.
Fajita Chicken Salad
– PaleOMG
Ingredients: ghee, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, yellow onion, garlic, jalapeño, roasted mild green chiles, salt, pepper, chicken, fajita seasonings, avocado mayo, lime juice, cilantro.
The fusion of fajita flavors in this salad reminds me of summer because the chicken is spiced and delicious and you have all the colors of the bell peppers to make this a really attractive keto dish. Chicken salads are ideal for lunches and can be packed in a mason jar to transport to work or school for a tasty meal. If you are eating this at home you can either serve it on lettuce wraps or simply dive in with a fork!
