Quick Recipe: Ultimate Chicken Salad Sandwich Recipe

Ah, the chicken salad sandwich...a classic. So delicious. Pretty nutritious. So easy and efficient.

But that canned chicken...it's just bad. So, here's a way to make an alternative, that'll blow away that canned stuff.

We're avoiding canned chicken here—it’s too salty, low quality, packed in plastic-lined cans, expensive, and honestly, it just doesn't compare in taste to this recipe.

This chicken salad sandwich always delivers. To elevate it, use the best quality bread you can find: low sodium, low sugar, low fat, no preservatives, high protein, and high fiber. Find a bread like that, and you can eat it plenty (unless you have a medical issue with bread...of course).

When you're doing a Level 4 Reset, this recipe won't be allowed due to the mayo. That said, chicken salad on gluten-free bread is surprisingly good—it just seems to work better than tuna for some reason. But the mayo produces too much inflammation for Level 4, and the palate needs a break from that velvety, fatty, salty goodness, as well.

But any other time - a chicken salad sandwich on quality bread with avocado, lettuce, and tomato? It’s like a little bit of culinary heaven. Or, try it in our big pita bread - Oh, baby!

Here's how to make a killer, yet simple and delicious, chicken salad:

The Chicken: Start with boneless, skinless chicken breasts. You can either roast them in the oven or cook them in the Instant Pot. Season the chicken breasts before cooking with a good amount of salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and maybe a touch of smoked paprika or a pinch of thyme for extra flavor. After cooking, shred the oven-roasted chicken in your food processor. Be careful not to over-process it - use the pulse setting to work it to the right consistency.

The Instant Pot chicken will be tender enough to shred with just a fork. And don't skimp on the seasonings - you want to basically douse those suckers in garlic and onion powder.

The Mayo: Use good mayo. Duke's Mayonnaise is still the winner here—all chefs agree, it’s the best for a reason. If you can't get Duke's, Blue Plate is a worthy substitute.

The Secret to Volume and Flavor: Just like the tuna salad, we use finely diced celery! It’ll boost the volume of the chicken salad while adding a perfect crunch and refreshing flavor. Plus, it's an opportunity to practice those knife skills. You can also add fine-diced green or red bell peppers, and even some chopped cucumber is nice.

The Lemon Secret: Fresh-squeezed lemon juice is key. Use at least half a lemon for every two chicken breasts. The acidity brightens the whole dish and takes the flavor to the next level.

The Basic Recipe: Shred two cooked chicken breasts and add them to a mixing bowl. Use three big spoonfuls (soup spoon size) of mayo. Add a good hit of garlic powder, onion powder, and a bit of black pepper. Squeeze in the lemon juice. Finely dice about two big stalks of celery and mix it in. That’s it! Taste and adjust—maybe a bit more mayo, lemon, or salt until it’s perfect for you.

Optional Veggie Upgrade: Add sliced avocado, some crisp lettuce, thinly sliced onion, and tomato to the sandwich for that extra hit of freshness and added veggies. With chicken salad, you can add fruit, too - try chopped grapes, mandarin oranges, etc. Adding veggies and fruit makes it more of a meal than a snack.

With these tweaks, your chicken salad will be way better than any canned version, lower in sodium, and packed with flavor. Enjoy!