Listen, chicken salad often gets a bad rap. And I get it! Many of us grew up on chicken salads that had more mayo than actual chicken. Plus, there’s something about grapes and mayo that just doesn’t sit right with me. Anyone else?!
This spicy chicken salad isn’t the one you grew up on — promise. It’s packed with freshness and flavor, plenty of crunch, and just a *tiny* bit of mayo. It’s easy to customize, too, so you can really choose your own adventure when it comes to the mix-ins! It’s SO easy (ready in 15 minutes), a great way to use up leftover chicken, and it packs in 30g of protein.
Scoop it up with pita chips or crackers, add it to a wrap or my famous chicken melt with some lettuce, anyway you enjoy, know that it will be delicious and satisfying.
A lightened-up, unique take on chicken salad
Many traditional chicken salad recipes use lots of mayo, and a little crunch from celery and sweetness from grapes. I’ve always found these chicken salads to be gloppy instead of fresh, so my twist has a bit less “sauce” and uses a mixture of both mayo and Greek yogurt for extra protein and a bit of lightness.
I also added more veggies and herbs to keep it light and fresh while adding the necessary crunch! If you’re not a fan of grapes in your chicken salad, this one is for you!
Ingredients in this spicy chicken salad
You can easily make this healthy chicken salad recipe in just a few minutes with staples from your fridge! It’s herby, spicy, creamy, and packed with flavor. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Chicken: the base of this recipe is finely chopped, cooked chicken breast. Great for using up leftovers, or even a roasted or rotisserie chicken!
- Produce: we’re adding freshness and a boost of vegetables from a crunchy, sweet red bell pepper, parsley, cilantro, and scallions. Oh la la!
- For the sauce: as I mentioned, we’re using a mix of mayo and plain Greek yogurt as the “sauce” for mixing into the chicken. You’ll also add sriracha for spice, a little lime juice, and honey to balance the flavors. OMG, it’s incredible.
Make this chicken salad your own
Everyone likes their chicken salad a little differently, and there are TONS of easy ways to customize it. Here’s what I can suggest:
- Choose your herbs and veggies: not a fan of cilantro? Stick with parsley in the recipe or add basil. You can also mix in any crunchy, raw vegetable you like (such as celery). Just be sure to chop it nice and small.
- Pick your sauce ratio: feel free to use more mayo than Greek yogurt, and vice-versa.
- Choose your spice: if you LOVE a kick of heat, add more sriracha! Otherwise, keep as is. It’s meant to be a little spicy, but you can omit the hot sauce if you’re very sensitive to spice.
Can I make it dairy-free?
Sure! I suggest using mayo instead of Greek yogurt.
Fast ways to cook chicken for this salad
If you don’t have any leftover chicken ready to go, try one of these 4 super easy ways to cook chicken. Then simply dice or shred the chicken to make this chicken salad!
Try a new protein
This recipe works great with two cans of tuna, or, for a plant-based option, one can of rinsed, drained, and mashed chickpeas. YUM!
Delicious ways to enjoy this spicy chicken salad
- Of course, make my Bangin’ Spicy Chicken Melts!
- Serve it on bread or a wrap with crunchy romaine lettuce, creamy avocado slices and some red onion
- Add it to lettuce cups, a collard wrap, or a tortilla for a chicken salad wrap!
- Scoop it up with pita chips, crackers, or pretzels for a super easy meal prep friendly lunch
Storing tips
This spicy chicken salad should last 3 to 5 days in the fridge. After you make it, just be sure to cover it and place in an airtight container.
More lunch recipes you’ll love
- 15-Minute Healthy Moroccan-Spiced Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad
- Sesame Edamame Salad with Cilantro and Toasted Almonds
- Avocado Buffalo Chickpea Salad Wraps
- Tahini Jalapeño Green Goddess Chicken Salad Wraps
- Vibrant Curry Cashew Chickpea Quinoa Salad
Get all of my lunch recipes here!
I hope you love this spicy chicken salad recipe! If you make it, be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked it. Enjoy, xo!
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
Spicy Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups finely chopped cooked chicken breast (about 3/4 pounds)
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley (or more cilantro!)
- ¼ cup finely chopped scallions (about 2 scallions), plus extra for topping
- 1 small red bell pepper, chopped
- 3 tablespoons plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 2 to 3 tablespoons mayo
- 2 tablespoons sriracha
- 1 teaspoon honey
- Juice from ½ lime
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, mix together chicken, cilantro, parsley, scallions, bell pepper, yogurt, mayo, sriracha, honey, lime juice, and salt and pepper to taste.
- Add to sandwiches (like my spicy chicken melt) or wraps, or scoop salad up with pita chips or crackers!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
This post was originally published on September 29th, 2022, and republished on April 8th, 2026.
Made it with chickpeas instead of chicken! Really good, great flavor! Probably the best chicken/chickpea salad recipe I’ve tried. I doubled the recipe to have enough for a week of lunches and I made the sauce separately so I could add it in each day to the portion I was eating so that it didn’t lose flavor or dry out in the fridge.
Perfect! Such a great meal prep lunch 🙂
I added one jalapeno and some chopped arugula for some zing, and oh my god it is an amazing dish!! Well done AK!
Perfect!! Glad you loved it!
I made this for lunch this week using rotisserie chicken. Fantastic and incredibly easy to make! I’m enjoying it scooped onto mini naan bread. Adding this recipe to my lunch rotation!
The perfect lunch! Glad you enjoyed!
Planning to make this soon, do you think hot honey would work instead of separate honey and Sriracha? Or that wouldn’t be the right ratio of honey to heat?
It won’t be quite the same because the recipe calls for 2 full tablespoons of sriracha and just a teaspoon of honey – but you could add a teaspoon of hot honey and then add sriracha to your spice preference!
made this using 2 cans of kirkland chicken (what i had on hand) and lactose free greek yogurt (no mayo). Really loved the little kick and how filling it is. thank you for another amazing recipe. so nice to know i can find any recipe of yours and know it will be good!
Perfect meal prep hack! Glad you enjoyed!
Wow!!!!!! I just made this and took a bite… it’s absolutely delicious!!!
I bet it’s even better after sitting! Fantastic recipe!
Isn’t it incredible!? So glad you gave it a try!
I made a double batch of this for lunches this week, and my goodness! So yummy, just the right amount of spice (I used 3 Tbsp of Sriracha). I also used more Greek Yogurt than mayo, otherwise I followed the recipe as is. I’m going to put it in a low carb tortilla. Really a delicious, high protein recipe.
I’m back again. This recipe is so good that we just made 5lbs of chicken cutlets and then promptly chopped them up to bulk prep this chicken salad! How are there not more ratings and comments on this post? It’s a hit for me and my husband!
Amazing!! So happy you both loved it 🙂 we do the same with leftover chicken all week long!
Of course, this is delicious! I am currently dairy free, so o just did some extra mayo and ate it with salty tortilla chips! So good, will be making again soon!!
Love it! Such a great lunch 🙂