This fresh and fabulous loaded Veggie Chicken Salad has all the good things in it that make it perfect for eating on hot Summer days. But..Is it a salad? Is it a sandwich? Or can it be either? I'm going to say both! It's full of veggie goodness, has great crunch, tangy savoury flavour and is totally 100% vegan! Yum.
Although this recipe is pretty good all year round, it really comes into it's own in Summer, when you don't want to cook, but you do want something flavourful and healthy!
Just like my other favourite sandwich filler, Vegan Chickpea'Tuna' this delicious Vegan Chicken Salad is great to eat in sandwiches, scooped up in lettuce leaves or just as a bowl of salad. It pairs really well with other salads too, such as this Potato Salad with Dill and Peas!
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🌿Ingredients
- Vegan 'Chicken'- Either make your own seitan chicken or choose your favourite pre-made brand.
- Vegan Mayo- There are loads of good vegan mayos around now, or make your own.
- Celery-For subtle crunch and flavour.
- Carrots- For a little sweetness and a pop of colour.
- Spring Onions- or green onions. You could also use chives.
- Toasted Almonds- I love the extra crunch that almonds bring to this salad.
- Lemon- for added zest and zip!
- Grapes- You can choose green or red grapes, it's up to you!
- Herbs: Tarragon and Parsley- Choose your favourite fresh herbs, tarragon is a natural pairing with chicken.
See recipe card for quantities.
👩🍳Instructions
This recipe is super easy to make!
Shred the vegan chicken into a large bowl. You can choose chunkier or smaller pieces.
Grate the carrot, then finely chop the celery and spring onions and add to the vegan chicken.
Finely chop the fresh herbs, slice the grapes and chop the toasted almonds. Add to the salad.
Finally, add a dollop of vegan mayo, the juice of half the lemon and season to taste. You can add a little chilli sauce to if you like it spicy! Mix well!
Hint: Don't forget to remove the strings from the celery! It makes the bite so much more delicious!
🥗Substitutions & Variations
There are endless ways you can customise this veggie packed vegan chicken salad!
- Chickpeas or White Beans -instead of using vegan 'chicken' swap in chickpeas or white beans. It will still be delicious.
- Spicy- Add your favourite hot sauce for a little extra kick.
- Gluten-Free - choose a gluten-free vegan chicken from the store, or use chickpeas or beans.
- Salad or Sandwich- This great recipe is just as delicious as a salad with some extra leaves, or choose to make it into a sandwich.
- Other Veggies: Think crunch and flavour: Bell Peppers, cucumber or radishes would be delicious in this salad. Red onion would also be delicious.
- No Grapes- If you don't like fruit in your salad, leave the grapes out. You could also add small chunks of apple instead.
🥫Storage
This veggie-packed vegan chicken salad keeps up to 4 days in the fridge. Make a batch ahead of time so you have some quick easy meals for when it is hot.
❗Top tip
If you want to make vegan Chicken Salad Sandwiches, make up to 5 hours in advance and keep in the fridge if you can. 'Buttering' the slices of bread with some vegan spread, edge to edge will prevent them from going soggy.
❓FAQ
This is a veggie packed vegan or vegetarian version of the classic chicken salad. It uses vegan faux chicken or alternatively, chickpeas to make the filling.
You can choose to make this recipe with white beans or chickpeas instead. It will taste just as nice.
Parsley and chives are great. You could also add some chopped thyme or fresh dill.
If you use a pre-made vegan chicken, check the packaging. Most will not need cooking. If you use the basic vegan seitan chicken recipe from this site, it is already cooked. You can choose to add extra flavour to it if you like.
📖 Recipe
Veggie Chicken Salad (or sandwich)
Ingredients Note:
For accuracy, I measure all ingredients in metric as standard, then convert and test the recipe for American cup measurements etc.
(Heads up Aussie and UK readers- your measurements in cups are sometimes different, so please use metric or check you have the correct cup and spoon type!!)
Ingredients
- 160 g (⅔ cups) vegan chicken (seitan or shop bought)
- 2 tablespoon vegan mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice (juice of half a lemon)
- 2 tbps fresh tarragon
- 3 tablespoon fresh parsley
- 80 g (½ cups) celery (1 stick )
- 80 g (½ cups) carrots (1 medium)
- 80 g grapes (red or green.)
- 30 g (¼ cups) toasted almonds
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Finely Shred the vegan chicken and add into a large bowl.160 g vegan chicken
- Finely dice the celery and grate the carrots. Add into the bowl.80 g celery, 80 g carrots
- Slice up the grapes and roughly chop the almonds. Add into the bowl.80 g grapes, 30 g toasted almonds
- Finely chop the herbs and add into the bowl.2 tbps fresh tarragon, 3 tablespoon fresh parsley
- Now mix in the mayo and lemon juice and season to taste.2 tablespoon vegan mayonnaise, 2 tablespoon lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste
- Serve with lettuce leaf cups or on a sandwich!
Notes
- Don't forget to remove the strings from the celery! It makes the bite so much more delicious.
- If you want to make vegan Chicken Salad Sandwiches, make up to 5 hours in advance and keep in the fridge if you can. 'Buttering' the slices of bread with some vegan spread, edge to edge will prevent them from going soggy.
Cam says
YUM! The first time I ate this I tried it as a sandwich and then I used the leftovers for a salad. I definitely prefer it as a sandwich (I love bread haha) but its really so delicious and was so easy to make!
Beth says
This salad is so yummy. We ate it as a salad and as a sandwich. Perfectly tasty.
Amy Nash says
Scrumptious and easy to throw together for a cool meal while it's hot. The tarragon was such a nice addition!
Kris says
This was so easy and tasty! My kids loved it, too!!
Tayler Ross says
I love this idea! A great change to incorporate "chicken salad" into my meatless Monday routine!