Creamy Curried Chicken Salad Sandwiches

This Creamy Curried Chicken Salad Sandwich puts a flavorful twist on the classic chicken salad. Spice it up with a curry paste and turmeric, plus the crunch of fresh veggies and peanuts. Perfect for a light lunch, summer meals, or meal prep!

Curried Chicken Salad Ingredients

• Cooked chicken. Your choice on this one, as it could be anything from rotisserie chicken to shredded chicken to air fryer chicken breasts to leftover chicken of any kind…just start with pre-cooked chicken to save time. 
• Plain Greek yogurt
• Mayonnaise (I always use extra savory kewpie mayo)
• Red curry paste
• Ground turmeric
• Lime juice
• Chopped peanuts
• Chopped dates, dried apricots, or golden raisins
• Green onions
• Cilantro
• Carrots, shredded or sliced into thin matchsticks
• Black pepper and red pepper flakes (optional)

And for serving, pair with fresh lettuce, sliced red onion, and buttery croissants. Or, keep scrolling to see a few alternative serving suggestions for this Curried Chicken Salad recipe. 

Wondering which type of chicken is best? There’s no “right” or “wrong” choice. For me, I much prefer the texture and flavor of dark meat for grilling, stir fries, and other chicken dishes. But I think chicken salads are perfect for chicken breasts, tenderloins, or other white meat cuts. Nutritionally, there are some minor differences, but that usually comes down to whether it’s eaten with or without the skin. For this Curried Chicken Salad Sandwich, go with whatever you like best and trust that at the end of the day, you’ll still have a delicious, high-protein lunch recipe to enjoy. 

Ingredient Spotlight: Curry Paste

​Most of the time, when I see a curry chicken salad recipe it calls for curry powder. And you can totally use that option, too!

However, I want to call out this curry paste because I think it’s worth trying instead. It’s a versatile ingredient we use for soups, stews, and obviously curry dishes. But a small scoop goes a long way in many other recipes that could use a boost of pungent, earthy, savory flavor.

The brand I featured uses a blend of spices including red chili peppers, garlic, lemongrass, galangal (Thai ginger), coriander, and kaffir lime. But with the addition of turmeric and black pepper, it gets even more flavor plus a rich, vibrant color. You can find it in just about any grocery store, or shop online. 

Note: “Curry” isn’t one specific ingredient or spice flavor, as there are countless variations. It’s native to South and Southeast Asia. You might be thinking of Indian-style curries, where curry-based dishes are a cornerstone of Indian cuisine. But there are also versions of curry throughout Thai, Filipino, Burmese, Malaysian, and Indonesian cuisines. More recently, curry-based dishes and ingredients have gained popularity in East Asia (Japan and Korea). Outside of Asia, curries are also popular in parts of South Africa and Europe as people migrated or were forced to resettle outside the Indian subcontinent due to colonization.  

How to Make Curried Chicken Salad

Start by prepping your fresh produce. Wash, dry, and slice or chop the main ingredients for the chicken salad.

Next, move on to the chicken. If you cooked it fresh, let it cool to room temperature before roughly shredding or chopping it into smaller pieces. Tender chicken should be pretty easy to pull apart, but if you cooked it in advance you might have better luck using a chef’s knife to roughly chop it. 

Add it to a large bowl along with the rest of the main ingredients for the curry chicken salad.

Measure the ingredients for the creamy curry dressing. Add them to a medium bowl and whisk together until smooth.

Once finished, pour the curry paste mixture over the salad ingredients. Fold everything together using a soft spatula or wooden spoon, making sure everything is evenly mixed and coated in the creamy dressing. 

Give it a taste and make adjustments if needed. Garnish with extra peanuts, cilantro, or red pepper flakes if you like it a little extra spicy.

If serving right away, slice your croissants and build your sandwiches.

Serving Suggestions

There are many different ways to enjoy this curried chicken salad recipe!

As shown here, you can pile it high on a sliced croissant or your favorite bread. You can never go wrong with a good chicken salad sandwich. Or wrap, or pita pocket. 

But you can also scoop it onto a bed of greens, salad style. As the self-proclaimed No. 1 fan of #SaladsThatDontSuck, I would never turn down such a satisfying, easy curry chicken salad. Feel free to add more fresh produce, like crunchy celery, red onion, sliced apples, or fresh grapes.

And finally, you can serve it with crackers, crunchy veggies, or right off a spoon! When I make a big batch you’re sure to catch me snagging a bite or two here and there.

Go with your personal preference or experiment until you find your favorite way to serve it.

Storage Tips for Meal Prep

And speaking of making a big batch, this Curried Chicken Salad is a great option for meal prep. It will last up to 4-5 days in the refrigerator in an airtight container. 

​It should maintain flavor and quality, although you might notice the fresh veggies or peanuts seem less crispy. Unfortunately, there’s no good way to keep the moisture from soaking into these ingredients. If you can, try to enjoy within the first 1-2 days after making this chicken salad recipe so everything stays fresh and crisp.

I was still working in corporate wellness the first time I made this curried chicken salad recipe. We featured it during a cooking demo at one of our clinic sites, and it was an instant hit! Everyone seemed to agree it was a great way to take something familiar (like regular chicken salad) and make it new and interesting. This is so important for meal prep or quick lunch recipes so you never feel bored!

If you try this creamy Curried Chicken Salad recipe, let me know what you think! I’d love to hear if you enjoyed it or made any swaps and substitutions. Comments are always welcomed, and don’t forget to leave a star rating!

As always, thanks for stopping by the Street Smart Nutrition blog. Cheers to more fearlessly nourishing meals!

Disclosure: This post was originally published in February 2018. It has since been updated to improve the overall quality of the recipe and images.