This Mayo-Free Chicken Salad Bowl is a lightened up version of classic chicken salad with whole food ingredients. A superfood salad bowl packed with protein, broccoli, spinach, chickpeas, and goji berries, tossed in a tangy yogurt dressing.
Diving into another superfood, anti-inflammatory, gut-healthy recipe. This the only way to eat chicken salad. It’s lighter, it’s freshers, it’s better for your gut, and it’s loaded with extra superfood ingredients.
This should be your only to make chicken salad, with a tangy yogurt olive oil dressing instead of mayo. I took the inspiration for this addictive recipe from my detox broccoli salad!
Chicken Salad Bowl Ingredients
Below is an overview of the ingredients and recipe. Please be sure to scroll down to the recipe card below for the complete details and nutrition information.
Yogurt Sauce
- Yogurt – We recommend using plain, full-fat yogurt for the best taste and texture. We’re particularly fond of using Greek yogurt for a boost of calcium and protein. However, any kind you like best will work as long as it is unflavored.
If using Greek yogurt, the mixture will be thicker. If desired, thin it out with more oil or a bit of broth or water.
- Oil – Use extra virgin olive oil to combine the ingredients, thinning the dressing and adding healthy fats.
- Natural Sweetener – Use honey or agave syrup to sweeten the creamy yogurt dressing to suit your flavor preferences.
- Red wine or apple cider vinegar – A little goes a long way to add a sweet, tangy flavor and boost digestion.
- Lemon Juice – Freshly squeezed lemon juice tastes best and works to cut through some of the heaviness of the fats, creating a bright, well-rounded flavor.
- Kosher Salt and Black Pepper – Use as little or as much as you like.
Superfood Salad Ingredients
- Free-range rotisserie chicken – Use a store-bought rotisserie chicken, leftover chicken, or roast your own.
- Baby spinach – We prefer this over regular spinach because it’s more tender and has a slightly sweeter taste. Feel free to substitute any greens you like best!
- Blueberries – Fresh berries add a pop of color, sweet flavor, and lots of fiber and nutrients.
- Roasted sunflower seeds – Not only do these add a delicious nutty flavor, but the healthy fats allow us to absorb the fat-soluble vitamins in the veggies!
- Plain or roasted chickpeas – The roasted chickpeas add a little crunch.
- Cilantro or parsley – Both are detoxifying herbs filled with vitamin C, beta-carotene, chlorophyll, vitamin K, and b vitamins like folate.
- Dried goji berries – Provide a burst of sweetness and high levels of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients.
Ingredient Swap: If you don’t have goji berries, any dried fruit can be substituted. We personally like currants or chopped dried apricots!
Meal Prep Tip
If making ahead of time, keep the spinach salad and chicken salad separate until ready to eat. This recipe can be stored in airtight containers for up to 5 days.
How to Make A No-Mayo Chicken Salad Bowl
- Prepare the chicken. Shred the cooked rotisserie chicken and set aside in a bowl.
- Roast broccoli. Toss half of the fresh broccoli with cooking oil and seasoning of your choice, and roast at 425°F for 20-25 minutes.
- Prepare the yogurt dressing. Mix the yogurt, vinegar, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, salt, pepper and onion in a small bowl.
- Toss chicken in dressing. Spoon ½ to ⅔ cup yogurt sauce over the chicken and toss all together. Save extra yogurt sauce for the bowl.
- Toss salad. In a large bowl, add spinach leaves, roasted broccoli and/or raw broccoli, blueberries, sunflower seeds, and chickpeas, and toss together with the remaining yogurt sauce.
- Plate salad bowl. Add the chicken salad on top of the spinach salad. Garnish with herbs, goji berries, lemon slices, and if desired, peppercorns and red pepper flakes.
More of Our Favorite
Lighter Mayo-Free Recipes
No Mayo Chicken Salad Bowl
- Total Time: 20
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
A lightened up Mayo Free Chicken Salad! A chicken salad bowl that’s perfect for a healthy meal or side dish. Spinach, roasted broccoli, berries, chickpeas, roasted chicken, and herbs tossed in a light yogurt olive oil dressing.
Ingredients
- 3 cups rotisserie chicken (skinless, pulled or shredded)
- 1 pound broccoli florets
- 2 to 3 teaspoons melted coconut oil or olive oil
- ½ teaspoon everything seasoning of choice (dried herbs, red pepper, etc.)
- ⅔ to 1 cup cultured plain Greek yogurt or kefir yogurt
- 1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 garlic clove or 1 teaspoon minced
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
- ½ cup diced red onion
- 4 cups spinach leaves
- 1 – 1 ½ cups fresh blueberries
- ¼ cup roasted sunflower seeds
- ⅓ to ½ cup chickpeas (canned or roasted)
- Garnish – ½ cup packed fresh cilantro or parsley (torn or roughly chopped), 3 Tablespoons dried goji berries or other dried fruit of choice, lemon slices, peppercorns/fresh pepper and red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Shred the cooked rotisserie chicken and set aside in a bowl.
- If desired, roast ½ pound of fresh broccoli for extra flavor or if not roasting toss all raw broccoli florets in a large bowl. When roasting, preheat the oven to 425F and toss the broccoli florets (around 2 cups) in 2 to 3 teaspoons oil and seasoning of choice. Pour onto a baking sheet and place in the oven for 20-25 minutes. Place the other ½ pound of fresh broccoli florets in a large mixing bowl.
- While broccoli is cooking, make the yogurt sauce for the chicken salad.
- Mix the yogurt, vinegar, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, salt, pepper and onion in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Next spoon ½ to ⅔ cup yogurt sauce over the chicken and toss all together. Save extra yogurt sauce for the bowl.
- In a large bowl, place the spinach leaves in the bottom. Layer the roasted broccoli and/or raw broccoli, blueberries, sunflower seeds, and chickpeas on top. Toss together with the remaining yogurt sauce (dressing).
- Add the chicken salad on top of the spinach salad.
- Garnish with herbs, goji berries, lemon slices, and if desired, peppercorns and red pepper flakes.
- Serve immediately. See notes for make ahead meal prep options.
Notes
Meal Prep Tip – If making ahead of time, keep the spinach salad and chicken salad separate until ready to eat. This recipe can be stored in airtight containers for up to 5 days.
Cooking Tip – If using Greek yogurt, the mixture will be thicker. If desired, thin it out with more oil or a bit of broth or water.
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 15
- Category: Main
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Calories: 355
- Sugar: 13 g
- Sodium: 275 mg
- Fat: 14 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.7 g
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 30 g
- Fiber: 8
- Protein: 29
- Cholesterol: 53 mg
This looks amazing! Excited to try it! Do you have any suggestions for a substitute for the goji berries that would go well? Thank you 🙂
sure! you can use any dried fruit really. I think dried apricot (chopped) would also be divine!
Lindsay this was the most delicious salad I have ever eaten!! I also made another version with canned tuna fish and it was as equally spectacular!! It’s a keeper! I pinned it to my Easy Recipes Pinterest board and printed the recipe for my collection!! Thanks so much for keeping my belly full!!
Oh I am so glad Carol! I saw your tweet, looked awesome!
This chicken salad bowl is lunch goals!
Love this healthy meal. We are making it tonight because I have some leftover cooked chicken.
woohoo great plan!
I am not a fan of mayo – love this version! Plus all the delicious add ins, yum!
Giiiiiirl thanks for this recipe – I just can’t do the mayo! I’ve been making chicken salad with yogurt (and more recently, avocado!) for the last few years and absolutely LOVE it! I’m itching to try your recipe! xx
And now… Now I want to make this one too! Gah! I want to make EVERYTHING you make. THANK YOU for feeding my inner hungryyyy person!
use coconut kefir yogurt and you’re golden! I look out for you and your lack of gut. 😉 Mwah!
I love a good chicken salad!
Exactly what I need for lunch tomorrow! Nice and light.
I am ALL over this! I love a rotisserie chicken. When I buy them, I debone it immediately… and basically eat half standing there in the kitchen. Ooops…
Holy beautiful! Can’t wait to try this!!
Much as I love mayo, there’s often way too much in chicken salad. Your yogurt dressing is a delicious alternative! I’m going to make this all summer long!
Love that this uses Greek yogurt instead of mayo!!
I’m so picky about my chicken salad but I love it when it is done right. Most of the time, it is made with too much mayo / dressing, but this is the perfect ratio! So delish on a salad or as a sandwich!