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Traeger Smoked Chicken Salad

This smoked chicken salad recipe combines Traeger smoked chicken breast with lower fat mayo, Greek yogurt, and center cut bacon to make a healthier protein option that’s perfect for summer.

smoked chicken salad in a bowl served with crackers, lettuce, and bread

How to Make Smoked Chicken Breast on a Traeger Grill

I seasoned the chicken with Traeger chicken rub and smoked it for about 2 hours at 250ºF on the Traeger Pro 575 grill with Signature pellets, brushing the chicken with a mixture of one tablespoon of both butter and lemon juice after an hour.

chicken breasts seasoned with Traeger chicken rub and a Meater meat thermometer inside

You can use any rub or seasoning blend for your chicken.

For example, my Traeger smoked Mexican chicken would be great for a Tex-Mex style smoked chicken salad. You could substitute poblano or jalapeño peppers, oregano, Mexican crema, and lime juice for their standard counterparts here.

And the blackened seasoning from our air fryer blackened chicken tenders would work great for a creole chicken salad with bell peppers, creole mustard, parsley, and a little cajun seasoning.

four smoked chicken breasts on a quarter sheet pan

An 8 ounce chicken breast will reach an internal temperature of 165ºF after 90-120 minutes on the Traeger grill. Adjust the cook time up or down for smaller or larger chicken breasts.

A leave-in, wireless food thermometer like the Meater pictured above is great for accuracy. You can set notifications for specific temperatures.

What about grilled chicken breast on a Traeger grill?

If you’d like to speed the cook up, you could always use grilled chicken instead of smoked. Our Traeger grilled chicken breast recipe cooks for 25-30 minutes at 500ºF. The same seasonings mentioned above will work fine for grilled chicken as well.

Smoked Chicken Salad Ingredients

There are so many types of chicken salad components out there. I kept things fairly standard with some lower fat substitutions and a few minor tweaks to fit my flavor preferences. Feel free to play around with ingredients to fit your preferences as well.

chopped smoked chicken with a bowl of chicken salad ingredients

Here’s everything you’ll need, along with a few substitution notes:

  • light mayo and fat free Greek yogurt – You can play around with the ratio here to further reduce the fat and adjust the “mayo” flavor intensity.
  • lemon juice, hot sauce, and dijon mustard – You’re looking for tangy acidity to balance out the fat and saltiness. Think: lime juice, Worcestershire, vinegars, etc.
  • celery and scallions – Other vegetables and herbs should work fine here.
  • bacon – This adds texture and saltiness. Roasted or raw nuts would work, and mushrooms can also add meatiness.

You may have noticed the lack of fruit. If you’re a fan of diced apples or halved grapes then by all means, add them to your smoked chicken salad. I think the sweetness would work really well with this recipe.

Chicken Salad Upgrade for Garlic Lovers

You can easily make a big upgrade to your chicken salad by smoking garlic alongside the chicken. When making our Traeger smoked potato salad, we found garlic was perfectly roasted (wrapped in foil with a little olive oil, salt, and pepper) after 60-90 minutes at 300ºF. At 250ºF, the garlic will probably take about 2 hours.

Ways to Serve Chicken Salad

smoked chicken salad in a bowl and on croissants

You can’t go wrong with the classic croissant, crusty bread with fresh lettuce and tomato, or with crackers. Dill pickles and potato chips or crunchy baked chips are also great pairings.

To stick with the healthier theme, go with something like a mixed greens salad or maybe low fat crescent rolls or low carb bread and cracker options.

Be sure to let us know how you end up serving your smoked chicken salad, any successful substitutions you make, or what you think about the recipe in a recipe review. We always appreciate those!

smoked chicken salad in a bowl served with crackers, lettuce, and bread

Traeger Smoked Chicken Salad

Yield: 8 Servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes

Citrus pepper smoked chicken breast with bacon and a tangy blend of low fat mayo, Greek yogurt, dijon mustard, and hot sauce.

Ingredients

For the Smoked Chicken

  • 2 pounds Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
  • 1/4 cup Traeger Chicken Rub
  • 1 Tablespoon Butter, melted
  • 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice

For the Chicken Salad

  • 6 slices Center Cut Bacon, cooked and chopped
  • 3/4 cup (170g) Fat Free Greek Yogurt
  • 3/4 cup (180g) Light Mayo
  • 1/2 cup (50g) Diced Celery
  • 2 Scallions, finely chopped
  • 1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
  • 1 Tablespoon Hot Sauce
  • 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
  • Salt and Pepper, to taste

Instructions

  1. Season the chicken breast with the dry rub and cover at room temperature while preheating the Traeger for 10-15 minutes at 250ºF.
  2. Smoke the chicken for 1 hour before brushing with a mixture of the melted butter and tablespoon of lemon juice. Continue cooking for 30-45 minutes until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165ºF.
  3. While the chicken rests, cook and chop the bacon and mix together with the remaining ingredients. Finely chop the cooked chicken and add to the mixture, stirring everything together. Salt and pepper to taste.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 6 oz (about 1 cup)
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 220Total Fat: 9gCarbohydrates: 3gProtein: 30g

Bri

Monday 4th of April 2022

So good!! This is actually my first time having chicken salad but my fiancé grew up with it and was craving it. Found this recipe and loved that it was a bit lighter as we are both trying to slim down! For dinner, I had it with mixed greens and he had it on a bun. The next day we had it for lunch with wheat thins. I have been following Mason and meaning to try a Woodruff recipe for a long time and this was an amazing start - will definitely try more soon!

Kirk Brewer

Saturday 20th of August 2022

@Mason Woodruff, Do you recommend serving hot or cold?

Mason Woodruff

Friday 22nd of April 2022

Thanks for the feedback and trying a WtW recipe, Bri!

Dena Miller

Thursday 31st of March 2022

I love a good chicken salad! I made this Monday night and I have been eating it with Triscuit thins everyday for lunch! I substituted red onion for green (because it's what I had), but this is now my favorite chicken salad! 10/10

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