If I had to pick my favorite thing to make for lunch, this fiesta avocado chicken salad would be it. Using mashed avocado as a base makes it dairy-free AND no-mayo, and paleo/whole30! It’s packed with Mexican-inspired and Southwest flavors like lime, cilantro, cumin, and smoked paprika, with bell pepper added for crunch.
It’s easy to make in bulk (so you can pack it for lunch all week), and it’s inexpensive to make. It’s such a great healthy alternative to a plain old turkey sandwich!
When I did the Whole30, it was a lifesaver.
Paleo or low-carb? Put it on a lettuce wrap (or eat it plain). Grain grazer? Put it on a couple of soft sourdough or whole wheat toasted pieces of bread with a crisp piece of lettuce. Throwing a party? Put it in a bowl with some crackers or homemade tortilla chips on the side and let your guests have at it.
It’s super versatile.
What’s in dairy-free avocado chicken salad?
The substitution of avocado for mayonnaise is super healthy. Avocado is packed with healthy fats and is one of the most nutritious foods you can eat.
Sometimes when I cut into an avocado I can’t even contain my excitement and I completely nerd out that such a creamy, delicious food GROWS IN NATURE! Anyone else do this? … *cricket* *cricket*
ANYWAY, avocado is definitely just as tasty as mayo in this recipe, especially with the corresponding Mexican ingredients.
And while I love me some mayo and usually will not shy away from it, it’s definitely made with fats that aren’t as good for you as those found naturally in avocados (even if you make your own).
The crunchy red bell peppers are slightly sweet and add a crunch that traditionally would have been the celery’s role. The cilantro and lime juice make it bright and citrusy, and the spices pack it with flavor and give it a bit of a kick.
Not a fan of spicy? Just omit the cayenne pepper.
This is an awesome flavor-charged recipe that you NEED to try as soon as possible.
Tips and tricks
- Cook chicken in the slow cooker. It’s so easy to do and cheaper than buying a rotisserie chicken. That said, you can use any already cooked chicken you want, whether it’s leftover roasted chicken thighs or leftover whole roast chicken.
- Store covered in plastic wrap with a squeeze of lime juice. Squeeze some lime on the top surface, and press a piece of plastic wrap to the top of it to store it in the fridge for up to one week. This will help the avocado from turning brown.
For as many advantages as avocados have, it does have one disadvantage: it turns brown when exposed to oxygen. The lime juice will help a bit, but for extra protection, this plastic layer will prevent oxygen from touching the chicken salad and limit how brown it turns.
I use this trick when I make guacamole or avocado salsa, as well.
Variations
- Add mayo: Even though this chicken salad recipe has no mayo as written, sometimes I like throwing a little in there for a richer taste.
- Spice it up: Add a diced jalapeño pepper in the mix.
- Add some crunch: some toasted pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds would be a really yummy addition!
Other Chicken Salad Recipes
- Chicken Salad with Grapes and Walnuts
- Curried Chicken Salad with Apples and Raisins
- Apricot Chicken Salad with Dill
- Tzatziki Chicken Salad with Greek Yogurt
Check out all my Whole30 / Paleo Recipes here!
Did you make this no mayo, dairy free avocado chicken salad recipe? Please click the stars below to comment and Rate this Recipe
Fiesta Chicken Salad (No Mayo/Dairy Free)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 avocado
- 2 cups cooked chicken such as rotisserie, shredded
- 1/2 red bell pepper finely diced
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro roughly chopped
- 2 scallions thinly sliced (or 2 tablespoons finely diced red onion)
- juice of one lime
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper
- kosher salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Mash the avocado in a medium bowl with a fork.
- Mix the remaining ingredients together with the avocado.
- Serve on whole grain bread, serve with crackers or tortilla chips, or serve on lettuce wraps or on a bed of greens for a low-carb/paleo/whole30 option.
Notes
- For a Whole30/Paleo/low-carb meal, serve on lettuce wraps or eat plain.
- Storage: Store in the fridge for up to 5 days in a bowl with plastic wrap pressed down on the surface, and a squeeze of extra lime juice if you want. This will help prevent the avocado from browning.
- For a richer taste, mix a little mayo in with the avocado.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and reflects one serving of the recipe (total servings indicated at top of recipe card). It does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
Dianna
Do you think this would freeze well?
Elizabeth Lindemann
Hm, I’ve never tried it, but I don’t think this would freeze well because of all the watery veggies (like the bell peppers). If you want to make a batch to freeze, I recommend using only avocado, chicken, lime juice, and spices, and leaving all the veggies and fresh herbs out. Hope that helps!
Sarah Crawford
I just made this and love it. I will make it for a potluck I am going to in a couple of weeks.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it, and I hope it’s a hit at the potluck!
Safia
Hello Elisabeth,
Thank you so much for this recipe.
I just want to know this is for how many person?
Thanks in advance.
Elizabeth
Hi! It serves about 4 people.
Daryl
This is a damn good recipe. I was out of mayo so googled mayo free chx salad and this is better than my norm. Tastes super fresh. Thank you!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
NICCI
Is there a nutritional “label” for this? Calories, fats, protein, carbs?
Elizabeth
Hi! I’m in the process of updating all my old recipes to have nutritional information. I went ahead and updated this post, thanks to your comment! The information is in the recipe card above (to my best estimate). Hope this helps :-)
Dona
Excellent!!! Made it for a party (several gluten/dairy free friends there) and served on small romaine leaves. It was a hit. Thanks for sharing this classy twist on a classic.
Elizabeth
Yay! So happy this worked out for you!
Emma
Hi, sounds great! Does the avocado brown a lot if you make it in advance?
Thanks!
Elizabeth
Hi! The avocado might brown a tiny bit, but the lime juice helps deter it. You can use a trick I use when I make guacamole in advance- press the chicken salad down into a bowl or container, and then place plastic wrap directly on top of the surface. This will help keep oxygen out, which is what turns it brown. Hope that helps!
Terrell
Trying this tonight!
Elizabeth
Hope you liked it!
Caitlin
Awesome recipe! I made two skinless boneless chicken breasts in the slow cooker (I threw a chipotle in there too) and followed the rest of the recipe. I topped it with fresh salsa. Delicious!
Elizabeth
Oh yum- I love the idea of using chipotle flavored chicken for this! Thanks for the suggestion!
Melanie
This is very good! Quick and easy and will be on my plate often
Elizabeth
Thank you! So glad you liked it :-)
Lisset
I’m not going to lie. This turned out a lot better than I expected. It tastes amazing!
Elizabeth
I’m so happy you liked it! It took me a long time to try and use avocado as a substitute for mayo in chicken salad because I, too, was not expecting it to be awesome (because mayo is amazing). I was super surprised by how much I loved it!
Beth
I was looking for a healthy and yummy chicken salad recipe and THIS IS IT! Thanks SO much for posting this, I’m going to repost on FB for my friends if you don’t mind
Elizabeth
Of course- Please share with as as many people as you want! I’m so happy you liked it- thanks for the comment :-)
Shavonne
This was amazing. Always wanted to try chicken salad as I watched everyone eat it at some point, however, I couldn’t imagine ever eating mayonnaise. This was AWESOME!!!
Elizabeth
Yay! So glad you liked it!!
Shelly
Do you have a calorie count for this?
Elizabeth
Hi Shelly! Sorry for the delayed response. I’ve been trying to be better about posting nutrition information on my recipes, but because I’m not a calorie counter myself it often falls by the wayside. I use a nifty nutrition calculator I stumbled across to figure this out- looks like each serving of this recipe has about 216 calories. Here’s the link to the calculator if you ever need it! https://www.caloriecount.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php
Appreciate Goods
Awesome recipe and nice photos! Did you take these pictures yourself? Thank you!
p.s. I can’t rate 5 stars. I think there’s something wrong with your rating system. Maybe you might wanna fix it!
Elizabeth
Thanks so much, and yes I do take my own photos! I’ve slowly taught myself over the past couple of years. I’ll look into the rating system, thank you!
Celline
Let’s try it! Nice recipe. Thanks!
Valarie Ely
Omgggg!!! This looks amazing.. I do not eat Mayo so I’ve never had regular chicken salad. I love Mexican and anything with avocado. I’m leaving the house asap to go buy all the ingredients in don’t have on hand lol. I have a gluten sensitivity so the lettuce wrap will be perfect. Thank you!!!
Elizabeth
Hope you like it!! The lettuce wrap will be DELICIOUS. I sometimes just put it over chopped lettuce and eat it like a salad as well :-)
Mindi
What is a serving size? Any nutrition info?
Elizabeth
There are about 4 servings in this (see recipe card above- it’s very tiny writing so it’s easy to miss!). I don’t count calories or post nutrition info on my recipes, but there’s a super nifty nutrition calculator that may be helpful for you! Just enter the amount of servings and copy and paste the ingredients, and all the info should show up :-) Hope that helps! https://www.caloriecount.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php
Carrie Hebert
This was delicious! Thank you for the recipe. I did cheat and use rotisserie chicken.
Elizabeth
Thanks, so glad you liked it! And that is definitely not cheating, don’t worry :-)
Deb
Look delicious can’t wait to try it! Thank you ☺
Elizabeth
Thanks Deb! Hope you like it :)
Shelly
This recipe looks so good to me! I can’t stand mayo and I love avocado, this sounds like the perfect chicken salad!
Elizabeth
Thanks Shelly! :-)
Mary
Thank you so much for this recipe. It sounds wonderful. I will be
making this this week! Either bread or lettuce sounds great! Can’t wait to try it…..Mary
Elizabeth
Thanks Mary! I hope you like it!