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Chicken salad with shredded chicken, celery, red onion and chives on a soft hoagie roll, on a white platter with pasta salad in the background

Easy Homemade Chicken Salad

A quick and creamy homemade chicken salad made with canned chicken, celery, red onion, fresh lemon juice, mayonnaise, and simple seasonings. Perfect for sandwiches, croissants, hoagie rolls, or crackers.
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 0 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Servings: 4 to 6 servings
Course: Lunch
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 quart home-canned chicken drained
  • ¼ cup chopped celery fresh or frozen
  • ¼ cup chopped red onion fresh or frozen
  • ½ cup mayonnaise
  • Juice of ½ fresh lemon
  • ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
  • ⅛ teaspoon black pepper

Method
 

  1. Drain the canned chicken and transfer it to a medium mixing bowl. Gently break apart with a fork.
  2. Add the chopped celery and red onion.
  3. Add the mayonnaise and squeeze the juice of half a fresh lemon into the bowl. Stir until evenly combined.
  4. Add black pepper and salt to taste, adjusting the amount of salt based on the seasoning already in your chicken.
  5. Serve immediately with crackers, sourdough bread, croissants, or hoagie rolls, or refrigerate until ready to serve.

Notes

Salt: My home-canned chicken contains no added salt. If using salted canned chicken or other precooked chicken, reduce the salt and adjust to taste.
Frozen vegetables: I add frozen chopped celery and onions directly to my chicken salad without thawing them first. They provide a nice bit of crunch when freshly mixed.
Lemon juice: Freshly squeezed lemon juice adds brightness to the creamy dressing. Half a medium lemon typically yields about 1–1½ tablespoons of juice.
Chicken: Store-bought canned chicken or cooked shredded chicken can be used instead.
Storage: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3–4 days.
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