How do you make snack boxes filling enough to count as lunch?
Protein, crunch, and a little contrast make the difference. Chicken salad gives you the protein, and the rest is easy to build around what you already have.
This is a good one when people are eating at different times, heading out the door, or tired of the usual sandwich. It works in warm weather, but it also works for lunchboxes, work lunches, road trips, and after-school snack plates that need a little more substance.
Recipe Summary
Serves: 4
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: none
Best For: lunch, snack box, make-ahead meal
Ingredients
- 3 cups cooked chicken, chopped or shredded
- 1/3 to 1/2 cup mayo
- 1 to 2 teaspoons Shawhan Farms Pep's Chicken Rub
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- salt and pepper, if needed
For the boxes
- crackers
- cucumber slices
- carrot sticks
- grapes or apple slices
- cheese cubes or slices
- pickles
Use what you have
- chopped celery
- chopped red onion
- chopped pecans or walnuts
- lettuce leaves
- pita wedges
Instructions
1. Make the chicken salad
In a bowl, mix the chicken with the mayo, Pep's Chicken Rub, and Dijon. Add salt and pepper if needed.
2. Add extras if you want them
Stir in celery, red onion, or chopped nuts if you want more crunch.
3. Build the boxes
Divide the chicken salad into containers or lunch boxes. Add crackers, vegetables, fruit, cheese, and pickles around it.
4. Chill until needed
Keep cold until ready to eat.
Why This Works
Chicken salad is familiar, but it can use a little help. Our chicken rub gives it more depth, and the mix of crunchy, cool, briny, and sweet sides keeps lunch from getting boring.
Our chicken rub works especially well here because it is useful well beyond hot chicken dinners. It gives a cold lunch like this more flavor without requiring a long ingredient list, and it is a premium blend that is convenient to keep on hand.
Kitchen Notes
This is a good use for leftover roasted chicken or rotisserie chicken.
If you are packing apple slices, a quick squeeze of lemon helps keep them looking fresh.
Kitchen Variations
- use pita wedges instead of crackers
- swap grapes for berries or melon
- add nuts for more staying power
- spoon the chicken salad into lettuce leaves
- pack it as one big board instead of individual boxes
Looking for more lunch and snack ideas? Browse our Recipe of the Week collection
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