Chicken salad with bacon, lettuce and tomato...no wonder everyone loves BLT chicken salad! Toss this chicken salad with creamy creme fraiche dressing (no mayo) or choose from several other dressing options provided with the recipe.
This BLT chicken salad is a delicious spin on traditional chicken salad with the flavors of a BLT sandwich. Your choice of cooked chicken breast or thighs are tossed with bacon and a creamy, tangy creme fraiche dressing. Add salad greens, cherry tomatoes and croutons for a flavorful, high-protein salad.
If you love creamy salad dressing, you'll also love Green Goddess salad and macaroni salad with creamy Greek yogurt basil dressing.
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Ingredients
Chicken: Any type of cooked chicken can be used for this recipe. Leftover chicken from last night's dinner or leftover rotisserie chicken work great. You can use dark or white meat. If you don't have any leftover chicken, you can learn how to boil chicken thighs.
Bacon: Use regular bacon or substitute turkey bacon. The recipe card below includes instructions for easy oven-baked bacon.
Tomatoes: The easiest type of tomato to use for this salad is cherry tomatoes. You can add them whole or halved.
Salad greens: A crisp and sturdy salad green works best with chicken salad, like romaine or iceberg. I also really like butter lettuce, although it's slightly more delicate. One bag of pre-chopped salad is the perfect amount for this recipe.
Croutons: The chicken and bacon can be served on sandwich bread with lettuce and tomato, but my favorite way to serve this recipe is chicken BLT salad in a bowl. Toss together the lettuce & tomato and the bacon chicken salad, then top with crunchy croutons.
Creme Fraiche Dressing: The creme fraiche dressing is creamy and tangy, without tasting too heavy or having an oily texture. It's a lovely change from mayonnaise chicken salad. However, you can substitute either mayonnaise, Greek yogurt or sour cream if necessary. Both yogurt and sour cream will make the dressing taste a little bit more tart and tangy.
If you're not familiar with creme fraiche, it's cultured cream with a consistency similar to sour cream. However, it's richer than sour cream and often has a flavor that is less tangy.
Another chicken and creme fraiche recipe to try is my creamy chicken paprika. You might also like baked panko cod with creme fraiche and mustard sauce.
Salad Dressing Options
I think you'll love the creamy creme fraiche dressing included with this recipe. But if you prefer, you can also simply toss the chicken with mayo, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and salt.
You can also use my kefir dressing, which is mixed with mayo and has a flavor and consistency similar to Ranch dressing.
Additional Salad Toppings
To add even more flavor, consider adding additional ingredients that can be mixed in with the chicken or tossed with salad greens.
- Fresh Herbs - fresh parsley leaves or fresh basil or dill can be added to the salad greens
- Red onion, thinly sliced or finely chopped
- Green onion, thinly sliced
- Kalamata olives
- Cucumber, chopped
- Celery, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Cook the bacon in the oven for about 20 minutes at 400 degrees
2. Whisk together the dressing by combining creme fraiche with white vinegar, fresh herbs, Dijon mustard and salt
3. Combine the cooked chicken, bacon and dressing. In a separate bowl, toss the salad and tomatoes lightly with olive oil and salt.
4. Combine the chicken and bacon with the salad greens. Add more creamy dressing to the greens if desired. Top with croutons.
How to Serve Chicken Salad
This recipe can be served as an actual salad, in a bowl over a bed of lettuce and topped with croutons. Or, you can eat a BLT chicken salad sandwich or wrap, with lettuce and tomato layered on top.
Bread: BLT chicken salad sandwiches can be made using pita bread, whole wheat, white or sourdough bread. Just make this recipe as written, then put the chicken salad in a sandwich with lettuce and tomato.
Lettuce wraps: Wrap the chicken, bacon and tomatoes in a large Romaine or Iceberg lettuce leaf
Storage and Leftovers
Chicken salad will stay fresh for up to 5 days in the refrigerator, in a tightly sealed airtight container. However, it usually tastes best if eaten within 3 days.
Chicken salad can be frozen, but the texture will change. It's best to just eat it fresh! But if you do want to freeze leftover chicken salad, learn how to freeze chicken salad.
More Salad Recipes
📖 Recipe
BLT Chicken Salad with Creme Fraiche Dressing
Toss this BLT chicken salad with creamy creme fraiche dressing (no mayo) or choose from two other dressing options in the notes below.
BLT chicken salad can be served in a salad bowl or as a sandwich.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Salad and bowls
- Method: Toss
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 2 to 4 cups chopped or shredded cooked chicken (either chicken breast or thighs)
- 4 to 6 slices bacon (or more, if you love bacon)
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, whole or cut in half
- One 7 oz. bag chopped romaine or butter lettuce (iceberg lettuce is good too)
- 1 to 2 cups croutons
Creme Fraiche Dressing
- 1 cup creme fraiche (about 8 ounces)
- 2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
- ¼ cup chopped parsley, chives or dill
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Line 1 or 2 rimmed sheet-pans with foil. Spread out strips of bacon, with a little space between each slice. Put the bacon in the oven and set the temperature to 400° (no need to preheat). Cook the the bacon for 20 to 25 minutes, until it reaches your desired crispiness.Â
- Let the bacon cool so it can be chopped or crumbled. If you like, a paper towel can be set under the bacon to soak up some of the grease.Â
- While the bacon cooks, whisk together the dressing. In a medium bowl, whisk together creme fraiche, white vinegar, fresh herbs, mustard and salt. Set aside.Â
- In a large bowl combine the lettuce and tomatoes. Lightly toss with 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil and a generous pinch of salt. You can leave the lettuce dressed simply in oil, or add a tablespoon or two of the creme fraiche dressing. Â
- In a medium bowl, combine the chicken and bacon. Add ¼ cup of the creme fraiche dressing and mix to coat. Add more dressing as needed, so it's dressed how you like it. Make sure to salt and pepper the chicken.Â
- The salad greens and chicken salad can be tossed together in one bowl or served separately. Add croutons to the salad bowl, if desired.Â
Notes
Although only 4 to 6 strips of bacon are needed for this recipe, I always bake a whole packages. The leftover bacon can be warmed briefly in the microwave for breakfast, or eaten cold as a snack during the week.Â
I think you'll love the creamy creme fraiche dressing included with this recipe. But you can also simply toss the chicken with mayo, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and salt. You can also use my kefir dressing, which is mixed with mayo and has a flavor and consistency similar to Ranch dressing. Â
Distilled white vinegar is sold next to other types of vinegar. You can substitute white wine vinegar or fresh lemon juice if necessary.Â
Liz
Love it, totally yummy 😋
Jenny
Even better than a plain old BLT sandwich! I love this chicken salad tossed with salad greens.