Honey Baked Ham Chicken Salad [Copycat Recipe]
Croissants plus chicken salad? Yes, please! You must admit, this is an unusual combo, but it’s so delicious! I tried it at HoneyBaked restaurant for the first time and it was love on the first bite. I’m writing a whole article about it, so you can see how much I like it! Keep reading for a copycat recipe of my favorite Honey Baked Ham Chicken Salad!
This is like a bougie version of salad on the toast. Flaky croissants pair flawlessly with hearty chicken. Also, this chicken salad is super special with its flavor pairing, as you have savory, sour, and sweet components. It truly feels luxurious with all the simple ingredients.
What Is Honey Baked Ham Chicken Salad?
You can order this chicken salad from Honey Baked Ham Co’s lunch menu (definitely check it out, I love almost everything on it). For this treat, you need to go to one of their stores or order it via DoorDash or Uber Eats. Also, you can have lunch at the site or take one to go.
The creamy chicken salad is placed inside the delicate croissant making one flavorful bite. The dressing is Greek yogurt-based, with a drizzle of honey for the contrast. My favorite part of this meal is fresh, ripe grapes in the filling.
That’s most definitely its trade mark and it would be bland without it. Finely chopped celery, red onion, and HoneyBaked ham blend finely in this mixture. YUM!
How to Make HoneyBaked Ham Chicken Salad?
This salad is pretty special, I must admit. It is simple to prepare, but ingredient pairing makes it one of a kind. Here is what you need to make it.
- Chicken – The recipe calls for cooked chicken, but I find it too bland, to be honest. I decided to grill the chicken breast, seasoned with salt and pepper only.
- Croissants – I bought the croissants from my favorite bakery. They were incredibly flaky and buttery, with a melt-in-mouth texture.
- Vegetables – I like to use Romain salad, as it stays crispy longer than iceberg, for example. I thinly sliced Romain tomatoes, finely chopped red onion, and fresh celery for the filling.
- Ham – In the original recipe, there is of course Honey Baked Ham. I cubed turkey ham, I had somewhere in the fridge. Any variety you like will do the job!
- Greek yogurt – Greek yogurt is a base for the creamy dressing. It has a slight tang, but it is still natural-flavored to build a whole flavor profile around it.
- Mayonnaise – I like to use some mayo in the sauce, but not much. Here, it works more like a flavor enhancer than the main ingredient.
- Honey – A drizzle of honey is a must if you want a trace of the signature Honey Baked Ham flavor. It truly balances the savory components and skyrockets the taste of the meat.
- Grapes – Fresh grapes are the ingredient that really surprised me when I tried it for the first time. The feeling of biting into the juicy grape mixed with the umami taste of chicken is superb. I wouldn’t leave it out for the world. Here, I used black grapes, but you can go with white, as well.
- Spices – I used salt and pepper only. It can sound bland, but the ingredient pairing is what’s important here, so I didn’t want to smother the beautiful flavors with too much spice.
Let’s get this fancy salad ready to serve!
Step 1: Cooking the Chicken
You can cook the chicken, of course, breast or tights. On the other hand, I decided to grill. Place the meat in a zip-lock bag, and use a kitchen mallet to tenderize it.
Massage salt and pepper on both sides and toss it in the grill pan heated to the medium. Cook it for 5 minutes per side.
Step 2: Assembling the Filling
Finely chop the red onion and celery. Next, slice the turkey ham into the cubes and halve the grapes. Slice the chicken, as well. I like to keep it grape-size, just for the cohesiveness.
In a bowl, merry Greek yogurt, a bit of mayonnaise, and drizzle the honey. Add all the ingredients you chopped before, and coat them well with the dressing. Do a taste test here and season it with salt and pepper if needed.
Step 3: Assembling the Salad
Slice open a croissant and start assembling it like a sandwich. Pat dry Romain salad and place it on the bottom. Thinly slice the tomatoes and arrange them on top.
Filling comes last, I do about 2 spoons. That’s it! Enjoy!
How to Store This Chicken Salad?
You can definitely assemble this salad and keep it in the fridge for up to 3 days. Grape and onion will keep the crispiness, but the sour flavors will fuse with sweet notes of honey. This only means – the salad gets better as it sits!
Of course, don’t place the salad on the croissant before storing it, as the pastry will turn soggy and mushy.
Recipe Alternations
This salad pairs incredibly well with nuts: almonds, walnuts, or pecans. They give the additional texture and crunch. I love to incorporate them into the salad, but only be careful when storing it, because they will absorb the moisture.
If you want to switch up the grapes in the recipe, fresh and crisp apples are a top-tier pick. I like a bit more sour apples for this one, like Granny Smith. Also, if you haven’t tried chicken salad with cranberries, this is your sign to do it!
I didn’t try this, but I heard that pineapple, cherries, and berries all go well with chicken salad. With fruity salads, I would always recommend adding some goat cheese, it is just another dimension of relish!
I don’t like cooked chicken, so I used grilled, but rotisserie chicken is smashing in this salad. It skyrockets the taste, as it is fattier than chicken breasts only. Also, roasted chicken is not bad at all as a substitute for rotisserie!
If this dressing is too bland for you, try adding some mustard, red wine vinegar, Sriracha, or any other hot sauce you prefer.
Do you have any other ideas? I like chicken salads with a twist!
Honey Baked Ham Chicken Salad [Copycat Recipe]
Equipment
- 1 grill pan
Ingredients
- 4 oz chicken breast
- ½ red onion (finely chopped)
- ½ cup grapes (halved)
- ⅓ cup celery (finely chopped)
- salt and pepper (to taste)
- ½ cup ham (chopped into the cubes)
- ½ cup Greek yogurt
- 1 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp honey
- 4 leaves Romain lettuce
- ½ Romain tomato (thinly sliced)
- 2 croissants (large)
Instructions
Cooking the Chicken
- Place the meat in a zip-lock bag, and use a kitchen mallet to tenderize it. Massage salt and pepper on both sides and toss it in the grill pan heated to the medium. Cook it for 5 minutes per side.
Assembling the Filling
- Finely chop the red onion and celery. Slice the turkey ham into the cubes and halve the grapes. Slice the chicken into grape-size pieces.
- In a bowl, merry Greek yogurt, a bit of mayonnaise, and drizzle the honey. Add all the ingredients you chopped before, and coat them well with the dressing. Do a taste test here and season it with salt and pepper if needed.
Assembling the Salad
- Slice open a croissant and start assembling it like a sandwich. Pat dry Romain salad and place it on the bottom. Thinly slice the tomatoes and arrange them on top. Place about 2 spoons of filling last. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Before diving into the nutritional details, please review our Nutritional Disclaimer page for important context and clarifications.
