20-Minute Tzatziki Chicken Salad

Our Tzatziki Chicken Salad combines two of our absolute favorites - a homemade tzatziki dressing and a simple creamy chicken salad - into one hearty dish! Chopped rotisserie chicken, cucumbers, kalamata olives, and feta get coated in a lusciously creamy homemade tzatziki sauce that's packed with greek yogurt, tangy lemon juice, and fresh herbs.

It only takes about 20 minutes to throw together and can be a perfect make-ahead lunch or last-minute dinner on busy weekdays. Serve with our Rosemary and Olive Oil Crackers or pile it on top of sliced bread topped with lettuce and tomato for the sandwich of your dreams!

In our opinion, making chicken salad shouldn't be rocket science!

Honestly, homemade chicken salad should be one of those recipes that you can throw together in minutes and don't have to put much thought into. Just stick with the essentials, like cooked chicken, mayo for creaminess (or in this case, greek yogurt!), and add a few extra additions to make it extra flavorful. That's really all you need.

For this Tzatziki Chicken Salad, we opted for greek yogurt instead of the traditional mayo to give it that tangy Greek tzatziki taste. And of course, it really wouldn't be authentic without the grated cucumber, fresh lemon juice, and flavorful herbs, like dill, parsley, and mint, as well.

And because we wanted to keep with the Greek theme, we also added in kalamata olives, diced red onion, and crumbled feta since we know from our many years of recipe testing that those specific flavors blend perfectly together!

The key ingredients needed for the best tzatziki chicken salad!

The tzatziki dressing takes the place of mayonnaise in traditional chicken salad recipes. Some tzatziki recipes just use dill as the main herb, but we like to include a combination of fresh dill, parsley, and mint to really take the flavor to the next level!

How to assemble one of our favorite chicken salads:

1. Grate a cucumber using the larger holes on your grater. To get rid of as much moisture as possible, place the cucumber onto 2 to 3 layers of paper towels and squeeze well.

2. In a large bowl, add the yogurt. Slowly whisk in the olive oil until it is well incorporated. Stir in the lemon juice, grated cucumber, garlic, parsley, dill, mint, salt, and pepper. Set dressing aside while you prepare the other ingredients.

3. Slice your cucumber in half lengthwise and use a spoon to scrape the seeds out.  Cut the cucumber into ¼ to ½-inch pieces.

4. Finely chop the onion and add it to a small fine mesh strainer.  Rinse under very hot water for 45 seconds. Repeat with cold water. This will help to take the bite out of the raw onion.

5. Add chicken, cucumber, olives, red onion, and crumbled feta to the bowl with the dressing. Stir to combine, until the mixture is fully coated in the sauce. 
6. Before serving, garnish with additional crumbled feta and a sprinkle of chopped fresh herbs, if desired. Serve as is, with crackers or veggies for dipping, or on sliced bread to make a sandwich.

Top Tips from the CK Test Kitchen!

• Remove the moisture from the grated cucumber. To ensure the dressing is perfectly creamy without getting too watered down, make sure you thoroughly squeeze the excess moisture from the cucumber in between the paper towels.
• You can make the dressing ahead. Actually, if you have the time, we encourage it too! This dressing will stay fresh in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. The more time it has to sit, the more the flavors can blend together.
• Only 1 large English cucumber should do the trick. We found that 1 cucumber was enough for both the grated cucumber in the dressing and the diced cucumber for the rest of the salad. However, it may not hurt to pick up an extra one at the store just to be safe. You can always slice it up for serving the chicken salad (instead of, or alongside, crackers) if you don't end up needing it!

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We can't wait for you to make this Tzatziki Chicken Salad in your own home! If you do, be sure to let us know! Leave a comment with a star rating below. You can also snap a photo and tag @crowded_kitchen on Instagram. We can't wait to see what you're cooking!

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