Turkey Salad Recipe

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Have leftovers from Thanksgiving and don’t know what to do with them? I love to repurpose all that Thanksgiving turkey, stuffing, and cranberry sauce into brand new recipes — like turkey casserole, turkey soup, and this turkey salad recipe. It’s similar to a chicken salad, but with shredded turkey and a fall flavor profile instead.

With juicy leftover turkey, tangy dried cranberries, crunchy pecans, and a creamy dressing, this is a quick, easy dish that will keep in the fridge all week… if it lasts that long!

Ingredients For Turkey Salad

This section explains how to choose the ingredients for the best turkey salad recipe, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card below.

Salad:

• Turkey – Use leftover Thanksgiving turkey, or any leftover turkey breast will work. You can also start fresh whenever you see turkey or turkey breast on sale throughout the year, or make this dish with shredded chicken (or rotisserie chicken) instead.
• Vegetables – Fresh celery and green onions add crunch, but other veggies like diced bell peppers, shredded carrots, or chopped kale will work, too.
• Dried Cranberries – Add a pop of color. I make my own dried cranberries without sugar, but store bought will work, too. You can also try chopped apples, raisins, and grapes if cranberries aren’t available.
• Nuts – Pecans are a popular choice in recipes for turkey salad. Other nuts, like walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, or pine nuts, are also good. For a nut-free option that still adds crunch, try sunflower seeds. Chop nuts before using.

Dressing:

• Mayonnaise – Homemade mayo is easy to make, but any store brand works. If you want to lighten it up, you can swap this with plain Greek yogurt.
• Dijon mustard – Pungent and a little bit spicy, Dijon compliments the mayonnaise.
• Fresh Herbs and Seasonings – Fresh thyme, sea salt, and black pepper round out this dressing. Add a teaspoon of Italian seasoning for a deeper flavor.

How To Make Turkey Salad

This section shows how to make this recipe for turkey salad, with step-by-step photos and details about the technique, to help you visualize it. For full instructions, including amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card below.

1. Combine. Place the turkey, celery, cranberries, pecans, and green onions to a large bowl.
2. Whisk dressing. In a small bowl, whisk the mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, garlic powder, thyme leaves, sea salt, and black pepper.

3. Mix. Stir everything together until combined.
4. Serve. Enjoy your turkey salad recipe right away, or refrigerate to allow the flavors to develop more.

Storage Instructions

Keep the salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Freezing turkey salad recipes with mayonnaise is not recommended, because the dressing will separate.

How To Serve Turkey Salad

This versatile turkey salad recipe can be used in so many tasty ways!

• Sandwiches – Piled high with lettuce leaves, tomato, and red onion, turkey salad sandwich recipes are everyone’s favorite.
• Lettuce Wraps – Lighten up your sandwich by wrapping the salad in lettuce instead.
• Salads – Add big scoops of turkey salad on top of your favorite greens mixture for a healthy protein meal.
• Appetizers – Spread over crackers or crostini for a fun holiday appetizer.

5 from 3 votes

Turkey Salad Recipe (10 Minutes!)

This easy turkey salad recipe uses leftover turkey, tangy cranberries, and crunchy pecans, all tossed in a creamy mayo Dijon dressing.

Prep: 10 minutes

Total: 10 minutes

Author: Maya Krampf from WholesomeYum.com

Servings: 4 (adjust to scale recipe)

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Ingredients

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Salad:

• 3 cups Leftover turkey (shredded) ▢
• 2 stalks Celery (finely diced) ▢
• 1/3 cup Dried cranberries (I used homemade dried cranberries without sugar added, but any kind works) ▢
• 1/3 cup Pecans (chopped; or sunflower seeds for nut-free) ▢
• 2 medium Green onions (chopped) ▢

Dressing:

• 2/3 cup Mayonnaise ▢
• 2 1/3 tbsp Dijon mustard ▢
• 1 tsp Garlic powder ▢
• 2 tsp Fresh thyme leaves ▢
• 1/2 tsp Sea salt (to taste) ▢
• 1/4 tsp Black pepper (to taste) ▢

Instructions

Tap on the times in the instructions below to start a kitchen timer while you cook.

1. In a large bowl, add the shredded turkey, celery, cranberries, pecans, and green onions. Mix until combined.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, garlic powder, thyme leaves, sea salt, and black pepper.

3. Pour the dressing over the salad and mix together until combined. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.

4. Enjoy right away, or refrigerate for at least 1 hour to let the flavors develop further.

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Recipe Notes

Serving size: 1 cup

Nutrition Facts

Amount per serving. Serving size in recipe notes above.

Calories 549

Fat 44.1g

Protein 31.6g

Total Carbs 5.4g

Net Carbs 2.8g

Fiber 2.6g

Sugar 1.6g

Nutrition facts are provided as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see our nutrition policy.

Course: Salad

Cuisine: American

Keywords: turkey salad, turkey salad recipe

Calories: 549 kcal

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