Arby’s Pecan Chicken Salad Sandwich Recipe: Elevate Your Lunch Game
If you’ve ever had the pleasure of biting into an Arby’s Market Fresh Pecan Chicken Salad Sandwich, you know it’s a game-changer when it comes to fast food. The perfect balance of tender chicken, crisp apples, juicy grapes, and buttery pecans, all enveloped in a creamy dressing, is enough to make you pull over and savor every bite. Now, with this copycat recipe, you can recreate that unforgettable experience at home, with the added benefits of customizable ingredients, freshness, and versatile serving options.
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Why This Homemade Version Beats the Original
This copycat Arby’s chicken salad elevates the restaurant experience in several key ways:
- Versatile Serving Options – Enjoy it on various breads, as a wrap, or over greens—options not available at the drive-thru
- Superior Chicken Quality – Use perfectly cooked, juicy chicken instead of the sometimes dry, pre-packaged variety
- Freshness Factor – Make it with just-sliced fruit for maximum flavor and crunch
- Customizable Texture – Adjust the chop size of ingredients for your perfect bite feel
- Perfectly Balanced Seasoning – Fine-tune the salt, pepper, and lemon to your exact taste preferences
Arby’s Chicken Salad
With this chicken salad, you don’t need to limit yourself to just a sandwich. You could put it in a large tortilla for a wrap, or it would go well in a submarine bun. I loved it with toasted sourdough bread. Honestly, it’s great with crackers or scooped out and placed on a bed of lettuce for a salad.
The Secret to Perfect Chicken Salad
The magic of this recipe lies in balancing textures and flavors while allowing each ingredient to shine. The key is using high-quality ingredients and taking the time to prepare them properly.
Chicken Salad Ingredients
- Cooked chicken – Provides the tender, protein-rich foundation; rotisserie chicken adds depth of flavor and moist texture
- Red delicious apple – Contributes natural sweetness and a crisp, refreshing bite that brightens the salad
- Red seedless grapes – Adds bursts of juicy sweetness and beautiful color contrast to the salad
- Pecans – Delivers rich, buttery crunch and the distinctive nutty flavor that makes this recipe special
- Celery – Brings a fresh, crisp texture and subtle savory note that balances the sweet elements
- Mayonnaise – Creates the creamy binding that unifies all ingredients while adding richness
- Fresh lemon juice – Prevents apple browning and adds brightness that cuts through the richness
- Salt and pepper – Enhances all flavors and balances the sweetness of the fruit components
- Red onion – Provides a sharp flavor contrast that adds complexity and depth (optional but recommended)
Assembly Ingredients
- Honey wheat bread – Offers a slightly sweet, wholesome base that complements the chicken salad
- Fresh leaf lettuce – Adds a crisp texture contrast and fresh green flavor
- Mayonnaise (for spreading) – Creates a moisture barrier to prevent the bread from becoming soggy
Ingredient Notes
If you don’t have any grilled chicken around, you could use leftover chicken from a baked chicken or leftover rotisserie chicken. If you need to grill your chicken, you should grill 1 to 1¼ pounds for this recipe.
While they do not toast their pecans, you could quickly elevate this salad by toasting the pecans in a skillet over medium-high heat until they become fragrant. Allow the pecans to cool completely before preparing the chicken salad.
How to Make Arby’s Pecan Chicken Salad Sandwich
- Place the diced apples in a medium-sized bowl. Pour one tablespoon of lemon juice over the apples and gently stir to coat them and prevent them from browning.
- Add the chicken, grapes, celery, and pecans to the same bowl, and thoroughly mix all the ingredients.
- Add 1/2 cup of mayonnaise to the mixture and stir until well combined. If the mixture seems too dry, add 1/4 cup of mayonnaise as needed. Season the salad with salt and pepper according to your taste preferences.
- Cover the bowl and let the flavors meld together in the refrigerator for about 1 hour before serving.
- To make the sandwich, take about 1 cup of the prepared chicken salad and place it between two thick slices of honey wheat bread and a few lettuce leaves.
- Enjoy your delicious chicken salad sandwich with chips or fries.
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Copycat Arby’s Pecan Chicken Salad Sandwich
Ingredients
- 1 cup diced red apple
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice (juice of one small lemon)
- 2 1/2 cups grilled chicken breast
- 1 cup halved grapes
- 1/2 cup chopped celery
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup mayonnaise
- salt and pepper to taste
- lettuce leaves optional
- thick-sliced wheat bread optional
Instructions
- Place the diced apples in a medium-sized bowl. Add one tablespoon of lemon juice and stir to coat the apples to prevent them from turning brown.
- Add the chicken, grapes, celery, and pecans to the bowl and mix well.
- Add 1/2 cup mayonnaise and stir to combine. If the mixture is too dry you can add another 1/4 cup of mayonnaise. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Allow the flavors to marry in a covered bowl in the refrigerator for about 1 hour before serving.
- If you would like to serve the chicken salad as a sandwich, place about 1 cup of chicken salad and a few lettuce leaves between two thick slices of wheat bread.
Video
Notes
Troubleshooting
- If too dry: Add mayonnaise 1 tablespoon at a time
- If too wet: Add more diced chicken or nuts
- If too sweet, Add celery or onion for balance
- If not flavorful enough: Add salt and pepper gradually
Pro Tips
- While Arby’s does not toast its pecans, you could easily elevate this salad by toasting the pecans in a skillet on medium-high heat until fragrant. Allow the pecans to cool completely before adding them to the salad.
- Dice chicken and vegetables uniformly for the best texture
- Toast nuts for enhanced flavor
- Chill salad before serving to develop flavors
- Keep ingredients cold while preparing
- Use fresh, crisp apples for the best texture
- Pat chicken dry before dicing to prevent excess moisture
Nutrition
Arby’s Chicken Salad Recipe Variations
Protein Options
- Grilled chicken breast (recommended)
- Rotisserie chicken
- Baked chicken
- Poached chicken
- Canned chicken (in a pinch)
Nutritional Notes
- For lower calorie version:
- Use light mayonnaise or Greek yogurt
- Reduce nuts
- Serve on lettuce instead of bread
- For lower carb version:
- Skip bread
- Use lettuce wraps
- Reduce grapes and apples
- For higher protein:
- Increase chicken ratio
- Use Greek yogurt for part of mayo
Substitutions
- Bread alternatives: Croissants, wraps, submarine rolls, or lettuce wraps
- Nuts: Almonds, walnuts, cashews, or pine nuts
- Fruit: Green grapes, dried cranberries, or raisins
- Mayo alternatives: Greek yogurt, light mayonnaise, or a mixture of both
How to Store Arby’s Chicken and Pecan Salad
Store your chicken salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days. For best results, keep the chicken salad separate from the bread and assemble sandwiches just before serving to prevent sogginess.
The chicken salad does not freeze well due to the mayonnaise and fresh fruit components, which can separate and become watery upon thawing
Do you love Arby’s? Be sure to check out these copycat recipes
More Chicken Salad Recipes
- Subway Salad
- Jason Deli Salad
- Newks Salad
- Chicken Salad Chick Fancy Nancy
- Chicken Salad Chick Classic Carol
- Chicken Salad with Dried Cherries
- Restaurant Chicken Salad
- Fruity Chicken Salad
- Mango Curry Chicken Salad
Be sure to check out my copycat restaurant salad recipes and easy chicken recipes.
Can you make anything from Raffertys restaurant like their potato soup ????
I know you can do it Stephanie
I would need to try it before I can say, and I don’t know where one is located near me.
I used to work at Arbys and there is no other spice…. This recipe is it to a T 😀
They use honey mustard lightly on the bread for that great taste
This is awesome! Arby’s no longer has this sandwich anymore. So now I can still enjoy it.
It’s a summer sandwich at Arby’s…….the chicken pecan saladanne
It used to be called the Market Fresh chicken salad sandwich.
There are dried cranberries in salad also.
Our Arby’s does have it, so maybe it’s just your store. If you have a number of them in your area, you might want to “shop around.”
Thank you so much for this recipe!! I love Arby’s salad but HATE my neighborhood Arby’s! This way I can have it MINUS the attitude! Tasted EXACTLY like their’s! I didn’t add the apples or celery but didn’t miss it at all. Imho, the pecans and the grapes make it perfect!
I haven’t been to an Arby’s in years. I had no idea they made things like this!
Thanks for this recipe! I don’t eat chicken so I slice tempeh thinly and marinate with soy sauce, microwave, then let cool. So. Good. And I add a bit of dill.
I really appreciate you posting this. 🙂
I know that this article was written three years ago, but I love, Love, LOVE this sandwich and am always disappointed when they take it off the menu. It is seasonal and doesn’t stay on all year. My question is, if I can ever get a response, is the binder of this salad mayo or yogurt? It doesn’t really taste heavy enough to be mayonnaise. If I can figure this out, sorry Arby’s, I’ll be having this at home.
My binder is mayonnaise, an employee later emailed me and said, wow your recipe is spot on, and I got the ingredients right. So I would assume it is mayonnaise as well. I think the key here is not to add too much of it.
Would miracle whip would or just mayo?
In the instructions you said to add chicken, sliced grapes, diced celery… but you don’t have grapes on ingredients. How much grapes do I add?
I would add about a cup of grapes to the recipe. I will fix that right now.
Thanks!
Stephanie
In the instructions it calls to add the sliced grapes but your ingredients does not list the grapes
WHAT KIND OF MAYO?
I use Hellman’s.
I make this recipe with regular mayonnaise. I can’t stand Hellman’s because it’s sweet. And I either use blue plate or a store brand that tastes good. I made this recipe for our churches graduation party for our congregation several years ago. It went over really well. In fact, my mom had never had chicken salad that way before and she loved it when she tasted it. So much so, she called me today and asked me to make it for Christmas Eve. This time though, I’m going to make it with roasted turkey. I’ll let you know how it turns out.
You forgot the grapes, which are my favorite part 🙂 I make this at home all the time but I just boil chicken breasts instead of grilling them. I love this stuff!!
the picture shows grapes in the sandwich,but they aren’t listed in the recipe.
The ingredient list does not have the amount of grapes to use. I guessed and used 1/2 cup.
Use the extra heavy mayo. You can get it at Sams club or Gordens.
I worked there when they first started making the market fresh line. You’ve pretty much got it, you just have one extra ingredient 😉
I have a super dumb question, and hopefully someone will see this and respond. Can anyone tell me how to best prepare the chicken? Obviously you can prepare your own, or even by the Tyson precooked stuff, what is the best option to get that Arby’s taste? Sorry, I know, I know, DURP.
Why don’t you take about 1 to 1 1/2 pounds of chicken breasts sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides, and then cook them in a pan. To the pan be sure to add a couple of teaspoons of oil, and cook them for about 7 to 8 minutes on the first side and about 5 minutes on the second side over medium heat. Be sure the chicken is fully cooked before making the chicken salad.
Thank you for your help. I really like the Arby’s Chicken Salad, and didn’t want to wreck the recipe by cooking the chicken the wrong way.
Much appreciated! !!!
Jeff
Jeff, I am glad to hear that!
I would definitely make my own by simply cooking it over the stove depending on how you want to season it but you can also buy the chicken already precooked as well
Braise the chicken in very salty water.
That could work.
I make a different chicken salad with boiled chicken thighs all u do is season the water right n the broth makes ur chicken more flavorful. Shredded then chopped. I find white meat is a lil 2 dry 4 a salad. Truste me boiling in its own juices gives it more tastier n tenderer.
I will have to give your suggestion a try.
I use a 1/2 cup sour cream as part of the binder. I adjust the mayo by the same amount. My family likes it a lot. Oh, also I use walnuts.
I love this at the Restaurants. I have to go out and get all this.
I work at an arbys and this isnt quite the recipe. To make 12 sandwiches you need 1 lb of grilled chicken breast (diced), 1/2 lb of mayo, 8 oz of chopped grapes and apples (red) and 4 oz of pecans and chopped celery.The portion sizes are 6 oz each on 2 slices of wheat bread. Also add a piece if leaf lettuce to it. All you do is chop and mix all the ingredients together (except the lettuce) in a bowl, then it is ready to put on the bread abd serve.
I appreciate your tips.
Just made this! Amazing! I added some ingredients though: parsley, spinach, mango flavored cranberries (so yum!), and cayanne pepper. It is without a doubt the richest chicken salad I’ve ever had. Thanks! 🙂
Know this is an old posting that sounded good how you added a twist to it
This is out of this world delicious !! OMG ! I will never eat chicken salad any other way ! Thank you so much for this recipe !!
Wow! I just had this as a wrap over the weekend and am so glad i found the recipe. Thanks!
I love this chicken salad…and now I can make it at home for less money! Thanks, Stephanie…
I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe.