8 Store-Bought Chicken Salads, Ranked Worst To Best

Your mind may go a few different places when you hear the words "chicken salad." One dish you might imagine is fresh grilled chicken served over a bowlful of greens and other veggies. But, for our purposes today, I want you to wipe that vision from your mind, because we're talking about the kind of chicken salad where chunks of chicken meet a mayonnaise or dressing base. The kind that's often served on bread instead of eaten with a fork, and the kind that I have a certain soft spot for.

To me, this form of chicken salad is comfort food. Growing up, it always had a place in our fridge, and my mom, sister, and I were fixated on a certain recipe made by a nearby Cub Foods grocery store. You can imagine our dismay when the store closed in our area, and we were left floundering for a new option. We've been able to find a few that are similar, and have also turned to making our own at home when we're feeling up to it.

Still, none have fully taken its place, and that's exactly why I recently ventured out to see if there's another star recipe out there I may be missing. A store-bought chicken salad that doesn't overdo it on the mayo, but which is creamy, offers plenty of chicken, is tangy, and maybe even throws in a few auxiliary ingredients to further arouse your palate. Is that too much to ask for? I guess we'll find out.

Reser's is the only non-store-branded product I tried. It seems that most supermarkets mix up their own deli version of chicken salad (sometimes in multiple flavors), but that's just about where the options tend to end. I was surprised to even find this tub in the Kroger fridge, tucked in amongst Reser's other prepared foods like potato salad, coleslaw, and pasta salad. As pleased as I was to spot it, though, and bulk up the taste test, that excitement quickly dissipated once I actually dug in.

I can confidently say this is one of the strangest chicken salad recipes I've ever stumbled upon (and I've sampled my fair share). It has a look that's closer to a tub of whipped mashed potatoes than anything else. The shreds of chicken are nearly pulverized in the mayonnaise base, and the entire thing is far too uniform for my liking — just like a chicken mousse with sporadic bits of celery. It's made with rotisserie chicken, but in reality, it tastes like standard baked chicken breast that's missing that roasted, seasoned flavor. The brand does note that it's "now" made with rotisserie chicken in its new, "tastier recipe". It really makes me wonder what it was like before the upgrade.

Between the odd texture and muted taste, it wasn't a favorite of mine. And that was an even harder pill to swallow, considering this was the most expensive chicken salad I purchased.

My fellow Midwesterners know that Meijer holds its own when it comes to fresh foods from the deli, bakery, and produce department. My mom swears by its made-to-order cakes (I will admit the buttercream frosting is a knockout), and premade items from the store's Frederik's and Crafted Market lines always seem to be of the utmost quality. That's why I was disheartened when I found the supermarket's Fresh From Meijer chicken salad to be subpar at best.

The salad is more creamy base than it is chicken, and to make matters worse, this base isn't even made from true mayonnaise. Instead, it's a salad dressing made from soybean oil, vinegar, egg yolk, and ground mustard that gives the mixture more of a mushy, soupy consistency — it started to soak through my bread instantly. Chicken is only available in small chunks, and there simply isn't enough of it to go around. Many bites go without the taste of poultry entirely.

Small slivers of cranberries, pecans, and celery do help the situation, giving the salad some texture and depth that separates it from the Reser's chicken salad. But at the same time, these fixings make the mixture a little too sweet. Not to mention, the addition of sweet pickle relish throws the flavor all out whack. It turns into an oddly sweet slop with very little chicken, which is not the makings of a yummy and satisfying chicken salad.

Trader Joe's is a place I stop often to pick up its premade salads. However, they're typically the leafy green kind or even the pasta kind. Somehow, I've never given the mayo kind a try. The market carries a few, though I forewent the homestyle version and its intriguing curry-flavored tub for the Wine Country Chicken Salad.

After giving the ingredient list a once-over, I was struggling to understand its name. What makes it "wine country?" It's not infused with the rich taste of red vino and, despite images of grapes on the lid, the fruit is not included. Instead, it packs in sweetened dried cranberries, pecans, and celery alongside chunks of seasoned white chicken meat. I had to assume maybe the title simply hints at its freshness — like a product which came straight from the heart of Sonoma. It is certainly fresh, I will give it that. The chicken is of quality and plentiful. Mayonnaise is minimal, so the other components aren't swallowed up by its goopy presence. And the textures and tastes of both the tart cranberries and celery are appreciated.

In spite of these good qualities, I still felt that there was something off about Trader Joe's medley. I don't like the intense sweetness, heightened by the honey and cane sugar added in, and I wanted more flavor from the pecans. Additionally, I think the store overdoes it with the poppy seeds. Their nutty flavor hijacks every bite in a way that I can't endorse.

Walmart offers a few different kinds of chicken salad under its Freshness Guaranteed line. You can find flavors like Rotisserie Seasoned and Southern Style. I, however, decided to sample the Cranberries, Celery, and Pecans variation.

As far as ingredients go, it's nearly identical to Meijer's offering — from the add-ins to the dressing to the white meat chicken breast. However, Walmart does it just a bit better. A lot of it has to do with the fact that the chicken is shredded instead of cubed into small pieces, and it actually functions as a key ingredient. There's not a single scoop of salad in the container that isn't brimming with shredded chicken. The cranberry slices are a tad bigger, so you get more of their tart-sweet flavor. There's even cranberry juice concentrate added straight into the blend, giving it a pinkish tint. I also like that the nutty taste of pecans is stronger here, so you not only feel their soft crunch, but they also elevate the overall flavor profile.

My only complaint is that the dressing could use some work. It's not as rich and creamy as it ought to be. The chicken is also inconsistent. Some bites are fine, but in others, the chicken shreds are tough and seem to dry out as you chew. Aside from that, it's a fine chicken salad that I actually preferred over Trader Joe's. I would indulge again.

I'll be honest: The Kroger Original Chicken Salad is a frequent flyer on my grocery list. I've had it more times than I can count (it's acted as a replacement for the Cub Foods chicken salad of my childhood). That said, I didn't take any bias with me into this taste test and looked at it with fresh eyes against these seven other store-bought recipes.

Even after feeling out all the different options, however, I still stand by this tub — even though I found a few other picks to be more enticing. It's a what-you-see-is-what-you-get chicken salad. It's not dressed up with fruits or nuts, but allows the mayonnaise-coated chicken chunks to do most of the talking. It's thick and spreads onto a slice of bread with ease, while celery bits add a welcome crunch to the texture. What really makes it, though, is the bright tartness you get from the inclusion of mustard seed, coupled with the taste of onion.

Is it the most exciting chicken salad out there? No, and it certainly won't be everyone's cup of tea. But I find it to be consistently satisfying, and it will remain one of my go-to options. It also makes for a great blank chicken salad canvas that you can spruce up a bit. The only real drawback is the price: At $6.99 per tub, I usually only get about three sandwiches out of it, which is something to keep in mind.

Even in its condensed grocery section, Target still offers a respectable amount of chicken salad offerings. I noted a rosemary flavor, a cranberry-almond variation, and eventually settled on the Rotisserie-Seasoned Chicken Salad from the store's Good & Gather brand to include in the taste test, since it piqued my interest.

It starts with white meat chicken in a mayonnaise-based dressing — as the majority of chicken salad recipes do — but sticks out thanks to its pale orange hue. This is a major hint that you're in for a bolder taste experience, and I liked that it adds an extra layer to the dish. You still have your frequent chunks of chicken, but they're enveloped by a seasoning blend of dehydrated garlic, dehydrated onion, paprika, salt, spices, and a cayenne-based hot sauce. This creates a chicken salad that truly does have that roasted rotisserie chicken flavor. It's a tad smoky, and while its spice level is mild at its hottest (maybe even less than that), it does have an extra tang to it.

As with Kroger's original recipe, this one may not be for everyone, mostly because of its strong deviation from chicken salad norms. It's also more creamy than chunky, which some people may not prefer. But at the same time, I applaud it for its uniqueness and even found it to be a step up from my tried-and-true Kroger tub.

I am aware that the Park Street Deli Cranberry Almond Chicken Salad at Aldi has somewhat of a cult following. People say it's absolutely delicious. However, I decided to skip it in favor of the Park Street Deli Classic Chicken Salad, and was not disappointed with the decision.

Even the stripped-down version of this recipe hits the spot. It actually reminded me a great deal of Kroger's basic chicken salad — I wondered for a moment if they could have come from the same supplier. Its main ingredients are cooked white meat chicken, mayonnaise, mustard seed, vinegar, onion, and just a bit of salt and sugar. You get that same creaminess, light tanginess, and onion potency that was found in Kroger's rendition, yet this one has larger and more frequent chicken chunks that make it even more filling. Not to mention, Aldi's salad comes at a better value (no real surprise there). The discount grocer's tub costs about a dollar less than Kroger's, and you get an additional 4 ounces of the sandwich-ready blend.

All things considered, this feels like a total no-brainer pickup. And after trying it, I may be rethinking where my loyalties lie. Honestly, it seems hard to go wrong with either the Classic or the Cranberry Almond Chicken Salad at Aldi. This one ultimately landed among my favorites, coming in second only to an ultra-fresh pick that comes from a store that happens to specialize in all-natural foods.

When it comes to prepared foods and grab-and-go meals, Whole Foods is one of the best in the business. Its hot bar, salad bar, and other ready-to-eat items rival those found at any other grocery store, and it not only offers convenience and a great selection, but it also offers quality.

This is as evident as ever in the market's Sonoma Chicken Salad. After plucking it from the refrigerated shelf, you can tell just by looking at it that it's going to be good. Real, large chunks of chicken breast are clearly the main ingredient, and they're not hidden underneath an obscene amount of goopy mayonnaise. It also gets some color from whole red grapes, pecans, and bits of green celery. All coated in a poppy seed dressing, it does bear some similarities to the Wine Country Chicken Salad from Trader Joe's. However, here, the poppy seeds aren't nearly as prominent and overwhelming, and a honeyed sweetness is well managed. Every bite feels light, fresh, and wholesome. Plus, you get some added flavor from add-ins like lemon juice, rosemary extract, white pepper, and garlic powder.

If we're being nitpicky, I will say that I wish the store had taken the time to chop the pecans a touch more and to slice up the grapes rather than leaving them whole. But these are minor problems in the grand scheme of things, and didn't stop me from awarding the Sonoma Chicken Salad the first-place title.

To come up with the pecking order of store-bought chicken salads, I visited the deli section at a wide range of grocery stores — from standard supermarkets like Kroger and Walmart to more specialized markets like Aldi and Trader Joe's. At most locations I visited, the only chicken salad available was from the store's own private-label line. I found just one name-brand option at Kroger from the food company Reser's. Once I got them home, I tried them all straight out of the tub, both tucked into two slices of bread and in scoops by themselves (to really get a good gauge of flavor and freshness).

I took a close look at the ingredients included. White meat chicken chunks or shreds were standard across the board, but not all were plentiful, juicy, and tender with a natural taste. I also determined if each salad used real mayonnaise in its recipe or some kind of dressing instead. I was okay with either as long as it was done well and still gave the salad some creaminess. 

Then, it was onto the supplemental ingredients like cranberries or grapes, nuts, and celery. I loved that these components added some change in texture. Most often, they enhanced the recipe, though I didn't prefer it when they made it too sweet or when add-ins like poppy seeds took over the entire flavor. Overall, I wanted a salad that was more chunky than pulverized. It needed a lot of chicken, a bit of tang, and flavors that went beyond just poultry and mayo.