Waldorf salad is a chilled mix of crisp apples, celery, grapes and walnuts folded into a creamy mayonnaise dressing. It takes about 15 minutes, needs no oven, and the parts can be prepped a day ahead as long as the dressing waits until you serve.
I prep the parts the night before Thanksgiving, because the oven is already full that day. A Waldorf asks for no heat at all, so your oven stays free for the turkey! It’s the cool, crunchy dish among soft, hot ones, and you can get nearly all of it done while the house is still quiet.
What Is Waldorf Salad, and Where Did It Come From?
Waldorf salad is a fruit and nut salad of celery, fresh apples, walnuts and grapes dressed in mayonnaise, traditionally served chilled on a bed of lettuce. It’s named for the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York City, where maître d’hôtel Oscar Tschirky is widely credited with creating it.
Wikipedia dates the first serving to March 13, 1896, at a charity ball for St. Mary’s Hospital for Children. One chef blog from Dalstrong gives 1893 in one place and 1896 in another, and it names a hotel chef, Edouard Beauchamp, next to Tschirky. So the exact year and the credit are reported differently depending on where you read.
The first version was plainer. Apples, celery and mayonnaise made up the whole original recipe, with no nuts and no grapes in the bowl at all. Walnuts had joined by the time The Rector Cook Book printed the recipe in 1928.
The salad even has a small pop-culture life. An American guest demanding one drives a 1979 episode of the British sitcom Fawlty Towers, according to Wikipedia.
Waldorf Salad Ingredients
This makes about six side servings. Everything comes from the produce aisle plus a jar of mayo, so you won’t need to hunt for a thing.
- 3 large crisp apples, cored and chopped into bite-size pieces (about 3 cups)
- 1 1/2 cups thinly sliced celery
- 1 cup red or green grapes, halved
- 3/4 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt, plus black pepper to taste
Pick a firm apple for your bowl. The Foodie Bunch recommends a mix of tart Granny Smith and sweet Gala, and says Honeycrisp, Fuji or Braeburn all hold up too. It warns off Red Delicious, which goes mealy fast.
If you’re out of walnuts, pecans can replace them. If you have no grapes, raisins or dates work, and Wikipedia lists both as common additions. The Wikibooks version plumps its raisins in warm water for 5 minutes first. Leave the apple skin on, as the Dalstrong recipe does.
For a guest who doesn’t eat eggs, a good vegan mayo is a straight swap, again per The Foodie Bunch. You can leave out the yogurt too if the table is fully dairy-free.
Waldorf Salad Recipe, Step by Step
Toast the walnuts and let them cool completely, chop the apples, celery and grapes, stir the dressing, then fold everything together just before serving. The hands-on work takes about 15 minutes.
- Toast the walnuts in a dry skillet over medium-low heat for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring often, until they smell nutty and look golden. Tip them onto a plate right away so they stop cooking.
- Let the walnuts cool for at least 10 minutes. Warm nuts turn the dressing greasy and wilt the apples.
- In a small bowl, stir the mayonnaise, yogurt, salt and pepper until smooth.
- Chop the apples with the skin on and toss them with the lemon juice right away to slow browning.
- Pat the apples and celery dry with a paper towel. Add the celery, grapes and cooled walnuts to the big bowl.
- Fold in the dressing gently until everything is coated. Taste it, and add a small pinch more salt if you find it flat.
Drying the fruit is the step people skip.
Extra water thins the dressing, and the bowl turns watery within minutes, as The Foodie Bunch points out. A paper towel fixes it!
When you double the recipe for a crowd, mix the dressing in a bigger bowl than you think you need, then add the fruit and nuts to it. You get more even coating with less stirring.
Which Waldorf Salad Version Fits Your Table?
For a traditional spread, make the classic above, with apples, celery, grapes, walnuts and a mayo-yogurt dressing. Go plainer for the 1896 original, lighter if your menu is heavy, or add turkey or chicken when you want the salad to be a meal.
| Version | What’s in it | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| The 1896 original | Apples, celery, mayonnaise | A plain, crisp side with no nuts or grapes |
| Classic today | Original plus grapes and walnuts | Most holiday tables; the recipe above |
| Lighter | Part of the mayo swapped for Greek yogurt | A menu already heavy on gravy and butter |
| Sweeter and chewier | Raisins or dates in place of grapes | Guests who like dried fruit in salad |
| Main dish | Shredded chicken or turkey folded in | A day-after-Thanksgiving lunch, served on lettuce |
The yogurt version is tangier, so taste before you add more salt. The Foodie Bunch suggests swapping half the mayo, which is a good place to start.
Can You Make Waldorf Salad Ahead for Thanksgiving?
Yes, but only in parts. Prep the walnuts, dressing, celery and grapes a day ahead, keep each one separate, and fold everything together within two hours of serving. A fully dressed Waldorf turns soft and watery overnight.
Three pages give three different holding times. Cooks.com says to cover the dressed salad and refrigerate it for 1 hour or up to 24 hours. The Foodie Bunch says dressed salad is best within two hours and that one held overnight goes soft. Dalstrong says not to leave it out of the refrigerator longer than an hour, since mayonnaise can go bad at room temperature.
I’d follow the stricter two for a holiday table. A buffet makes the room-temperature clock real for you, and the apples are the first thing to soften. So split the work. Do the walnuts and dressing the day before, keep the celery and grapes in their own covered containers, and chop the apples on the morning itself. That split is my own blend of those three pages, not something I tested.
Why leave the apples for last? They’re the most fragile part. Once you’ve cut them and tossed them in lemon, a covered bowl in the fridge is all they need until the dressing goes on.
You can eat leftovers for lunch the next day, just softer. The Foodie Bunch says Waldorf salad doesn’t freeze, so don’t try. I spoon leftovers over lettuce, or chop in leftover turkey and call it a sandwich filling!
What Goes With Waldorf Salad?
Waldorf salad pairs with roast poultry, ham and sandwiches, and it works as a cool, crunchy contrast to rich holiday sides. The Foodie Bunch says it holds its own next to sandwiches, roast chicken or a holiday spread.
On Thanksgiving, it sits well beside your turkey and anything with gravy. Our ranked list of Thanksgiving side dishes places the heavy hitters, and the Thanksgiving salad ideas are sorted by what you can make ahead. If you’d like a salad built from a pattern instead of a recipe, try the fall salad formula.
Hosting a mixed buffet that already has a creamy pasta salad like our Mo’ Bettahs mac salad? Waldorf brings the crunch that dish doesn’t have. No stove, no stress!
Waldorf Salad FAQ
Can you make Waldorf salad without mayonnaise?
Yes. Plain Greek yogurt can replace part of the mayonnaise for a tangier dressing, and Wikipedia lists yogurt dressings among the common variations. For guests who don’t eat eggs, a vegan mayo is a straight swap.
Should you peel the apples for Waldorf salad?
No. The Dalstrong recipe leaves the skin on, and so does the recipe above. Red or green skin also gives your bowl some color.
Can you freeze Waldorf salad?
No. The Foodie Bunch says Waldorf salad doesn’t freeze, and a dressed bowl is already soft by the next morning. Make a fresh batch instead, and dress it within two hours of dinner.