Chinese-y Chicken Salad
TIME/SERVINGS
Total: 45 mins
Active: 25 mins
Makes: 4 servings
By Francine Maroukian
OK, not really Chinese. More like America in the 1980s. But this old favorite is making a comeback, and it’s perfect for lunch.
What to buy: Look for hoisin sauce and chile-garlic paste in the Asian section of your supermarket. For the chile paste, we prefer the one made by Huy Fong Foods (with the rooster on the jar).
For the dressing:
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons dark sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
- 4 scallions, trimmed and finely chopped
- 1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
- 2 teaspoons honey
- Chile-garlic paste, to taste
For the salad:
- 5 cups cold rotisserie chicken, shredded
- 1/4 cup slivered almonds
- 1/2 medium red bell pepper, sliced into thin strips
- 1 cup thinly sliced cucumber
- 2 cups thinly sliced red cabbage
- 2 cups thinly sliced green cabbage
- 3 cups thinly sliced iceberg lettuce
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk all ingredients together, or combine in a jar with a screw-on cap and shake vigorously. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
For the salad:
- Place chicken in a large mixing bowl, add several tablespoons of dressing, and toss to coat. The chicken should be evenly coated but not drenched. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat the oven to 350°F. Spread almonds on a baking sheet and toast in the oven until light brown, about 6 minutes.
- Mix red bell pepper, cucumber, cabbages, and lettuce. Add greens mixture to chicken a handful at a time, tossing to combine.
- Add more dressing a tablespoon at a time, tossing until everything is evenly coated. It’s OK to go heavy with the dressing—this salad will need it. Season with a pinch or two of salt.
- Arrange salad on a serving platter, sprinkle with toasted almonds, and serve.
Beverage pairing: Maximin Grünhäuser Herrenberg Kabinett Feinherb, Germany. Crunchy salad with ginger, garlic, chile and vinegar is beautiful with an off-dry German Riesling that has the spine, lime-zest brightness, and acidity to perfectly match the texture and flavors of the dish.
COMMENTS | ADD YOUR OWN
This is one of my favorite no-cook meals. I prefer rice wine vinegar for the dressing, and Napa cabbage plus iceberg for the salad. Slicing the scallions on the bias adds a little extra Chineseyness; so does a scattering of black sesame seeds.
Eating it right now at my desk at work :0) Very easy and tasty!
I made this and it is delicious! I think that I will add cilantro the next time I make it....now I see cilantro in the photo above and wonder if it was inadvertently omitted from the recipe...
It is a wonderful salad!!
I tried this for a potluck. I omitted the green cabbage and iceberg lettuce and almonds. Instead, I added:
2 cups of bean sprouts
1 carrot julienned
a small handful of cilantro roughly chopped
3 cups of red leaf lettuce.
People really liked the cilantro in the salad
I made this yesterday and it was delicious! I substituted napa cabbage for the green cabbage and iceberg lettuce. I added grated carrots, bean sprouts, sliced radishes, and cilantro. I also added sesame seeds and those fried noodles. To the dressing I substituted rice vinegar instead of red wine vinegar and added more soy sauce, and also increased the hoisin sauce.
Another variation is to replace the cabbage with a broccoli salad. Same great texture, a little different in taste.
This recipe is close but not exact to one I tried at the Atlanta Gift Mart a couple of years back. Virginia Willis was the demonstrator, and did a lovely presentation. She handed out a "booklet " of featured recipes and this recipe was included. Does anyone happen to have a copy of that recipe? I thought her version used a few other ingredients, including cilantro.
This recipe is close but not exact to one I tried at the Atlanta Gift Mart a couple of years back. Virginia Willis was the demonstrator, and did a lovely presentation. She handed out a "booklet " of featured recipes and this recipe was included. Does anyone happen to have a copy of that recipe? I thought her version used a few other ingredients, including cilantro.