Experience a burst of tangy flavor with this oriental chicken salad recipe. Made with tender chicken, an easy homemade dressing, and filled to the brim with fresh vegetables.
Table of Contents
Asian chicken salad
Skinless chicken breasts and thighs are roasted in an oriental dressing with crunchy peanuts and sesame seeds to create this low-cal, chopped oriental chicken salad.
I love chopped salads. In fact, I don’t even understand why non-chopped salads exist. Sure large slices of tomatoes and red onions are pretty for presentation, but it’s awkward to eat an onion slice.
With chopped salads, everything is bite-sized and combined, so that with every bite, you get a hint of onion and tomato and cheese…or whatever mix-ins you choose.
I’ve been tempted to ask chefs to chop up salads, but I’m not in Kindergarten any more, so I guess I’m grown up enough to chop my own salad. Inevitably though when I do, a cherry tomato slides off my plate across the table.
Ugh! Just too much work. That’s the kind of stuff that should happen behind the scenes in the kitchen.
That’s why I love bagged shredded cabbage and carrots. Someone else has done the work. All I have to do is chop the other mix-ins and eat without starting a match of tomato ping-pong.
This salad includes a bag of cabbage and half a bag of carrots, plus some roasted chicken and peanuts and homemade oriental dressing.
Zestuous Chicken Tip
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts have been in the meat case for decades, but now it’s also easy to find boneless, skinless thighs. I like dark meat, so I often buy both the breasts and thighs. I chop up 1 breast and 2 thighs and freeze them in baggies. The combination adds more flavor to chicken recipes.
Chopped Oriental Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 4 tbls rice wine vinegar
- 3 tbls honey
- 2 tbls soy sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 boneless skinless chicken breast, chopped
- 2 boneless skinless chicken thighs, chopped
- 1/3 cup peanuts
- 2 tbls sesame seeds
- 2 Fresno peppers, diced (optional)
- 6 cups shredded cabbage
- 2 cups shredded carrots
- 2 scallions, sliced
Instructions
- Heat: Preheat oven to 400F degrees.
- Make: Make the dressing by mixing the rice wine vinegar, honey, soy sauce and sesame oil together in a bowl.
- Mix: In a separate bowl, mix together the chicken, peanuts, sesame seeds, optional pepper and half of the dressing.
- Bake: Spread out on a sheet pan and bake in a 400-degree oven for 15 minutes.
- Cool: Remove from oven and let cool.
- Toss: In a large salad bowl, combine the cabbage, carrots and scallions. Add the cooked chicken and remaining salad dressing. Toss to coat and serve.
- Top: If you like added heat, top with sriracha sauce.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Ingredients for oriental chicken salad
- Rice vinegar: Adds a slight tang and tenderizes the chicken. You could also use plain white vinegar too.
- Honey: Provides a touch of sweetness.
- Soy sauce: Adds a kick of umami flavor. You could also use coconut aminos if you can’t have soy.
- Sesame oil: Gives the chicken a crispy crust.
- Chicken breast and chicken thighs: Feel free to use leftover rotisserie chicken or plain old leftover chicken if you like.
- Peanuts
- Sesame seeds
- Fresno peppers
- Shredded cabbage: Use any kind of cabbage you like. Red cabbage, green cabbage or Napa cabbage (aka Chinese cabbage) would work for this recipe.
- Shredded carrots
- Scallions
Substitutions: If you’re not a fan of cabbage, use iceberg lettuce, romaine lettuce or broccoli salad instead.
See the full recipe card for servings and a full list of ingredients.
How to make oriental chicken salad
- Heat: Preheat oven to 400F degrees.
- Make: Make the dressing by mixing the rice wine vinegar, honey, soy sauce and sesame oil together in a bowl.
- Mix: In a separate bowl, mix together the chicken, peanuts, sesame seeds, optional pepper and half of the dressing.
- Bake: Spread out on a sheet pan and bake in a 400-degree oven for 15 minutes.
- Cool: Remove from oven and let cool.
- Toss: In a large salad bowl, combine the cabbage, carrots and scallions. Add the cooked chicken and remaining salad dressing. Toss to coat and serve.
- Top: If you like added heat, top with sriracha sauce.
How to serve oriental chicken salad
Grab some tongs and put a serving of salad on a plate. If you like added heat, top with sriracha sauce. If you want some extra toppings, add some green onions, crunchy noodles, crunchy wontons or anything else you like. For a burst of sweetness, add some sweet Mandarin oranges on top of the salad.
Storage
Leftover oriental chicken salad can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
Serve this tangy salad alongside some Lumpia (Filipino Egg Rolls) or plain white rice.
Yes. The longer it sits, the better it gets because the dressing infuses the salad with tons of flavor. Make it up to 2 days in advance for best results.
Oh, yum! I think I just found the salad I need to put on my menu for next week. 🙂
Thanks Sashi! I hope you love it.
We did love it! I made it for dinner Wednesday night and will be posting about it next Wednesday (4/9). 🙂