The BEST Chinese Chicken Salad you will ever make! All the great flavor of a traditional Chinese Chicken Salad and loaded with fresh ingredients!
I always need a week to recover when coming back home from a vacation or trip. That week is spent catching up on laundry, cleaning, grocery shopping, emails and I’m always tired just getting the kids back into the swing of things as well. And getting my 4 year old up in the morning and ready for school is a feat in itself. She is so not a morning person.
That first week back home usually means quick and easy dinners: making spaghetti, ordering pizza and picking up a rotisserie chicken. We love rotisserie chicken. I will usually make rice or mashed potatoes and roast some veggies and we are set.
The other day I discovered two half eaten rotisserie chickens in the fridge, salad, carrots and cabbage. So, it’s like this Chinese Chicken Salad was meant to be.
I’ve also joined a running group with my friend who is training for a half marathon (I’ll be training and running with them but not running the actual half marathon this time around because I’ll be out of town) so I’m trying to eat healthier and lighter for the next few months.
GNOs (girls night out) don’t count. On those nights, I am allowed whatever I want to eat, drink and dessert. Or two. Because you don’t mess with GNOs. Makes perfect sense to me.
I had this salad the other day for lunch and devoured it again for dinner. It’s that good. (My Barbecue Pulled Chicken Salad is another great hearty salad for summer!)
I wouldn’t call this a traditional Chinese Chicken Salad. . but it’s close enough and I was able to use what I had in the fridge, which is a win-win in my book. At any given time, if you open my fridge, I’m sure to have a spring mix salad, baby arugula and baby spinach .. so use what you have.
And if you want to go more traditional, pick up some romaine lettuce. Either way, it’s all good.
The dressing, the amazing salad dressing, the fresh real oranges (please don’t use oranges from a can or container), the rotisserie chicken (time saver!) and all the bright, colorful veggies make this salad. I hope you try this soon!
The Best Chinese Chicken Salad
Ingredients
For the dressing:
- 1/2 cup fresh orange juice
- 1/4 cup brown rice vinegar
- 1/4 cup soy sauce or coconut aminos low sodium
- 2 to 3 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
- 1 tablespoon sweet red chili sauce I used Thai Kitchen
- 1/2 tablespoon Gochujang; Korean hot pepper paste
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil split
For the salad:
- 3 to 4 cups cooked rotisserie chicken* shredded
- 3 to 4 carrots peeled and julienned or grated
- 4 to 6 scallions diced; split
- 1/2 head green or Napa cabbage shredded or chopped
- 1/2 head red cabbage shredded or chopped
- 3 to 4 cups fresh spring greens mix or romaine lettuce chopped
- orange slices from 1 to 2 oranges supremed or chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves chopped, optional
- sliced almonds**
Instructions
For the dressing:
- Using a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the orange juice, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, honey, hoisin, sweet red chili sauce, gochujang, avocado oil and 1 tablespoon of the sesame oil. Taste and adjust any ingredients as needed. Set aside.
For the salad:
- If you want to keep the salad fresh, simply toss together the carrots, scallions, shredded cabbage and mixed greens in a large mixing bowl. Add the shredded rotisserie chicken, oranges, cilantro (if using) and the almonds and toss together again. Drizzle the dressing on top, toss and serve!
- For the slightly warm Chinese Chicken Salad: Using a large skillet, heat the remaining sesame oil over medium heat. After a minute or so, add in the shredded rotisserie chicken, carrots and half of the scallions. Mix until heated through and add in the shredded green cabbage and red cabbage and drizzle in half of the dressing and mix again until everything is well coated with the dressing. Sauté for about 3 minutes and remove from the heat and into a large serving dish or bowl.
- Add in the fresh greens and toss together, drizzling with a bit more dressing if desired. Serve and garnish with orange slices, fresh cilantro, sliced almonds and the remaining dressing. Enjoy!
Notes
Recipe adapted from Cooks Country
