Chinese Chicken Salad
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Salad for dinner? Yes, please! Packed with crunchy veggies and tender chicken, this Chinese chicken salad is the light, feel-good meal you’ll crave all summer long.
Chinese chicken salad is a California-style dish that blends Chinese and American flavors in the best way. It may have peaked on restaurant menus in the ’90s, but to me, it’s just as crave-worthy today. Honestly, I could eat a salad like this every night of the summer—if I didn’t have other people to feed.
With crisp Napa cabbage, crunchy carrots and bell peppers, tender chicken, and a sesame-ginger dressing, it’s light, refreshing, and always hits the spot. I swap the usual fried wonton strips for toasted nuts to keep it a bit healthier, but if you love the crispy crunch of wontons, go ahead and add them in. And it’s super easy to throw together, especially if you’ve got leftover or rotisserie chicken on hand.
“Great salad—crunchy and flavorful, and very easy. I used some of the dressing to marinate pounded chicken breasts for a couple of hours then grilled them. Will definitely make again!”
What You’ll Need To Make Chinese Chicken Salad
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Make the dressing. In a food processor or blender, combine the rice vinegar, soy sauce, honey, sesame oil, vegetable oil, garlic, and ginger. Blend until completely smooth.
Step 2: Assemble the salad: Combine the Napa cabbage, chopped romaine, bell pepper, scallions, grated carrots, fresh cilantro, salted cashews or peanuts, and shredded chicken. Add the dressing, little by little, and toss to combine, until the salad is dressed to your liking. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary, serve, and enjoy!
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Ingredients
For the Dressing
- ⅓ cup unseasoned rice vinegar
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 3½ tablespoons honey
- ¼ cup sesame oil
- ⅓ cup peanut or vegetable oil
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1½-inch square piece fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped (see note)
For the Salad
- 4 cups chopped Napa cabbage
- 4 cups chopped romaine (or substitute more Napa cabbage)
- 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 2 scallions, white and green parts, thinly sliced
- ½ cup grated carrots, from 2 carrots
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- ⅓ cup salted cashews or peanuts
- 2 cups cooked, shredded chicken
Instructions
- Make the dressing: In a food processor or blender, combine all of the ingredients and blend until smooth.
- Assemble the salad: Combine all of the salad ingredients in a large bowl. Add dressing, little by little, and toss to combine, until the salad is dressed to your liking. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve immediately.
- Note: For easy guidance on how to peel, grate, and chop fresh ginger, click here.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (4 servings)
- Calories: 608
- Fat: 48 g
- Saturated fat: 9 g
- Carbohydrates: 28 g
- Sugar: 19 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 19 g
- Sodium: 989 mg
- Cholesterol: 53 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Comments
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Has anyone tried this dressing substituting Equal for the honey, or without any sweetener at all? I’m on a doctor-supervised, ultra-low-carb dietary regimen: the complex carbs in all those lovely veggies are fine in sensible quantities, but simple carbs like honey and sugar and corn syrup are a huge no-no.
Use medjool dates! They are very sweet and honey like in flavor but have potassium, magnesium, iron, calcium, fiber and other micronutrients. They are a natural, whole food and while eating a whole bag would not be optimal, a couple blended with the dressing would add nutrition and the sweetness . Please don’t use artificial sweeteners! Don’t forget to remove the pit first!
thx.
Thank you for sharing such a wonderful recipe! Looking forward to more. I’m curious to what the nutritional facts of this recipe are. I’m watching my weight and would appreciate knowing how many calories I’m consuming each time…great thanks in advance.
Hi Nessa, The recipe has been updated with nutritional data. Sorry for the wait 🙂
Your website now has so many popups on it that it is really annoying. Can’t hardly see the recipe for all the junk popping on top of it! Didn’t used to be that way.
Thanks, Linda. I will look into it and see if I can remove some of them.
If I don’t have a blender what dressing could I buy that would be comparable? Thanks!
Hi Mallori, I’m sorry, I don’t know of a store-bought dressing that would be comparable. But it’s fine to make the dressing by hand; just chop the garlic and ginger very finely.
Jen’s dressing recipes are amazing. Most of them I would drink straight down. 😉 Seriously, they are worth the time.
I want to compliment you on an excellent recipe. The dressing is spot on; tangy, not overly sweet and very refreshing. I’ve made your recipe three times in the last three weeks – my wife and I love it that much. Very, very well done. I look forward to reviewing other recipes on your website!
So glad you enjoyed it!
This looks great. I was thinking of substituting Trader Joes organic baked tofu/teriyaki seasoned for the chicken.
wondering if anyone has tried this with tofu…
Another fantastic recipe. This salad deserves 6 stars!!! I substituted roasted, slivered almonds and added peeled and sectioned orange slices. WOW!
Can I make the salad dressing ahead of time and keep it in the refrigerator for 2 or 3 days?
Hi Phyllis, Yes, that’s fine.
Is 3 days the max the dressing will keep? Would it keep in the fridge for a week or is it best to eat it sooner?
Hi Christine, I’d say it would keep well for 4-5 days. Enjoy!
I have tried multiple recipes for a salad like this one, and this one is perfection! Bright flavors, and the best combination of ingredients. The dressing is just right… sweet and spicy and fresh tasting.
Definitely worth all five stars! I made this recipe for a potluck and it was very much appreciated.