Creamy and Crispy Asian Chicken Salad

A fresh, flavor-packed salad that’s both creamy and crisp. Keep in mind that it’s good to cook the chicken a day or two in advance. I usually make a double batch of the chicken because it works for so many things, such as wraps, tacos, sandwiches, other salads, and more. Another great tip is to make plenty of the base dressing. It keeps well in the fridge in a jar with a tight-fitting lid and is fantastic on all kinds of salads. With different added ingredients, it can be transformed into lots of different flavor sensations. Try mixing it with, for example, Culantro sauce — you’ll find the recipe here on the blog.

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You will need

4 ¼ cup of cooked chicken meat, pulled into thin shreds (see Pulled Chicken recipe below)

Base Dressing * See Tip 1 below

1 part fish sauce

1 part rice vinegar

1 part water

1 part sugar

Dressing

½ cup + 1 tsp (125 ml) base dressing

2 tsp (10 ml) red chili (or more, depending on heat and chili type), finely chopped

1 ½ tbsp (22 ½ ml) cilantro, finely chopped

1 tbsp (15 ml) garlic, finely chopped

½ cup + 1 tsp (125 ml) mayonnaise, homemade or Hellmans

4 tbsp (60 ml) Thai sweet chili sauce

2 tbsp (30 ml) fresh lime juice

⅓ cup + 1 tbsp (100 ml) shallots, finely chopped

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Other Salad Ingredients

3 ¼ cups (750 ml) white cabbage, finely shredded

1 red bell pepper, deseeded and finely sliced

¼ cup (50 ml) celery, finely chopped

¾ cup + 1 tbsp (200 ml) cucumber, cut into pieces

1 avocado, diced

2 tbsp (30 ml) cilantro, finely chopped

2 tbsp (30 ml) toasted sesame seeds

Toppings

⅓ cup + 1 tbsp (100 ml) peanuts, coarsely chopped

Fried wonton strips (Wonton sheets and neutral oil for deep frying)

Red chili, thinly sliced

Cilantro, chopped

Cooked Pulled Chicken

1 whole chicken on the larger side

1 chicken bouillon cube

¼ cup (50 ml) Japanese soy sauce

¼ cup (50 ml) Golden Mountain sauce

½ tsp (2 ½ ml) salt

1 tsp (5 ml) black pepper

3 bay leaves

3 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped

1 yellow onion, peeled and quartered (medium-sized)

1 carrot, cut into pieces

1 fennel, cut into pieces

1 piece leek, cut into pieces

1 parsnip, cut into pieces

3 tbsp (45 ml) mirin

6.3 cups – 7.4 cups (1500 ml – 1750 ml) water

How to make it

Cook the chicken. This can preferably be done one or two days in advance

1. Place the chicken in a pot together with the bouillon cube, soy sauce, salt, pepper, bay leaves, garlic, onion, the remaining vegetables, and the vinegar. Add enough water to almost cover the chicken. Let it simmer over medium heat with the lid on. When it comes to a boil, leave the lid slightly ajar. Keep the water level consistent in the pot, adding more hot water as it reduces. Skim off any foam from time to time.

1 whole chicken on the larger side

1 chicken bouillon cube

¼ cup (50 ml) Japanese soy sauce

¼ cup (50 ml) Golden Mountain sauce

½ tsp (2 ½ ml) salt

1 tsp (5 ml) black pepper

3 bay leaves

3 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped

1 yellow onion, peeled and quartered (medium-sized)

1 carrot, cut into pieces

1 fennel, cut into pieces

1 piece leek, cut into pieces

1 parsnip, cut into pieces

3 tbsp (45 ml) mirin

6.3 cups – 7.4 cups (1500 ml – 1750 ml) water

2. Taste after one hour and add more soy sauce or mirin if needed. Cook the chicken for about 2 hours. Shred the chicken into thin pieces using two forks while it’s still warm. Mix the shredded chicken with a bit of the broth to keep it moist.

4 ¼ cup of cooked chicken meat, pulled into thin shreds (see Pulled Chicken recipe below)

3. Place the chicken carcass back into the broth with the vegetables and simmer on low heat. Strain the broth and reduce it by half. Add a little more of the reduced broth to the shredded chicken and mix well. The rest of the broth can be used for soups and sauces and freezes well.

Wonton strips

4. Cut the wonton sheets into strips and deep fry in oil until crunchy. Drain on paper towel. Add flaky salt as soon as they come out of the oil.

Fried wonton strips (Wonton sheets and neutral oil for deep frying)

Dressing

5. Mix all the ingredients for the Base dressing and pour it into a glass jar with a tight-fitting top.

1 part fish sauce

1 part rice vinegar

1 part water

1 part sugar

6. Measure the base dressing into a mixing bowl. Whisk together with the remaining ingredients and add the chicken. Let the chicken marinate in the dressing in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

½ cup + 1 tsp (125 ml) base dressing

2 tsp (10 ml) red chili (or more, depending on heat and chili type), finely chopped

1 ½ tbsp (22 ½ ml) cilantro, finely chopped

1 tbsp (15 ml) garlic, finely chopped

½ cup + 1 tsp (125 ml) mayonnaise, homemade or Hellmans

4 tbsp (60 ml) Thai sweet chili sauce

2 tbsp (30 ml) fresh lime juice

⅓ cup + 1 tbsp (100 ml) shallots, finely chopped

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

7. Mix the vegetables, herbs, and sesame seeds in a large bowl. Add the chicken with the dressing and mix thoroughly.

3 ¼ cups (750 ml) white cabbage, finely shredded

1 red bell pepper, deseeded and finely sliced

¼ cup (50 ml) celery, finely chopped

¾ cup + 1 tbsp (200 ml) cucumber, cut into pieces

1 avocado, diced

2 tbsp (30 ml) cilantro, finely chopped

2 tbsp (30 ml) toasted sesame seeds

8. Serve in individual salad bowls and top with peanuts, wonton strips, chili, and cilantro.

⅓ cup + 1 tbsp (100 ml) peanuts, coarsely chopped

Red chili, thinly sliced

Fried wonton strips

Cilantro, chopped

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Tip & tricks

Tip 1: The base dressing keeps for a long time in the fridge. Just add chopped chili, chopped garlic and chopped koriander to the amount you will serve, and you will have a great dressing in a minute or two. Also, some lime juice is nice to add.