Perfect for lunch or dinner, this Oriental Chicken Salad is loaded with veggies and chunks of chicken!
This is the perfect salad. It has a great balance of ingredients and a wonderful oriental dressing. I love the flavor of oriental dressings and finally made a perfect recipe!
I've added chicken to this salad to make it a meal, but the chicken is optional. If adding chicken, you can use left over chicken or quickly cook up a couple of breasts. I often use leftover chicken from my lemon rosemary grilled chicken or from my beer can chicken.
For this salad I made crispy wontons. Let me warn you. These tend to disappear before they make it to the salad. As soon as they come out of the oven the nibbling begins.
Everyone seems to just wander into the kitchen and nibbles on just one or two. If you're not careful there won't be enough for the salad. Consider making twice the amount called for....don't say I didn't warn you!
How to toast almonds and sesame seeds
To toast the sesame seeds and sliced almonds, use a small sauté pan on medium heat. Add the almonds. Keep a close eye on the pan and stir or shake often.
These will only take a couple of minutes and they go from done to burnt in no time flat. As soon as they brown, remove from pan.
Repeat with the sesame seeds - they will cook even quicker than the almonds. Because the almonds and sesame seeds cook at different times, I always do them separately.
There is a lot of chopping for this salad. When I want to have this for a weeknight meal, I prep all the veggies and salad the night before. I store everything in separate containers.
You can also toast the almonds and sesame seeds the night before. When you're ready for salad, you just toss everything together, mix up the dressing and enjoy! A little prep work the night before can make dinner time easy, healthy and delicious!
This makes a really BIG salad. It feeds my family of 5 as a main dish. All we add is some crunchy french bread and we have a meal. Keep in mind that I have three hungry teenagers and it satisfies them!
What type of lettuce to use?
I used romaine lettuce and napa cabbage in this salad. You can also use iceberg lettuce, bibb lettuce or butter lettuce. You want a crunchy lettuce that will hold up to all these ingredients.
If you want to save some for leftovers, set part of salad aside and add dressing when ready to use. Pre-dressed salad tends to get soggy.
I used all the dressing for this sized salad. If you had any extra dressing, or wanted to make just the dressing, you can cover and store in the fridge.
Other Great Salads
- Caesar Salad
- Tuna Cobb Salad
- Couscous Salad
- Greek Salad
- Chef Salad
- Asian Cucumber Salad
- Chicken Lettuce Wraps
If you make this recipe for Oriental Chicken Salad, I’d love to hear about it! Leave a comment below and snap a picture and tag me on Instagram @beyondthechickencoop
If you love this recipe you'll LOVE all the others in this category. Check out all my salad recipes here!
Chopped Oriental Chicken Salad
Ingredients
Oriental Dressing
- ¼ Cup Olive Oil
- 3 Tablespoons Honey
- 2 Tablespoons Rice Wine Vinegar
- 1 teaspoon ginger powder
- 1 Tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 teaspoon Sriracha sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
Wonton Crisps
- 20 Wonton Wrappers
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Salad
- 1-2 Hearts of Romaine Lettuce (Chopped)
- 2 Cups Napa Cabbage (Chopped)
- 1 Cup Spinach (Chopped)
- 1 Red Bell Pepper (Sliced Thin)
- ¼ Cup Chopped Cilantro
- 4 Scallions (Chopped)
- 2 Small Cucumbers (Sliced on the diagonal)
- 1 Cup Sugar Snap Pea (Chopped)
- 2 Cooked Chicken Breasts (Chopped)
- ½ Cup Sliced Almonds (Toasted)
- 2 Tablespoons Sesame Seeds (Toasted)
Instructions
Dressing
- For Dressing, mix together olive oil, honey, vinegar, ginger, soy sauce, garlic, sriracha, and sesame oil together in a glass jar.¼ Cup Olive Oil, 3 Tablespoons Honey, 2 Tablespoons Rice Wine Vinegar, 1 teaspoon ginger powder, 1 Tablespoon soy sauce, 2 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon Sriracha sauce, 1 teaspoon sesame oil
Wonton Crisps
- Slice wonton wrapers into ½" strips. Sprinkle strips onto a baking sheet. Spray lightly with a nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle with salt.20 Wonton Wrappers, ⅛ teaspoon salt
- Place in a preheated 400 degree oven. Toss wonton strips every 5 minutes until they are golden brown, 15-20 minutes.
Salad
- Mix lettuce,cabbage, spinach, bell pepper, scallions, cucumbers, snap peas, and cilantro into a large bowl.1-2 Hearts of Romaine Lettuce, 2 Cups Napa Cabbage, 1 Cup Spinach, 1 Red Bell Pepper, ¼ Cup Chopped Cilantro, 4 Scallions, 2 Small Cucumbers, 1 Cup Sugar Snap Pea
- Drizzle ½ of dressing over salad.
- Toss to mix and add chicken2 Cooked Chicken Breasts
- Sprinkle Almonds, sesame seeds, and wonton crisps onto salad.½ Cup Sliced Almonds, 2 Tablespoons Sesame Seeds
- Drizzle remaining dressing over salad.
Notes
Nutritional Disclaimer:
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and should only be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. To obtain the most precise nutritional information in a provided recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the exact ingredients you are using when preparing the recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally posted in February 2015. The pictures and recipe have been updated
Mary Ann | The Beach House Kitchen says
Great idea for a nice light, flavorful salad Kathy. Great combo of ingredients!
Kathy says
Thanks, Mary Ann!
Dawn - Girl Heart Food says
This is my kinda salad! All sorts of flavours and textures goin' on! YUM! Love those wontons! Such a yummy touch 🙂
Kathy says
This salad is pretty versatile too. You can add or leave out whatever you want.
annie@ciaochowbambina says
Love those crispy wontons! They wouldn't make it to the table in my house either! 😉 Fabulous salad!!
Kathy says
I could eat just a bunch of the crispy wontons and be totally happy!
David @ Spiced says
I love the idea of making your own crispy wontons for this salad! And I hear ya about the chopping for salads. It might take a bit of prep, but it's so worth it when you have easy meals for the whole week. All of the fresh ingredients in those photos are making me hungry for salad...and I'm still sipping on my morning coffee! Love this recipe, Kathy!
Kathy says
I hate to admit it, but the crispy wontons are my favorite part! 🙂
Adina says
Oh, what a beautiful salad. I love those crispy wonton wrappers and the napa cabbage, that's always amazing in salads.
Kathy says
They are my favorite part!
Emily @ SageRecipes says
Looks so fresh and delicious! Great idea for leftover chicken!
Kathy says
Thanks Emily! It is perfect for using left over chicken.
Erin @ Miss Scrambled Egg says
I am totally digging this salad. I made a cabbage salad a few weeks ago and it made a huge amount, so I had lunches for the rest of the week. The dressing looks fantastic.
Kathy says
Thanks Erin!
Rachelle says
There's nothing better than a fast weeknight meal. I totally love of all things sesame too! This salad looks and sounds great!
Kathy says
I am always trying to find quick and easy weeknight meals. Thanks Rachelle.
Lori from LL Farm says
This looks delicious and sounds healthy. Thanks for sharing.
Lori
Kathy says
Thanks Lori....It was delicious!