Chinese Chicken Salad
Submitted by mercy
Chinese chicken salad with shredded roast chicken, bean sprouts, cucumber, and carrots in a sesame-tahini dressing with soy sauce, garlic, and rice wine. Crisp, nutty, and satisfying.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
30 minCOOK
20 minREADY
30 minThis Chinese chicken salad skips the usual fried wonton strips and iceberg lettuce in favor of something more authentic. Shredded roast chicken sits on a bed of trimmed bean sprouts, julienned cucumber, and carrots, all dressed in a rich sesame-tahini dressing that coats everything in a nutty, savory glaze.
The dressing is where this recipe really earns its keep. Tahini (or peanut butter) blended with sesame oil, light soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic, chicken broth, rice wine, and a pinch of sugar creates something that’s simultaneously nutty, salty, tangy, and slightly sweet. The chicken broth thins it to a pourable consistency so it coats the shredded vegetables and meat evenly.
Shred the chicken by hand or with a knife into fine strips, not chunks. Thin strips catch more dressing and create a texture that blends with the vegetables rather than sitting on top of them. A whole roast chicken gives you the most flavor, but rotisserie works fine too.
Trim bean sprouts at both ends for a cleaner look and better crunch. It’s a small step that makes a difference in how the finished salad eats. Seed the cucumbers so they don’t make the salad watery.
Serve immediately after dressing. The bean sprouts and cucumbers release water as they sit, which dilutes the dressing over time.
Kitchen Tips
- Blend the dressing in a blender for the smoothest consistency, or shake hard in a sealed jar.
- Use Chinese rice vinegar if you can find it. It’s milder and slightly sweeter than regular rice vinegar.
- Shred vegetables into 3-inch lengths so they’re roughly the same size as the chicken strips.
Variations
- Spicy version: Add a teaspoon of chili oil or sambal oelek to the dressing for heat.
- Crunchy noodle topping: Sprinkle crushed dry ramen noodles or fried wonton strips over the top for added crunch.
Ingredients
Directions
Trim the bean sprouts at both ends.
Peel the cucumber, split it in half lengthwise and remove the seeds with a teaspoon.
Finely shred the cucumber into 3-inch lengths.
Peel and finely shred the carrots into 3-inch lengths.
Set the vegetables aside.
Take all the meat off the cooked chicken and shred it into fine strips using a sharp knife or cleaver.
Arrange the chicken strips on a platter and surround them with the bean sprouts, cucumbers and carrots.
Combine all the ingredients for the dressing and mix them thoroughly.
(An electric blender is useful for this, but you could use a screw-top jar and shake everything in it well.)
Pour the dressing all over the chicken and vegetables and mix well.
Serve at once.
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