Thai Chopped Chicken Salad
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This Thai-inspired chopped chicken salad is basically my dream lunch: full of bright, contrasting flavors and textures; packed with a full rainbow of vegetables; and easy to assemble in a hurry. It intentionally skips a peanut dressing in favor of a sweet chili vinaigrette that just adds to all of this salad’s vibrant flavors and light, crisp bites.
Since finalizing my recipe for sweet chili lime salmon, I’ve been craving more of this delicious condiment in everyday meals. This salad is my next favorite meal with it so far and the first I consider ready for the spotlight! It has juicy bites of chicken, sweet mango, crisp cabbage and peppers, and more. Add it all up and this is a nourishing bowl you could inhale every week and be not just satisfied, but thrilled.
Most Thai-inspired salad recipes use a peanut dressing, but this recipe takes a different approach. (My daughter is allergic to peanuts.) Happily, Thai sweet chili sauce is the perfect base for a shake-and-serve vinaigrette that’s glossy and delicious thanks to little zips of garlic, rice vinegar, and sesame. If you’re craving a Thai chicken salad without peanut but with bright flavors and light, crisp bites, this recipe brings it home.
Why You’ll Love a Chopped Thai Chicken Salad
- Everyone loves Thai-inspired flavors, and they’re easy to enjoy at home
- So many nourishing veggies, lean chicken, and healthy nuts all in one bowl
- Huge on flavor and texture: juicy mango + crisp cabbage and pepper + tender chicken + luscious dressing = wow factor in every bite
- Great for meal prep and easy to put together fast
- Super versatile and easy to swap ingredients or leave some as optional toppings
Ingredient Notes
These dressing ingredients are all valuable staples if you start making Asian-inspired meals at home. We love to get our takeout fakeout fix with Thai-inspired red chicken curry, sweet basil chicken, or green shrimp curry, too. Just add this salad to the line-up for days when you want to chop and toss, not cook!
Enjoy Now or Later
Enjoy right away: This salad is equally well-suited to enjoying on the spot or prepping to enjoy throughout the week. If you plan to dig in right away, unsurprisingly you’ll just toss together all of the veggies, drizzle with dressing to taste, and top with nuts and lime wedges.
Thai chicken salad meal prep: Divide the tossed cabbage-chicken mixture into containers and top with lime wedges. Tuck portions of the dressing and nuts on top in separate containers. Portions keep well for at least 3 days in the fridge.
More Nourishing Meal Salads
When I’m looking to make myself a gold-star salad for lunch or for dinner, these are the recipes I count on time and again:
- Mexican Bean Salad with Cilantro Vinaigrette (add avocado and enjoy with chips)
- Extra Quick and Easy Jennifer Aniston Salad
- Chickpea Tuna Salad
- Greek Salmon Grain Bowls
Thai Chopped Chicken Salad with Sweet Chili Dressing
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 3-4 cups finely-shredded cabbage I use coleslaw mix to easily get some green and some red
- 2 cups cooked chicken diced or shredded, see note
- 1 cup shredded carrot
- 1 cup fresh mango chopped into small cubes
- 1 bell pepper any color, finely chopped
- 1 handful fresh cilantro finely chopped
- 2 green onions sliced thin
- 1 cup cooked shelled edamame, optional
- 1/4 cup cashews, slivered almonds, or peanuts see note
- fresh lime wedges
For the Dressing:
- 1/2 cup Thai sweet chili sauce
- 1/4 cup olive or avocado oil
- 1 Tablespoon rice vinegar
- 3-4 teaspoons garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- optional: honey, more garlic, Sriracha to taste
Instructions
- To make the dressing, combine sweet chili sauce, olive or avocado oil, vinegar, garlic, and sesame oil in a small food processor or tightly-lidded jar. Blitz or shake very vigorously to combine. Sample and adjust to taste; add a small squeeze of honey to make it more sweet, more garlic for more punch, or a squeeze of Sriracha for heat. When you love it, set it aside.1/2 cup Thai sweet chili sauce, 1/4 cup olive or avocado oil, 1 Tablespoon rice vinegar, 3-4 teaspoons garlic, 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil, optional: honey, more garlic, Sriracha to taste
- To assemble the salads, toss cabbage, chicken, carrot, mango, pepper, cilantro, and green onions together in a large bowl. Add edamame if using.3-4 cups finely-shredded cabbage, 2 cups cooked chicken, 1 cup shredded carrot, 1 cup fresh mango, 1 bell pepper, 1 handful fresh cilantro, 2 green onions, 1 cup cooked
- If serving right away, drizzle lightly with dressing and toss to combine. Divide into servings and top with nuts, lime wedges, and more dressing to taste.1/4 cup cashews, slivered almonds, or peanuts, fresh lime wedges
- If saving as a meal prep, divide the tossed cabbage-chicken mixture into containers and top with lime wedges. Tuck portions of the dressing and nuts on top in separate containers. Portions keep well at least 3 days in the fridge.
Notes
- Cabbage: If you don’t want to shred your own cabbage, it’s pretty easy to find packaged pre-shredded cabbage in most major stores, or look for something labeled “coleslaw mix” that typically will give you a nice mix of green and red in one bag. Coleslaw mix often also includes a small amount of shredded carrot, but I like more carrot in my salad, so still add a few extra handfuls. Do what you like!
- Chicken: For a high-flavor, low-effort short-cut, I like to use the pre-cooked chili lime chicken sold at Trader Joe’s for this salad. You can absolutely toss in any cooked chicken you like. Chops or shreds pulled from a rotisserie chicken work well, or you can grill, poach, or pan fry your own with anything from a simple salt and pepper seasoning to a more involved spice mix. (Spices like garlic, chili powder, and cumin go well with this particular salad, but don’t overthink it.)
- Nuts: My daughter is only allergic to peanuts, not tree nuts, so I love including cashews in this salad for crunch. If all nuts are a no-go to you, don’t worry, you’ll still get a nice crisp texture in this salad from the fresh cabbage and peppers. For a little extra, crispy wonton strips or sunflower seeds can sub in a pinch.
- Dressing: Depending on how much dressing you like on your salad, you may have enough leftover to dress another portion or two. It keeps well in a tightly-lidded jar in the fridge for at least a week; just give it a good shake again to combine.
