Thai Chopped Chicken Salad with Sweet Chili Dressing
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.
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.
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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.