Asian Chicken Salad is an easy main-dish salad to make. The cellophane noodles give the salad a bit of a crunch. The Ginger-Soy Dressing adds lot of flavor.
I had never used cellophane noodles before making this dish. The noodles are also referred to as Saifun or bean threads. I purchased the Dynasty brand from my local grocery store.
The noodles are quite hard before they are fried. We used kitchen scissors to cut them in half. The noodles are quick fried in hot oil. They puff up very quickly and quite a bit. After frying, they are much softer and crunchy. You should cut them in half before cooking unless you plan on using a lot of oil. They need to be submerged in hot oil in order for them to cook. Don't let the "right out of the package" hardness of the cellophane noodles discourage you from using them.
If you prefer, you can substitute chow mein noodles for the cellophane noodles. Chow mein noodles are a bit harder than the cellophane noodles and will add a little flavor that you don't get with the cellophane noodles.
In my opinion, this salad won't keep well, so it is best to eat all of it soon after making it.
I found this recipe in my 1988 Betty Crocker Cookbook. I looked online and found this recipe posted on a Betty Crocker Site. The title has slightly changed and the measurements online were described a little differently than what is in my printed cookbook, but they work out to be roughly the same. The picture online has been updated, too.
If you like salads with an Asian flavor, check out Napa Cabbage Salad. Instead of lettuce, it uses cabbage. It has wonderful Asian flavors. The Napa Cabbage Salad stores well in the refrigerator, as long as the dressing is not on it until you are ready to enjoy it.
I hope you enjoy the Asian Chicken Salad!
Asian Chicken Salad
Ingredients
Ginger-Soy Dressing
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- ¼ cup white wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Salad
- 5.3 ounces cellophane noodles (bean threads)
- 4 cups lettuce, shredded
- 3 cups cooked chicken or turkey, diced
- ¼ cup green onions, optional
- ½ cup carrot, shredded
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted
Instructions
Ginger-Soy Dressing
- Whisk together all of the ingredients for the Ginger-Soy Dressing until well blended. Cover then refrigerate for at least two hours. The dressing will thicken when refrigerated. You can skip the refrigeration step, if you do not want to wait for the dressing.
Salad
- Prepare the cellophane noodles per package instructions. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix together the lettuce, chicken, onions and carrots.
- Whisk the dressing until it is well-blended then pour over the salad. Toss to coat.
- Add half of the cellophane noodles to the salad then toss to blend.
- Divide the remaining cellophane noodles between six plates.
- Spoon the salad mixture over the cellophane noodles.
- Sprinkle with sesame seeds.