Asian Chicken Salad with mandarin oranges, cucumbers, bell peppers, almonds, marinated chicken and an easy homemade dressing.
Happy Monday! It’s going to be a good week! I love that Monday’s give us a fresh start. A new week to get things done and enjoy life. This week I’m going to enjoy every moment with my kids. They’re growing up so fast (I have a three-year-old and a 1 year old).
My three year old is hilarious. He says the funniest things. Last night while eating dinner he says “Seriously Mom, this dinner is YUM”. Whenever I ask him to do something for me–like grab his sister’s binky or put a toy away–he replies “OF COURSE I would do that for you.” He’s the cutest and makes me laugh so much throughout the day.
My one-year-old girl is also adorable, but just learned how to say “NO” and it’s her new favorite word. Eeek. Regardless, I’m trying to soak up every minute with their cuteness–they are both at such fun ages.
Another cute thing about my kids is that they like salad. Especially my 3-year-old. But salads like this are hard not to like, right?!
It’s loaded with tons of yummy ingredients like mandarin oranges, cucumbers and an awesome marinated and grilled chicken. The dressing is super simple and “seriously yum!” as my little boy would say. 😉 Best of all is that you can make it in advance!
I make the dressing, marinate the chicken and chop the salad ingredients in the morning (or you could the night before). Then just grill the chicken and toss the salad together right before you’re ready to eat. Super easy, fresh, healthy and delicious.
Consider trying these popular salad recipes:
- Classic Wedge Salad
- Healthy Chicken Pasta Salad
- Creamy Pesto Tortellini Pasta Salad
- Roasted Butternut Squash Salad
- Waldorf Salad
- Thai Quinoa Salad
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Asian Chicken Salad
Ingredients
For the marinade and dressing:
- 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 Tablespoons fresh ginger root peeled and finely chopped
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 1 Tablespoon sesame oil
- 1/2-1 teaspoons Sriracha hot sauces depending on spice level
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup green onion , finely chopped
- 4-5 chicken tenders (or 2 breasts, pounded thin)
For the Salad:
- 1 large bunch green leafy lettuce , chopped
- 2 cups red cabbages , finely chopped
- 1/2 cucumber , sliced
- 1 carrot , shredded
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds
- 1 bell pepper (any color), chopped
- 1 ounce can mandarin oranges drained
- fresh cilantro , for garnish
Instructions
For the marinade and dressing:
- Whisk together the soy sauce, chopped ginger, olive oil, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, sriracha, and salt.
- Add 3 tablespoon of the marinade to a large ziplock bag. Add the chicken tenders and close the bag, squeezing all of the air out.
- Refrigerate while you make the rest of the salad (or for up to 2 hours).
- To the remaining marinade, add red wine vinegar and sliced green onions, to make a dressing for the salad. Refrigerate.
For the salad:
- In a large salad bowl toss together the lettuce, cabbage, cucumber, carrots, almonds, bell peppers and mandarin oranges.
- Grill the chicken on medium high heat, cooking for 2-3 minutes on each side, flipping once.
- Remove to a cutting board and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Slice the chicken and add to the salad.
- Pour desired amount of dressing on top and toss to combine. Garnish with a little bit of chopped cilantro.
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?!
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.
Elaine says
Really good!