Spicy Thai Salad
User Reviews
5
Spicy Thai Salad
Description
This Spicy Thai Salad starts with chicken breasts marinated in Asian sesame dressing and grilled until cooked to 165°F, then diced. Brown rice noodles are cooked and rinsed, with some pasta water reserved for the dressing. The salad ingredients include arugula, shredded cabbage and carrot, diced red bell pepper, jalapeño, avocado, and chopped green onions, combined for a fresh and varied texture.
The dressing is a blend of creamy peanut butter, lime juice, sesame oil, honey, rice vinegar, soy sauce, gochujang for heat, and salt, whisked together with reserved pasta water to achieve a balanced consistency. This dressing brings a tangy, sweet, spicy, and savory profile that complements the salad components.
Toppings of crunchy wonton strips, crushed peanuts, sesame seeds, and a pinch of red pepper flakes add additional layers of texture and mild heat. The salad is served chilled and maintains freshness due to the sturdiness of ingredients like cabbage, allowing storage in an airtight container for up to four days.
The recipe emphasizes careful chopping of vegetables to ensure even distribution of flavors and recommends adjusting the level of heat by controlling the amount of gochujang and jalapeño added.
Ingredients
Chicken
- 2 chicken breast
- ½ bottle Asian sesame dressing
Salad
- 1 cup arugula
- 4 oz brown rice noodles
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 cup cabbage shredded
- 1 cup carrot shredded
- 1 avocado
- ¼ cup green onion chopped
- 1 jalapeño finely diced, small
- ½ cup wonton strips
- 2 tbsp peanuts crushed
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds
- pinch red pepper flakes
- 1 head iceberg lettuce quartered
Dressing
- 2 tbsp peanut butter creamy
- 1 lime juiced
- 3 tbsp pasta water
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1-2 tbsp gochujang
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
Make Chicken
- 30 minutes - 1 hour prior to grilling the chicken, place raw chicken breasts in a large plastic bag and cover with ½ bottle of Asian Sesame dressing. Seal and refrigerate until ready to grill chicken.
- Remove the chicken from the marinade and place on a hot grill. I used my indoor Ninja Foodi. Cook until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Once cooked, dice into bite sized pieces.
Prep Salad
- While the chicken is grilling, cook the noodles according to box instructions. Once cooked save at least ½ cup of pasta water for the dressing, then strain and rinse with cold water. We won’t use that much, but it's always better to have too much than too little!
- Whisk the dressing ingredients together in a liquid measuring cup or small bowl until everything is combined.
- Prep the rest of the salad vegetables. Dice jalapeño (finely!), bell pepper, green onions, cabbage & carrots (if not already shredded), and crush peanuts.
- Next, prepare all of the vegetables. Wash and dry then finely dice basil, cut green onion into ¼” thickness, finely chop red pepper, and green and purple cabbage.
Assemble
- In a large bowl, add arugula, cooked noodles, bell pepper, green onions, shredded cabbage and carrots.
- Add diced chicken and toss salad together. Drizzle peanut sauce on top and toss again.
- Top with sesame seeds, wonton strips, and crushed peanuts. Serve with a crunchy quarter of iceberg lettuce head. Enjoy!
Notes
- Chop vegetables finely to distribute flavors evenly in the salad.
- Adjust spiciness by varying gochujang and jalapeño to your preference.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days; use cabbage to help prevent sogginess.
Nutrition Information
Show DetailsNutrition Facts
Serving: 4Serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories 498 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Serving | 1 serving | |
| Calories | 498kcal | 25% |
| Carbohydrates | 30g | 10% |
| Protein | 54g | 108% |
| Fat | 18g | 28% |
| Saturated Fat | 2g | 10% |
| Polyunsaturated Fat | 1g | 6% |
| Monounsaturated Fat | 5g | 25% |
| Sodium | 243mg | 10% |
| Potassium | 498mg | 11% |
| Fiber | 7g | 28% |
| Sugar | 5g | 10% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
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