As many of you may know, I am a huge fan of salads. Fresh, crunchy, colorful, creative – they are delicious.
And I must say, this Asian chicken salad recipe (similar to those served at Panera and Chick-Fil-A) is a great way to pack a ton of vegetables in your diet.

Much like my Creamy Avocado Chicken Salad, Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad and Waldorf Chicken Salad recipes, this Asian-style chicken salad is packed with vibrant, crunchy ingredients. And has become one of my favorite chicken recipes so far.
More than anything, I think this warm sesame chicken salad is a great meal-worthy salad recipe you can make on a Tuesday night.
But I haven’t even gotten to the best part – the Asian sesame ginger salad dressing! This is the reason my husband and I loved this salad.
The Asian-style sauce is flavored with almond butter, which is then topped off with sliced almonds. If you are not a fan of almond butter, feel free to substitute it with peanut butter and chopped peanuts – but more on that later.
Ingredients
The simple ingredients for this Asian sesame chicken salad recipe comes in three parts – the chicken, the homemade almond sesame dressing and the salad.

For the chicken, you will need chicken breasts (I used Bone-in chicken breasts), vegetable oil (grapeseed or olive oil will work), kosher salt, and black pepper.
For the Asian sesame dressing recipe, gather together unsweetened almond butter, honey, rice vinegar, soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, garlic, ginger, chile pepper sauce (my favorite is Sriracha) and coarse sea salt.
And for the salad, get ready to shred green and red cabbage, carrots, romaine lettuce (or curly salad greens), edamame beans, sesame seeds, sliced almonds, and fresh cilantro.

A Few Helpful Notes About The Ingredients
- Chicken: This is a great recipe to use leftover or store-bought rotisserie chicken if you don’t have time to roast your own.
- Cabbage: This is a heartier version of the popular Panera Asian Chicken Salad as it contains cabbage, both green and red, in addition to the romaine. Don’t be tempted to use more cabbage than the recipe states (which I usually do) as you won’t have enough sauce to coat the greens.
PRO TIP: As is the case with my No-Mayo Coleslaw (and most cabbage salads), it is imperative that the cabbage is as thinly sliced as possible so the Asian sesame vinaigrette will wilt the vegetable. If the cabbage is cut too thick, it will not be able to soak in all those wonderful flavors.
- Additional Sweetness/Citrus: Following in the footsteps of the Panera version, I topped it off with a few slices of tangerines (a type of Mandarin oranges). However, you can use sliced orange as well. The fresh citrus fruit adds beautiful color and a pop of fresh flavor.
- With or Without Almond Butter: The Asian sesame chicken salad dressing I used here includes 3 tablespoons of almond butter (peanut butter would also work). I find that almond butter makes it heartier with its earthy flavors. However, if you are going after a copycat Panera Asian chicken salad recipe, you can use 3 tablespoons of olive oil instead.
How To Make Asian Sesame Chicken Salad
This Oriental chicken salad recipe can be prepped and ready in a few easy steps. Simply:

- Roast the chicken: Start with roasting a couple of bone-in chicken breasts in the oven. Pat the chicken breasts dry with paper towels and place on a baking sheet. Brush both sides of the chicken with vegetable oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast in a 425-degree oven for 30-35 minutes, or until the thickest part of the chicken registers 165 degrees on an instant-read thermometer. Rest for 5 minutes before slicing.
- Mix the dressing: In a small mixing bowl (or mason jar), whisk together the almond butter, honey, rice vinegar, soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, garlic, ginger, Sriracha and sea salt. Allow it to sit for 10 minutes.
- Toss the shredded vegetables and cooked chicken: In a large bowl, pour in half the dressing, then add the green and red cabbage, carrots, romaine, and sliced chicken. Gently stir to equally distribute, then pour the remaining dressing on top and toss to combine. Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes for the cabbage to wilt and flavors to combine.
- Garnish and Serve. Stir in the edamame, then sprinkle with sesame seeds, sliced almonds, chopped cilantro, and tangerine slices. Enjoy!
Variations
Even though I love this Asian sesame salad as is, a few fun twists and variations include:
- With Peanut Butter: Replace the almond butter with unsalted and unsweetened creamy peanut butter. Need more peanut flavor? Use roasted peanuts instead of sliced almonds.
- With Wonton Strips: Replace the roasted sliced almonds with an equal amount of wonton strips. A little more indulgent, but incredibly delicious!
- Without Edamame: The edamame beans take this Asian salad to a whole new level, but they are optional. Feel free to omit them if you don’t have any on hand.
- Whole30: To compliment a Whole30 diet, simply omit the edamame beans and honey, replace the soy sauce with gluten-free coconut aminos, replace the rice vinegar in the salad dressing with fresh citrus juice (lemon, lime, orange or tangerine will all work) and use your favorite Whole30 approved (no added sugar) chili sauce.

Make-Ahead Instructions:
If this Asian chicken salad is a part of your meal prepping, you can:
- Make the sesame salad up to a week in advance and keep it in a jar (tightly sealed) in the fridge.
- Slice the cabbage and shred the carrot as a part of your meal preparation. Keep them in airtight containers.
- Roast the chicken a day before, slice and store in airtight containers.
- Prep the rest of the ingredients right before you are ready to assemble it.
Storage Instructions
What I love the most about this Sesame Asian Salad is that the leftovers make the best lunch/dinner the next day. Simply place the leftovers in an airtight container and keep it in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Asian Sesame Chicken Salad Recipe
Ingredients
For the chicken:
- 2 bone-in chicken breasts 12-13 oz each
- 4 teaspoons vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
For the salad dressing:
- 3 tablespoons natural almond or peanut butter, (unsweetened/unsalted)
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 clove of garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger grated
- 1 teaspoon chili pepper sauce I used Sriracha – optional
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
For the salad:
- 4 cups 1/2 head green cabbage, shredded
- 2 cups 1/4 head red cabbage, shredded
- 1 medium-size carrot ½ cup, shredded
- 2 cups 1 head romaine lettuce or curly salad greens, shredded
- 1 cup edamame beans shelled
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
- 3 tablespoons sliced almonds
- 3 tangerines peeled and sliced
- 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro chopped
Instructions
- To Roast The Chicken: Pre-heat the oven to 425 F Degrees. Pat-dry the chicken breasts with paper towels. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Brush both sides of each chicken breast with the 2 teaspoons of oil and sprinkle evenly with salt and pepper. Bake in the oven for 35-45 min or until a thermometer inserted in the center registers 165 F degrees. Take it out of the oven, cover with aluminum foil, and let it sit for 10 minutes before slicing.
- Slice chicken into small bite-size cubes, place it in a bowl and set aside.
- To make the dressing: Place almond butter and honey in a mixing bowl. Whisk in the rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, Sriracha, and sea salt. Allow it to marinade on the kitchen counter for 10 minutes.
- To make the salad: Pour half of the dressing at the bottom of a large bowl. Add in green cabbage, red cabbage, shredded carrot, and romaine lettuce in the bowl. Toss to coat. Add the sliced chicken. Pour in the rest of the dressing over and toss to combine. Allow the salad to sit on the kitchen counter for 5-10 minutes for all the flavors to combine.
- Stir in the edamame. Garnish with sesame seeds, sliced almonds, tangerine slices and fresh cilantro. Serve.
Video
Notes
Variations
- With Peanut Butter: Replace the almond butter with unsalted and unsweetened creamy peanut butter. Need more peanut flavor? Use roasted peanuts instead of sliced almonds.
- With Wonton Strips: Replace the roasted sliced almonds with an equal amount of wonton strips. A little more indulgent, but incredibly delicious!
- Without Edamame: The edamame beans take this Asian salad to a whole new level, but they are optional. Feel free to omit them if you don’t have any on hand.
- Whole30: To compliment a Whole30 diet, simply omit the edamame beans and honey, replace the soy sauce with gluten-free coconut aminos, replace the rice vinegar in the salad dressing with fresh citrus juice (lemon, lime, orange or tangerine will all work) and use your favorite Whole30 approved (no added sugar) chili sauce.
Make-Ahead Instructions:
If this Asian chicken salad is a part of your meal prepping, you can:- Make the sesame salad up to a week in advance and keep it in a jar (tightly sealed) in the fridge.
- Slice the cabbage and shred the carrot as a part of your meal preparation. Keep them in airtight containers.
- Roast the chicken a day before, slice and store in airtight containers.
- Prep the rest of the ingredients right before you are ready to assemble it.
Storage Instructions:
Place the leftovers in an airtight container and keep it in the fridge for up to 2 days.Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @foolproofliving on Instagram and hashtag it #foolproofeatsThis post was originally posted in August 2014. It has been updated with new information and minimal edits to the original recipe in June 2020.
Gaby
This sounds like a delicious recipe! I love your blog, beautiful photos, nice design and tasty dishes!
Janette@culinaryginger
My favorite kind of salad. I eat homemade almond butter everyday, and I used it in an Asian dressing and have to say I love it more than peanut, beautiful recipe.
Caitlin @ teaspoon
I like the sound of almond butter as a salad dressing base. This salad looks amazing, I just need to be in the right mood for all the chopping 🙂 I’m curious to find out about your friend’s dip as well! Hopefully you will post it one day.
Aysegul Sanford
Hi Caitlin,
The salad dressing is pretty much the same thing as the dressing.
And believe me, the chopping is not that much work. It is totally worth it.. 🙂
Cheers!
Ice
Maggie
I never used almond butter in cooking before but the recipe looks so delicious! Just pinned and saved! 🙂
Aysegul Sanford
Thank you Maggie! It is just a great alternative to peanut butter and gives it a different/unexpected flavor.:)
Amy
Made this for dinner and loved it! The chopping was a breeze with my food processor – gotta love that thing. I also was working with frozen chicken and so put the oil and soy sauce on it while it thawed in the fridge overnight. It was so tender and delicious after baking it the next day! This salad is just right and I’ll definitely make it again.
Thanks Aysegul!
Aysegul Sanford
Hi Amy,
Thank you so much for your kind words. I am so happy to hear that you enjoyed it.
This recipe is a regular in our house as well.
I love the idea of marinating it in oil and soy sauce. Thanks for letting me know.
Best – Aysegul
Heather
Hello Aysegal.. What would you suggest as an alternative to the edamame? My family and I stay away from soy.. I use Coco Aminos in place of soy sauce (I think their more delicious than soy too! ?) Maybe sugar snap peas.. they are crisp and lightly sweet. Thank You!
Aysegul Sanford
Hi Heather,
I agree, sugar snap peas would work well. Also, if you can get your hands on fresh (young) fava beans, they would be great as well.
I hope this helps.
Best,
Aysegul
Whitney
You said in the description there was garlic in the dressing recipe and then didn’t list it in the ingredients. Was about to hop to making this recipe. It sounds and looks delicious. But ginger is normally paired with garlic. I was a little confused because the flavor profile generally makes so much more sense that way. I’m still about to go make it. I might experiment with garlic amount if you aren’t able to respond in time, but hey. Let me know, chica! Looks amazing. I’ll be sure to let you know how it turns out.
Aysegul Sanford
Oh no.. I am so SO sorry. I first posted this recipe many years ago and then re-did it again last summer.
Over the years, it evolved into a version with garlic, but I never updated the recipe. I would highly recommend adding garlic in there.
I am updating the recipe with garlic now. I hope this helps. Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any other questions.
Thanks!
Paula
I made this salad this evening and it was a big hit with my family. The salad dressing is so flavorful and compliments the crutch of the cabbage and edamame. I will making and sharing this recipe frequently.
Aysegul Sanford
Hey Paula,
This is music to my ears. It makes me so happy to hear that you liked it.
Thanks for coming back and leaving a review. Cheers!
Sophia Tran
Soooo delicious and juicy. I do not like the Asian recipes that much but I have tried this in Panera and liked it. You are right, your version is more vegetable-focused. The dressing was the winner for me though. I will be making it again. Thanks.
Aysegul Sanford
Hi Sophia,
That was an intentional decision as I wanted it to be a healthy weeknight dinner option.
I am happy to hear that you enjoyed it.
Cheers!
Emma Shape
This salad is better than Panera’s. Thanks for the dressing and salad recipe.
Aysegul Sanford
Ha ha.. Agreed.
I am happy to hear that you enjoyed it Emma. Cheers!
Olivia Tinat
This Salad is my new favorite for lunch meal prep. And that dressing is truly amazing. Thanks.
Aysegul Sanford
Can’t agree more. I am happy to hear you enjoyed it. Thanks for coming by Olivia.