Asian Sesame Chicken Salad Recipe

More than anything, I think this warm sesame chicken salad is a great meal-worthy dinner 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 delicious dressing 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 crunchy 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.

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, fresh ginger, chile pepper sauce (my favorite is Sriracha) and coarse sea salt.

And for the salad, get ready to shred green and red cabbage (aka purple 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. Or you can even try this super flavorful Baked Chicken Thighs.
• 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.
• Pan roast sliced almonds: If you have a few extra minutes, toast the sliced almonds in an empty skillet over medium heat for 3-4 minutes while stirring constantly. Doing so brings out their nutty flavor and take this easy salad recipe to a whole new level.

• Additional Sweetness/Citrus: Following in the footsteps of the Panera Bread 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:

1. Roast the chicken: Start with roasting a couple of bone-in chicken breasts in the oven. Pat the skinless 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. Let chicken rest for 5 minutes before slicing.
2. 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.
3. 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 breast strips. 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.
4. 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 crispy 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, Storage & Storage Instructions:

To Make Ahead: If this Asian chicken salad is a part of your meal prepping or want to make it ahead, 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: 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.

To Meal Prep: Prep every component of the recipe separately. Store them in separate airtight containers and assemble right before serving.

Got Some Extra Cabbage? Try These Recipes:

If you liked this cabbage packed Chinese chicken salad and/or have some extra cabbage left on hand, here are a few more recipes you can try:

• Stuffed Cabbage Soup recipe
• Cabbage Salad
• Easy Chicken Lo Mein