What could be better than a fresh and light Asian-style chicken salad as the weather warms up? Check out this easy-to-follow recipe courtesy of Kevin’s Gazebo to ease into the summer with a flavorful lunch. The dressing would be suitable on any other salad, if you fancy, or even work as a marinade!
Ingredients
1 piece boneless, skinless chicken breast
1/3 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced.
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon brown sugar (more to taste)
A pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
1 small pack mixed salad greens
¼ whole red onion, sliced very thin
½ cup red cherry tomatoes, halved
½ mandarin orange
1 ½ teaspoons sesame seeds
1 ½ teaspoons black sesame seeds
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil, for grilling or sautéing
Preparation
Dressing: Put olive oil, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, ginger, sesame oil, brown sugar, and crushed red pepper flakes into a blender. Blend until completely emulsified. Try the dressing and adjust to your taste. Make the dressing in advance to allow flavors to develop.
Season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper and heat olive oil in a skillet or on a grill pan. Cook the chicken on both sides over medium heat until it has a nice color on the surface and is totally cooked through, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, allow to rest for 5 minutes, and cut into cubes.
Place the cubed chicken into a bowl and pour 1/3 of the dressing over it, tossing to coat. Allow to sit for a few minutes. Sprinkle both kinds of sesame seeds over the chicken and toss so that the seeds stick to the chicken. Add more seeds if you prefer a thicker coating.
To assemble the salad, place the salad greens, sliced onion, and the halved tomatoes in a large bowl. Pour half the remaining dressing, reserving the rest if you’d like more later. Toss to coat. Arrange chicken, mandarin oranges all over the greens. Serve immediately.
Note: Wait until just before serving to toss the salad!
