This Thai chicken salad is a South East Asian twist on the more popular Chinese Chicken salad. It has the same base ingredients such as shredded chicken, cabbage, carrots, and green onion. But includes some unique fruits and vegetables like mango & bell pepper. And is all tossed in a delicious creamy Thai peanut dressing!
Tips, Tricks & Suggestions
- How to cook the chicken before shredding it: When it comes to the shredded chicken for this recipe you generally have 4 options.
- Poach/Boil – This is my go-to option as it’s fairly simple and results in a clean and pure tasting chicken. All you need to do is place the chicken in a pot and cover it with water. Then let it simmer/boil for roughly 40 minutes*. Or when I’m using frozen chicken and I’m short on time I just use an Instantpot. To do that simply toss in the frozen chicken with enough water to cover the bottom. And set it to pressure cook for 30 minutes*. Then release the pressure after 5 to 10 minutes. It’s really that easy!
- Bake – Option numero dos. Start by preheating your oven to 375℉/190℃. Next line a baking sheet with either aluminum foil or parchment paper. Place the chicken on top of the baking sheet. Then put it in your heated oven and let it bake for 20 to 30 minutes*.
- Grill – If you want a bit of charr & smokiness to your chicken this is a great option. Just preheat your grill then add the chicken breast. And let it cook for roughly 20 to 30 minutes*.
- Store Bought Rotisserie – This is for when you’re feeling really lazy, or just don’t have a whole lot of time on your hands. Because you can always buy one of those pre-cooked rotisserie chickens that every grocery store sells nowadays. No cooking is involved, all you have to do is shred it up. Who doesn’t love that!
*Note that cooking times can vary depending on the size of the chicken breast you use. So just make sure that they are cooked until the internal temperature reads 165℉/74℃.
- Kick it up!: Want your Thai chicken salad to have a Thai kick? Then sub out the bell pepper with a couple of red serrano peppers.
- Making the salad ahead of time?: If you want to you can prep all of the fruits and vegetables for this salad ahead of time. Just make sure to place all those ingredients in a bowl to let them sit in your fridge. Then all you have to do is add the dressing and toss the salad when ready.
- Peanut dressing: While you can use your favorite store-bought peanut dressing I highly recommend that you make your own. And luckily that is just what we made in our last post so check out our recipe for Thai Peanut Dressing.
Other Great Salads to Try Out
Thai Chicken Salad Recipe
Total time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4
Ingredients
2 Cups of cooked shredded chicken, should only need 1 large breast
4 Cups of shredded cabbage, either napa or regular
1 Cup of shredded carrot
1 Mango, peeled and shredded
1 Medium red bell pepper, deseeded & cut into thin 1-inch long strips
4 to 5 Green onions, sliced thin and diagonally
¼ Cup of cilantro, roughly chopped
¼ Cup of fresh basil or mint (or a combo of both), roughly chopped
½ Cup of unsalted peanuts/cashews, crushed or roughly chopped
½ to 1 Cup of Thai peanut dressing, either homemade or storebought
Instructions
- Cook & shred the chicken: Cook your chicken breast by either baking it, grilling it, or poaching it until the internal temperature reaches 165℉/74℃. Transfer the cooked chicken breast to a cutting board and use two forks to shred it.
Put the shredded chicken into a container or plastic bag. Then place it in your fridge to cool down for at least 1 hour or preferably overnight.
- Assemble & toss the salad: Add the cooled shredded chicken to a large mixing bowl. Then add the cabbage, carrot, mango, red bell pepper, green onion, fresh herbs, and peanuts.
Pour roughly ½ cup of salad dressing over top and give it a good toss until everything is coated. Finally, taste a bit of the salad and add additional dressing to your liking.
- Serve the Thai chicken salad immediately & enjoy!
Thai Chicken Salad Recipe
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 2 Cups of cooked shredded chicken should only need 1 large breast
- 4 Cups of shredded cabbage either napa or regular
- 1 Cup of shredded carrot
- 1 Mango peeled and shredded
- 1 Medium red bell pepper deseeded & cut into thin 1-inch long strips
- 4 to 5 Green onions sliced thin and diagonally
- ¼ Cup of cilantro roughly chopped
- ¼ Cup of fresh basil or mint or a combo of both, roughly chopped
- ½ Cup of unsalted peanuts/cashews crushed or roughly chopped
- ½ to 1 Cup of Thai peanut dressing either homemade or storebought
Instructions
- Cook & shred the chicken: Cook your chicken breast by either baking it, grilling it, or poaching it until the internal temperature reaches 165℉/74℃. Transfer the cooked chicken breast to a cutting board and use two forks to shred it. Put the shredded chicken into a container or plastic bag. Then place it in your fridge to cool down for at least 1 hour or preferably overnight.
- Assemble & toss the salad: Add the cooled shredded chicken to a large mixing bowl. Then add the cabbage, carrot, mango, red bell pepper, green onion, fresh herbs, and peanuts. Pour roughly ½ cup of salad dressing over top and give it a good toss until everything is coated. Finally, taste a bit of the salad and add additional dressing to your liking.
- Serve the Thai chicken salad immediately & enjoy!
