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Asian Peanut Chicken Slaw

Favorite new meal creation of last year?

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Asian Peanut Chicken Slaw. Hands down!  It’s a friend of those Chinese chicken salads that were so popular a million years ago.  Back then, when I was working a hundred hours a week, (okay, it was probably 20 years or so ago and 60 hours) I never had time to really replicate my favorite from a restaurant in San Francisco.  But this, this makes me forget that Chinese chicken salad ever existed.  Maybe because it has so many similarities. Maybe because it’s a bit of a cheater recipe that uses a bottled dressing… and just maybe it’s because I can make it for dinner in a flash. (I’ve been meaning to create a scratch dressing for this recipe, but then I figured that would just add more steps to one of my easy go to weeknight recipes, so I didn’t :)  Let me share how this particular meal was born.

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I was shopping in Trader Joe’s one day and they were offering a sample of their broccoli slaw mixed with some peanuts and dressed with their Spicy Peanut Vinaigrette.  I tasted it.  I liked it. The marketing strategy worked and I picked up all three items to make for a side dish. With no prep work, it became an easy side to make often. Then I decided it really didn’t have enough complexity of flavor, so I added some chopped celery, then some green onion….now we were getting somewhere, but it was still missing something. When I figured out it was cilantro, we had arrived at exactly the flavors and textures I was aiming for.  Then I bought a few bags of broccoli slaw that were just too woody and ruined the salad.  I shared the recipe with my sister and she skipped the broccoli slaw and went straight to shredded cabbage.  I followed her lead, added some shredded carrots and never looked back.  She later shared with me that she was on her sixth time of eating the basic three ingredient slaw (cabbage, peanuts, dressing) and was addicted!

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I started making it with angel hair pasta to bulk it up and make it a bit heartier for a main dish.  That lasted for awhile…kind of reminded me of cold peanut noodles (yum!) but my husband was not a big fan of the noodle iteration.  So I decided to bulk it up with protein instead and chopped up some cooked chicken breasts.  Now we had a hearty main dish salad.

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One day I served it over a bed of hot rice and BOOM!  My flavor, temperature and texture world exploded!  The cold salad on top of steaming hot rice?  Ugh!  Sooo good!  Sweet and spicy, peanutty, crunchy, crispy, goodness on top of hot tender rice. It works so perfectly with this cold slaw.  Even though I’ve added more ingredients to the basic three that I started with, it still comes together so quickly and you can customize it to suit your taste. (As in, it’s really great with noodles, or skip the chicken and keep it vegetarian, add different vegetables or maybe water chestnuts? My daughter likes to sprinkle toasted sesame seeds on hers.)

So here you go.  My favorite new meal from last year, now in heavy dinner rotation.  Asian Peanut Chicken Slaw over Perfect White Rice.  If you’re a fan of Chinese chicken salad or cold peanut noodles…

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then I think you’re going to love this recipe as much as I do.

Asian Peanut Chicken Slaw

Asian Peanut Chicken Slaw

Yield: 4 -6 generous servings, possibly more if served with rice

Leave out the chicken for a great vegetarian option!

Ingredients

  • 4 cups shredded cabbage
  • 1 cup shredded carrots
  • 3 green onions, chopped, white and green parts
  • 3 stalks of celery, sliced
  • 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
  • 1 pound cooked chicken breast, chopped
  • 1/2 cup chopped roasted salted peanuts, I use Trader Joe's Blister Peanuts
  • 1/4-1/2 cup Trader Joe's Spicy Peanut Vinaigrette or your favorite peanut dressing
  • Perfect White Rice

Instructions

  1. Place all ingredients into a large bowl and toss with desired amount of dressing.
  2. Serve immediately over hot steamed white rice.

Notes

* You can make salad ahead, but I would dress it right before serving for the crispiest texture. Leftovers are still great, but the cabbage gets less crunchy.

*Use chicken that has basic seasonings like salt and pepper. I've found that chargrilled, or overly spiced chicken interferes with the rest of the flavors.

*Trader Joe's Spicy Peanut Vinaigrette can be found in the refrigerated produce section. This is a mildly spicy dressing. If you don't have access to a Trader Joe's or have a different preference, use your favorite peanut dressing or sauce instead.

*Ingredient amounts are just guidelines. This is another recipe I never measure, I just cut everything up and throw it in a bowl just as you would for most salads.

The Merchant Baker © 2015

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seasonal produce guide for switzerland: march | savormania

Friday 6th of March 2015

[…] The Merchant Baker: Asian peanut chicken slaw […]

Kimberly | Chic & Sugar

Tuesday 13th of January 2015

Spicy, crunchy, crispy = perfection. I can't wait to try this. Pinned!

Ramona

Tuesday 13th of January 2015

This is definitely a must try! Thanks for the pin Kimberly!

Tasbih @ Cleobuttera

Tuesday 13th of January 2015

I love me some slaw...and one with an Asian twist makes it even better. Looks so tempting. Can't wait to try this!

Ramona

Tuesday 13th of January 2015

Slaw has always been a favorite side dish...so a main dish version works great for me! This one? This one, I love!

Katie

Monday 12th of January 2015

This looks so incredible! I LOVE dishes like this so thank you so much for sharing! I just found your blog and I am really enjoying looking at all your recipes!!

Ramona

Monday 12th of January 2015

Katie, Thanks for stopping by...and thanks so much for the wonderful feedback! This truly is one of my very favorite meals right now. It's a salad that feels like comfort food...you can't beat that!

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