Chinese Chicken Salad is a fresh and delicious salad with colorful vegetables, tender chicken, and crunchy chow mein noodles. It’s an easy recipe that’s great when you’re craving something light and fresh for lunch or dinner.
Many restaurants have a Chinese chicken salad on their menus, and they’re usually a combination of crunchy veggies like cabbage, lettuce, and carrots, along with those crisp chow mein noodles and chicken. It’s one of my favorite salads, and making one at home is just as good and a lot less expensive.
My recipe is really simple, with a handful of ingredients and a few shortcuts to make prep a breeze. Make this salad for a light dinner, or it’s great for lunches, too. I’m also sharing how to make it for meal prep for easy meals during the week.
Table of Contents
What’s in Chinese Chicken Salad?
What makes this salad so good is the combination of crunchy textures and colorful veggies. It’s so fresh and light.
There are many variations, but our favorite way to make it is with lots of chicken, romaine lettuce, cabbage, carrots, some nuts, and chow mein noodles.
The great thing is, once you try it, you can easily adjust the ingredients to your tastes.
Ingredients
- Chopped romaine lettuce
- Cooked shredded chicken
- Shredded cabbage
- Shredded carrots
- Sliced green onions
- Chow mein noodles
- Slivered almonds
- Store-bought Asian-style dressing
Ingredient Tips
Chicken: Use a rotisserie chicken, or this recipe is excellent for using up leftover plain baked or grilled chicken.
Cabbage: A whole head of cabbage yields a ton of shredded cabbage, so I usually buy the bagged shredded cabbage in the produce department. Or, you can also use a bagged coleslaw mix.
Noodles: Chow mein noodles are small crunchy noodles. They are packaged in canisters, which are usually in the Asian foods section at most grocery stores.
Nuts: Almonds are usually used in this type of salad, but chopped roasted peanuts would also work.
Dressing: We buy an Asian-style toasted sesame dressing for this salad. Check the dressing section at the store – there are usually several different Asian-style dressings to choose from. Pick your favorite!
How to Make Chinese Chicken Salad
Place all of the ingredients in a large bowl and toss them together to combine. Add your dressing and toss it all again or serve it on the side so everyone can add as little or as much as they want.
How to Meal Prep this Salad
What I love about this Chinese chicken salad is that it’s great for meal prep. Romain and cabbage are hearty lettuces that stay crisp for several days after they’ve been chopped or shredded.
The salad component will keep well for a few days in the fridge as long as you wait to add the dressing.
You can combine all of the salad ingredients except for the chow mein noodles and dressing. Divide the mixture among meal prep containers. When you’re ready to eat – add the dressing and noodles and enjoy!
Add this easy Chinese chicken salad recipe to your dinner plans this week. It’s so easy and delicious, you might end up adding it to your weekly dinner rotation. Enjoy!
Other Salads You’ll Enjoy
Chinese Chicken Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 head romaine lettuce chopped
- 2 cups rotisserie chicken shredded
- 1 cup store bought cabbage shredded
- I cup carrots shredded
- ½ cup green onions sliced
- 1 cup chow mein noodles
- ¼ cup slivered almonds
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a large salad bowl. Toss salad well
- Add your favorite store bought Asian dressing. We used an Asian toasted sesame dressing and it paired very well with the salad. Serve
Recipe Nutrition
Chinese Chicken Salad is an easy recipe that’s great when you’re craving something light and fresh for lunch or dinner. It has the most amazing texture thanks to the crunchy chow mein noodles.