This sesame chicken and cabbage salad is a delicious flavorful salad, for when you are tired of boring lettuce, tomato and cucumber salads. Whole30, low-carb, paleo.
Not a huge fan of salads? This sesame chicken and cabbage salad will change you mind!
I’m not much of a salad person when the weather is chilly, but sometimes I can really make an exception if the salad is flavorful and delicious enough.
This salad is definitely one that I can see myself eating more often, even when it’s chilly out. It’s super scrumptious and incredibly flavorful.
If you are like me, then you will definitely want to give this salad a try, especially on those busy days where you have barely any time to spare. It takes so little time, you can definitely prepare the chicken ahead of time, then toss it together really quick.
Quick recipes are the best, aren’t they?
The secret to super-quick meals is preparing whatever ingredients you can, ahead of time. The one ingredient here that needs to be prepped is the chicken. The ideal way to do it (aka most delicious) is to marinate the chicken overnight or for a few hours in the fridge.
However, if you don’t have time or forget to marinate, you can simply allow it to sit for 5-10 minutes right before you cook the chicken, and it still turns out well this way.
For the chicken marinade, you’ll need soy sauce or coconut aminos, if you don’t do soy, like me. You’ll also need sesame oil, garlic, ginger, salt and pepper. Simply mix them together in a bowl, place the thawed chicken into a container, and top with the sauce. Stir and place in the fridge for several hours.
Once you’re ready to cook the chicken, pour it into a pan over medium heat with the sauce and cook until done.
The rest of the salad is super easy. You simply need to assemble a handful of lettuce mix in a bowl, add in some sliced cabbage (coleslaw mix works well), mandarin oranges, green onions and cilantro, then top with sesame seeds. Add in the chicken once it has cooled.
For the dressing, add sesame oil, coconut aminos, a splash of the liquid from the mandarin oranges, and a bit of ginger to a container and shake to combine. Pour on top of the salad.
The salad dressing is quite thin, how can I thicken it up?
I have not experimenting too much with thickeners, but I have heard that xantham gum is a great way to thicken up sauces. I’ve used tapioca starch before, but it generally works best when heated.
If you give this sesame chicken and cabbage salad a try, please let me know what you think in the comments below. Also be sure to follow me on Facebook and Pinterest so you don’t miss a recipe!
You may also enjoy:
Sesame Chicken and Cabbage Salad (Whole30, Low-Carb)
Ingredients
Marinade
- 1/4 cup coconut aminos
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
Salad Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken
- 1 package salad mix
- 4 mandarin orange cups use only ones with fruit juice added for Whole30, and no-sugar added for keto.
- 6 oz cabbage mix
- 4 stalks green onions
- 1 handful cilantro
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
Salad Dressing
- 1/4 cup coconut aminos
- 2 tablespoons juice from mandarin oranges
- 1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon powdered garlic
Instructions
- Mix all marinade ingredients together in a bowl and add in raw, thawed chicken. Place in the fridge for 2-3 hours.
- Pour chicken and juices into a pan over medium heat. Cook until chicken is no longer pink.
- While the chicken cools, assemble the salad ingredients in a bowl. Pour all dressing ingredients into a small dish and mix to combine.
- Once cooled, add chicken into salad and add dressing. If storing the salad, wait to add the dressing until you are ready to serve.
