Saturday, March 24, 2007

Asian Chicken salad

Our favorite meal, probably of all time. The kids always ask for this after a few weeks at camp:

Asian Chicken Salad

Ingredients:
Marinate--
1/2 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
(as long as you can remember to, up to 24 hours) in Char Sui marinade

Char Sui Marinade:
1 cup hoisin sauce
1 Tb sugar
1 tsp chinese five spice
1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
2 Tb rice wine vinegar (seasoned or unseasoned)
1 Tb minced ginger
1 Tb minced garlic
Mix all ingredients together

Asian Vinaigrette:
1/2 cup vegetable oil (I prefer Healthy Balance or light evoo)
1 1/2 Tb sesame oil
1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 Tb minced ginger
1 tsp minced garlic
2 tsp sugar (I use 1/2 sugar, 1/2 splenda-- more or less to taste)
black pepper to taste
Mix all ingredients and chill for several hours to blend flavors.

Salad:
Mix together--
1/2 large head napa cabbage, shredded
1 8-12 oz package mixed greens of your choice (not iceberg)
1-2 cups sno peas, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 cup carrots, sliced on bias
1-2 cups fresh broccoli, chopped
1-2 cups bok choi, sliced
1/2-1 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
1/2 cup sliced green onions
tomatoes, cukes, zucchini-- whatever additional vegetables float your boat

Preheat oven to Broil. Place chicken breasts on broiler pan and broil each side for 4 minutes.
Remove chicken from oven and place on oven proof plate-- cover with foil, and allow chicken to rest for 10-15 minutes.
Slice chicken thinly on a bias and return to plate. If it is still pink in the middle, cover with foil and place in warm oven for a short while.

Tamari Roasted Almonds:
Heat small pan on medium until hot. Add 1/2 to 1 cup sliced or whole almonds and heat for a couple minutes, stirring frequently until browned. Add a couple tablespoons tamari to pan and shake/stir almonds to coat. Continue to cook for a minute longer, and remove from heat. Allow almonds to cool in pan.

To serve:
Place a serving of salad on a plate and cover with some of the sliced chicken. Top chicken with Chow Mein noodles, tamari almonds, and (well shaken) vinaigrette to taste.

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