Long, fine strands of carrot, cabbage and cucumber are the stars of this Thai-flavored salad, which gets a bit of crunch from peanuts and just the right amount of heat from chile-lime dressing.
I couldn’t find pak choi, so I substituted thinly sliced Napa cabbage. Roasted or grilled chicken breast is ideal, but there’s no shame in using a rotisserie chicken. If you don’t have a spiralizer, my sympathies! They’re so fun, and not nearly as scary as a mandolin. But you easily can use a julienne peeler to cut the veggies into long, fine strands.
Depending on how wet you like your salads, you may want to double the amount of dressing.
Gluten-Free Chicken Noodle Salad
For salad
5 1/2 oz. cooked chicken breast slices
1 head pak choi (Chinese cabbage)
1 carrot, cut into long thin strands or strips with a spiralizer or julienne peeler
1 cucumber, cut into long thin strands or strips with a spiralizer or julienne peeler
1 shallot, thinly sliced
1 1/2 oz. mixed coriander and basil leaves, with a few mint leaves, roughly chopped
1 1/2 oz. roasted, salted peanuts
For dressing
4 Tbsp. lime juice
2 Tbsp. fish sauce
1 to 2 hot red chilies, chopped
1 Tbsp. agave syrup
1 garlic clove, finely chopped or crushed
1 Tbsp. rapeseed oil or other neutral-tasting oil
Mix all the salad ingredients except dressing in a large bowl. Make dressing by placing ingredients in a separate bowl and mixing together well.
Pour dressing over salad, toss well and serve.
Serves 2.
— “Itsu 20-Minute Suppers” by Julian Metcalf and Blanch Vaughan (Hamlyn, April 2016, $24.99)
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