vietnamese chicken salad

(from Christiner’s recipe box)

Categories: asian, salad, side dish

Ingredients

  • For chicken
  • 500 g. boneless skinless chicken breasts (cooked leftover chicken will do)
  • 3 cups chicken stock or water
  • 1 bay leaf, 1 cinnamon stick, few white pepper corns, and one star anise (optional)
  • For salad
  • 3 cups thinly sliced Chinese cabbage (called Napa cabbage), (200 g.)
  • 13/4 cups thinly cut carrots (120 g.)
  • 1 to 2 red chilies, seeds removed, finely chopped
  • 11/4 cup compact mint leaves, roughly chopped, (20 g.)
  • 11/4 cup compact coriander leaves, roughly chopped (20 g.)
  • 1 onion (60 g.), thinly sliced half moon shape
  • For sauce
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 11/2 tablespoon rice vinegar or white wine vinegar
  • 31/2 tablespoons Chinese fish sauce (nuac nam)
  • 11/2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • For top (see note below)
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • ⅓ cup raw peanuts, chopped (see note below)
  • 11/2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • For decoration:  (optional)
  • Red and green chilies cut like a flower and placed in the refrigerator for few hours till they open.

Directions

  1. Pound the chicken breasts to thin and even thickness.

  2. Place chicken stock with the aromatics (or water with salt and the aromatics) in a pan over heat and when hot add the chicken breasts and simmer on low heat for 15 minutes or till cooked. Cool then place in the refrigerator to facilitate cutting.  Cut or shred to 5 cm. thin strips.

  3. Mix sauce ingredients and pour over chicken.  (Salad may be prepared to this stage a day in advance).

  4.  Add chicken to the rest of the salad ingredients, mix and place on a serving plate.  Scatter the fried garlic-peanut mixture (topping) on top and decorate with the chilies if being used.  

  5. To prepare topping:  Place the vegetable oil over medium heat and add garlic, fry till garlic starts to color, add peanuts and brown sugar and fry few seconds more.

  6. N.B.:  Grilled peanuts from the roastary may be used instead of raw peanuts, peel before using.

  7. I like to double the quantity of ingredients for top and place half of them in the middle of the salad.

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