The lettuce in my garden has been exploding lately.  We have so much that we simply can’t eat it fast enough…which makes for happy friends, family, and coworkers.

The abundance of so many different types of lettuces has made me start looking up new salad recipe combinations online. But when I surveyed the fridge today and saw a nice big chunk of ginger in my produce drawer, I knew it was Chinese Chicken Salad day.  My Auntie Barbara always made the best Chinese Chicken Salad, so I dug through my recipe cards to make sure I got the recipe right.  The best part about her recipe is that there really isn’t a recipe; just a list of ingredients: lettuce, green onions, chicken, crunchy noodles, peas, sesame seeds, and rice vinegar. As long as I have those ingredients I’m set.  Then I just embellish from there depending on what else is in my pantry.

I started off with a colorful assortment of different homegrown lettuces.  If you’re not growing lettuce, iceberg is fine.  I probably picked enough lettuce for 6 people…but that’s because Jesse and I are going to eat this salad aaaall day.

Wash and spin the lettuce in a salad spinner.

Next step, grill some chicken.  Nothing fancy was done here. It was simply salted and then grilled on the barbecue.  About a half to a full chicken breast per person is plenty.

Set the chicken aside and let it cool.

Heat a small amount of peanut oil in a sauce pan over medium heat.  No peanut oil?  Vegetable oil works just fine. Add a handful of Asian noodles to the pan. Saifun noodles are the best, but I didn’t have any in the pantry so I used plain rice noodles.

Cook the noodles for about 3 minutes or until they turn to a nice golden color.

Drain the oil into a jar for a future use and transfer the noodles to a paper towel.  Let cool.

Next, rip the lettuce with your hands and distribute into your serving dish (or dishes).  This is when I add some thinly sliced carrots, thawed peas, slivered almonds, and toasted sesame seeds.  I only had black sesame seeds in the house, so that’s what I used this time.

Now let’s make some dressing.  There are no exact measurements, so just mix the ingredients to taste.  I like to use rice vinegar, honey, ginger, and salt. I also like to add some greens to the dressing.  They taste extra yummy when they sit in the dressing for an hour or so.

Finely chop the greens and add them to a small mason jar. I used a handful of carrot greens and some garlic chives.

Add some rice vinegar and peanut oil to the mason jar. I like to do a 2:1 ratio, using more vinegar than oil.  Add the salt and a generous squirt of honey. I think I used about a teaspoon of salt and a tablespoon of honey. Start with a little and add more to taste. Peel and slice a 1″ segment of ginger. Press out the juice using a garlic press.

 

I like to thin out my vinaigrette, so I also top it off with a small shot of water.  Add the lid, shake it all up, and you’re set.

Once the chicken has cooled, shred it on the salad and top everything off with the crispy noodles.  Add the dressing when you’re ready to eat and enjoy!