Chinese Chicken Salad with Sesame Dressing

If you’re looking for a Chinese chicken salad with sesame dressing, this is shredded cooked chicken, romaine, purple cabbage, cucumber, scallions, almonds, Mandarin oranges, and chow mein noodles tossed in sesame oil, rice vinegar, and a little sugar. No skillet. The chicken is already cooked to 165°F before it hits the bowl. Don’t call it a lettuce wrap and don’t dump leftover nachos on it because cabbage happened.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe ❤️

• 20 minutes if the chicken is already cooked.
• Sesame dressing is the whole flavor — oil, vinegar, sugar, salt.
• Crunch from noodles and almonds, not a fried wonton tutorial.
• Rotisserie chicken works.
• Dress right before you eat or the noodles sog.

Recipe at a Glance

Prep: 20 minutes  ·  Cook: none  ·  Total: 20 minutes  ·  Servings: 6  ·  Difficulty: easy  ·  Method: toss

Ingredients 🛒

Salad

• 4 cups shredded cooked chicken
• 3 cups shredded romaine
• 2 cups shredded purple cabbage
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced (white and green)
• 1 medium cucumber, cut into thin batons
• ⅓ cup sliced almonds
• 1 cup crispy chow mein noodles
• 1 cup Mandarin oranges, drained if canned

Sesame dressing

• 3 tablespoons sesame oil
• ¼ cup seasoned rice wine vinegar
• ¼ cup vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper

Cooked chicken, 165°F when it was cooked. Rotisserie, leftover, or poached. Don’t put raw chicken in a salad and hope.

Seasoned rice vinegar is already sweet-salty. Plain rice vinegar needs a pinch more sugar. Don’t swap balsamic.

Chow mein noodles are the crunch. Skip them and it’s a cabbage salad. Add them last if you’re packing it.

Canned Mandarin oranges: drain hard. Extra syrup waters the dressing.

Equipment

A big bowl. A small bowl or jar for the dressing. That’s it.

How to Make It 👩‍🍳

Whisk sesame oil, rice vinegar, vegetable oil, sugar, salt, and pepper until the sugar isn’t a grit at the bottom.

Chicken, romaine, cabbage, scallions, cucumber, almonds, noodles, and oranges in the big bowl. Dressing on. Toss until coated, not swimming. Serve now.

If you’re packing lunch, keep dressing and noodles separate. Toss at noon.

Why the Technique Works

Two oils: sesame is flavor, vegetable oil is volume so you’re not drinking straight sesame. All sesame is a punch in the face.

Sugar in the dressing is 2 tablespoons for the whole bowl, not a dessert. It balances the vinegar. Skip it and the salad tastes like pickling liquid.

Noodles in a dressed salad for 4 hours are soggy sticks. That’s why they go last when you pack.

Cooking Tips

Shred the cabbage thin. Thick wedges don’t hold dressing.

Toast the almonds in a dry skillet 3 minutes if you have it. Cool before they hit the greens.

Variations and Substitutions

No chow mein noodles: toasted wonton strips, or skip.

No almonds: sunflower seeds (nut-free crunch).

Bagged coleslaw mix can stand in for the cabbage. Still add romaine.

Serving Suggestions

As a main. Don’t force a drink pairing.

Storage, Freezing & Reheating

Undressed: fridge 2 days. Dressed: eat the same day. Don’t freeze — cabbage and oranges thaw into water.

Troubleshooting

Soggy: dressed too early, or wet oranges. Drain, dress at the table.

Bland: under-salted dressing, or you used toasted sesame oil so dark it tastes burnt. Taste the dressing on a leaf first.

Oily pool: didn’t whisk, or extra oil. Whisk again, toss hard.

Too sweet: seasoned vinegar plus 2 tablespoons sugar. Cut the sugar next time.

FAQ

Can I use leftover chicken?

Yes, if it was cooked to 165°F and kept cold. Three-day-old fridge chicken is the usual.

Is this a chicken salad sandwich?

No. That’s mayo salad on bread. This is sesame and cabbage.

Mandarin oranges or fresh orange?

Canned Mandarin is the dest crunch-sweet. Fresh segments work; they’re less syrupy.

Chow mein noodles gluten-free?

Usually not. Skip them or find a rice-noodle crunch. Dressing oils are fine.

Nutrition, Allergens & Dietary Notes

Approx, per 1 of 6 servings:

• Calories: 380–450
• Protein: 28–34 g
• Carbs: 16–22 g
• Fat: 22–28 g

Contains: chicken, tree nuts (almonds), wheat (chow mein noodles), sesame. Seasoned vinegar often has sugar. Not a sandwich. Not gluten-free as written.

Final Thoughts

Cooked chicken, cabbage, sesame dressing, noodles last. If you dress it at 8 a.m., don’t be surprised at noon.