Get your taste buds dancing with this bright Thai Chicken Salad! The zesty Thai chilli lime dressing with the signature South East Asian balance of sweet-sour-savoury and a little heat from chilli will make any salad exciting!
A THAI CHICKEN SALAD WITH BIG FLAVOURS!
Yowzer! This is about as far as you can get from bland, boring salads. I’m a huge fan of Asian salads because they are typically much lighter and fresher than many Western ones, and the dressings pack a great flavour punch.
And this one is no exception. It’s a chilli-lime Thai dressing that has that South East Asian signature sweet-salty-tangy balance with a little buzz of heat from chilli.
I know it looks really spicy because it’s red. But actually, it’s not that spicy because I make this using a store bought Chilli Garlic Sauce. You won’t find me eating this by the spoonful but actually, it’s not that spicy, it looks more dangerous than it is in reality. Go on, have a taste test! 1 teaspoon of this doesn’t even have the same amount of spiciness as 1 Thai or Birds Eye Chilli.
Chilli Garlic Sauce is a terrific trick for thickening dressings / sauces in the same way mustard does in Western dressings, as well as adding spiciness / garlic + some tang because it’s not just made with garlic and chilli. It’s pretty common nowadays, sold at all the supermarkets here in Australia in the Asian section. But don’t worry if you can’t find it, I’ve provided plenty of alternatives in the recipe (Sriracha, hot sauce (even Frank’s), fresh chillies, chilli paste, sambal oelak – loads of options!).
Ah yes, I almost forgot. The spice-adverse may be alarmed to see yet more chillies in the photo above – the finely sliced red chillies.
But fear not! Firstly, they are large red chillies that actually aren’t that spicy at all. Rule of thumb is: the larger the chilli, the less spicy they are, the smaller they are, the spicier they are.
Secondly, yes the finely julienned red chillies add a touch more heat into this salad and it looks pretty, but it’s not a deal breaker just to leave them out. I often do (mainly because I can’t be bothered with the extra chopping action!)
I honestly would not classify this salad as really spicy. The dressing is warm rather than spicy and I barely notice the fresh chilli tossed through the salad. If this was on a restaurant menu that had a spiciness indicator in the form of chilli icons, with 1 chilli being mild and 3 chillies being “blow your head off” spicy, this would be a 1 chilli dish.
You won’t be wiping sweat beads off your forehead and guzzling ice water / beer, cursing me silently (or out loud). 😉 Promise! – Nagi x
MORE CHICKEN SALADS YOU’LL LOVE
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More giant Salads for Meals
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
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Thai Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 180 - 220 g / 6 -7oz chicken breast
Salad:
- 150 g / 5 oz mixed lettuce leaves (or other of choice)
- 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes , halved
- 1 small cucumber , sliced
- 1/4 red onion , finely sliced
- 1/2 large red chilli , deseeded and very finely sliced (Note 1)
- 1/2 cup roasted cashews , unsalted preferred
- 1/4 cup coriander / cilantro leaves
Thai Chilli Lime Dressing:
- 1 tbsp finely chopped coriander/cilantro stems (see video)
- 1 1/2 tsp Chilli Garlic Sauce (Note 2)
- 1 small garlic , minced
- 1 1/2 tbsp fresh lime juice (or rice vinegar)
- 2 tsp fish sauce (Note 3)
- 1 tbsp canola oil (or vegetable, grapeseed or other neutral oil)
- 1 1/2 tsp sugar (any, I use white)
Instructions
Chicken:
- Take the chicken out of the fridge 30 minutes before cooking.
- Boil water in a saucepan. Add chicken, put the lid on, let the water come back up to a simmer, then remove from stove. Set aside for 20 minutes (even up to 45 min is fine). (Note 4)
- Remove chicken from water and shred, then cool.
Dressing:
- Place ingredients in a jar. Shake well. Taste and adjust as required. It should be a balance of tangy / sweet / salty / hint of spice. (Note 5)
Salad:
- Place Salad ingredients in a large bowl. Drizzle over most of the Dressing, toss. Serve immediately, drizzled with remaining Dressing.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
He spends a lot of time in this position.
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Light, quick and easy. Perfect Monday night meal after a big weekend.
Just wondering how long your salad dressings will last pre made? We are travelling for a few weeks and don’t want to take all the ingredients if I don’t have to. Thank you, love your cook book, never gets put on the shelf.
loved this thanks. A comment, 2 tablespoons of fish sauce, in my mind would overpower the flavours, so pleased I used only one. For even better balance and texture, I added 1.5 teaspoon of peanut butter, and used honey instead of sugar. Kapow, delicious.have loved your work for years, well done! bought 4 of your books as gifts.
Hi Nagi this looks so good but could you suggest a marinade for the chicken? Im going to simmer in a ziplog bag.
I made 1 batch of the dressing for marinade and then grilled the chicken (breasts and thighs). Then I almost tripled the recipe for dressing (my family LOVES the dressing!)
Another great success. So much flavour and freshness. I used a bbq chicken and sambal oelek as no chilli and garlic sauce available in my neck of the woods. Can’t wait to have it again!
An easy but very tasty meal. My husband told me at least 5 times whilst eating it that it was “bloody beautiful”!
So easy, so delicious!
This has become a regular for us during these hot evenings.
This is the best recipe, with or without chicken. Even with minor substitutions (oyster sauce instead of fish & a sweet chili sauce/hot chili sauce mix with less sugar added) it’s just so refreshing and flavorful.
My beloved of 47 years does not usually like salads but he asks for this often as a side or full dinner.
A true winner at our home. Thanks Nagi 🙂
This was delicious with air fryer basa fish in place of chicken, and sambal oelek for the chilli sauce. So easy!
This is so great! My husband loved it, I loved it, made it twice in one week it is so good. Did not have chilli sauce, so I used a little Tabasco sauce. Can not wait for the cookbook to be available in the US. Thank you!!
Nagi I made your Thai Chicken Salad last night and it was wonderful. My husband loves it. I may say the number one secret of your recipes are the quantity of ingredients that you use. I follow the same amount of ingredients you mentioned and it never go wrong. This is why I recommend everyone who loves to cook and loves to eat delicious food to use Nagi’s recipes. A big thanks again Nagi. We love you very much.
Looks so yum! Why is the fat content so high when we’re cooking a chicken breast? I’d love a low cholesterol diet category. We’ve reached that stage of life over here 😉 love this site so much
There’s a lot of fat in cashews.
Soooo delicious. Another winner – Thanks Nagi!
I was so impressed with myself for making something so tasty, even my daughter who is the salad queen really enjoyed it. This is a regular for my household now. Thank you so much
Sooooo good!! Recipe makes enough for 2 big adult serves. We’ve made it twice now, once with poached chicken and once with leftover roast chicken. Both delish. Also just subbed chilli sauce for sweet chilli
A friend made this for lunch with the vegetable frittata. I loved both so much I immediately signed up and am now searching all these amazing recipes!
I love this salad and make it for friends and family but can’t eat it myself because of the sugar in the dressing and I am allegic to the sugar. Is their something i change the sugar with to get the correct balance?
Hi Robyn, are you able to have honey or another sweetener like that? N x
Hi Nagi, just wondering if you have ever tried this recipe with Laoganma Chilli Sauce with Diced chicken condiment?
I haven’t Haylie! N x
Hello, would love to try this dish! Any suggestions on what to go along with this dish for a small dinner party? Thanks!
Hi J – are you serving this on the side or as a main? What about a curry & some coconut rice? N x
as a side, I was thinking a Thai green curry but wasn’t sure if it was too contrasting. But I’ll give it a try, together with coconut rice. Thanks.
AMAZING- this is the best salad I have ever made. Thank you for another household favourite to add to my growing list lol!