Thai Crunch Chicken Salad

This salad is full of colors, flavors, textures and yumminess!

Thai Crunch Chicken Salad

Spicy Peanut Dressing

1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter

6 tablespoons hoisin sauce

2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1-3 teaspoons of chili-garlic sauce

1 teaspoon sesame oil

1/2 teaspoon minced ginger

1/2 cup water

Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan over medium/low heat.  Heat until hot, but not boiling, and sugar is dissolved.  Pour mixture into a blender and blend until smooth about 20 seconds.  Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.  Cover and chill.

Cilantro Lime Dressing

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup unseasoned rice vinegar

1/2 cup coarsely chopped cilantro

1/4 cup minced red bell pepper

1/4 cup honey

4 teaspoons Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons sesame oil

2 teaspoons fresh lime juice

2 cloves of garlic

Salt

Fresh ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend on high for 20 seconds, or until cilantro is chopped fine, but not entirely pureed.  Taste and adjust seasoning in necessary.  Cover and chill.

Salad

1 Head Napa cabbage, thinly sliced

2 cups thinly sliced red cabbage

1 cup pre-cooked, shelled edamame

4 green onions, finely chopped

1 red bell pepper, julienned

2 cups carrots, julienned

1/2 cup loosely packed chopped cilantro

3 chicken breasts, cooked and sliced very thin

1/2-1 cup salted cocktail peanuts

Combine cabbages, edamame, green onions, red bell pepper, carrots, cilantro and chicken in a large bowl.  Add enough spicy peanut dressing to lightly coat salad ingredients.  Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.  Plate and drizzle with cilantro-lime dressing and garnish with additional cilantro, green onions and peanuts.  Enjoy!

*This made enough for my family's dinner (I have a few small eaters), a plate to share with my kiddie-corner neighbors and my lunch the next day.  I still have a lot of the cilantro-lime dressing and a little of the spicy peanut dressing leftover.

The recipe for the dressings comes from tastebook.com