Vietnamese Chicken Salad

Way to labor intensive for a side dish of chicken salad. Taste was good but many other choices out there that will not keep you in the kitchen for 2 hrs making a salad. Just not our kind of cooking I guess.

One bite and my husband asked when I would make it again. The dressing was as good, if not better than the salads I’ve ordered at local Vietnamese restaurants.I scaled down the recipe for 2 and used 1/2 chicken breast, which was more than plenty. I didn’t cook the veges, as I knew the dressing would soften them as the salad sat. Next time, I plan to grill the chicken after marinating.

The instructions for this recipe are so botched up I could not make it. They need to be re-written.

I made this as written and it was pretty good, especially on a hot day. But I wrapped the leftovers in egg roll wrappers and baked them in the oven…used a peanut sauce for dipping…just seemed more satisfying in a wrapper. I would definitely make this again that way.

I stir-fried my cabbage, bean sprout, peapod, and carrot mixture and layered it on the plate as if it were the rice. The vegetables had nice texture and crunch without extensive chomping. Building from others’ distastes I marinated the chicken for a few hours and grilled it. I would definitely make this salad again.

I would definitely
punt on the chicken
prep. Use some
already cooked. The
chicken smelled
terrible and didn’t
have much flavor so
I had to doctor it.

Otherwise I will
make again.

Well, sorry, but…
yuck. I was highly
disappointed in
this. You NEVER get
a Vietnamese Chicken
salad in a
Vietnamese
restaurant and have
cooked veggies in
it. I felt it was a
waste of my time
preparing the veg
(which I did use,
but raw) and a waste
of chicken if I
threw it out, so,
after tasting it I
added a few things.
Mung bean sprouts,
slivered mange tout,
sliced red pepper,
fresh coriander
(cilantro) and
sliced scallions and
that helped.
I’ll keep looking
for a GOOD
Vietnamese Chicken
salad, but, in my
opinion, this isn’t
the one.

I made this recipe exactly as per the instructions. It was disappointing. Particularly, the Chicken ended up very bland once boiled even though it was juicy. Overall even though there should ave been a lot of flavor and kick to the dish, there wasn’t even though the dressing was nice. Next time I would buy a pre-roasted chicken and just season with a variation of the marinade

The reviewed by
Jabba_Jihad from
Mecca has to be
removed ASAP. This
site is for recipe
rating, not a place
where people share
opinions about
his/her personal
belief. EXTREMELY
INAPPROPRIATE and
DISGUISHTING.

I tried this recipe
with the tips and
suggestions from the
previous reviewers.
Even w/ the time
saving tips, it
still seemed
‘labor-intensive’ as
another reviewer
pointed out. Start
to finish was
definitely approx 1
1/2-2 hours, but
worth it! I used
3/4 rotisserie
chicken, 3/4 of
coleslaw bag mix and
3/4 bag of
broccoli/carrot slaw
mix. I opted to use
chili flakes instead
of red chiles and i
also experimented w/
different amounts of
brown sugar and lime
juice (i actually
put too much lime
juice and had to
balance it w/ more
sugar!). The
time-consuming part
was making sure
everything was
finely chopped
because I did not
have a blender handy
for the dressing!
Anyway, a great
recipe overall, I
would definitely
recommend this (w/
the prior
tips/suggestions).
It also seems like
it’s easy to
alternate or add
different
vegetables. The
guests were
satisfied – even one
guest who absolutely
hated fish sauce
gave it a try and
liked it! =)

I have not tried this recipe because my Vietnamese family and friends make this all the time; therefore, I don ‘t need the recipe . However, I’ve always curious whenever the recipe has something about Vietnamese food, and I have not seen an authentic recipe yet! This recipe is not authentic – Vietnamese Chicken Salad never have cooked, but raw vegetables. Only regular granulated white sugar not brown sugar is used in the sause.

The cook from
Vancouver inspired
me to try my own
weeknight version of
this recipe — mine
stayed closer to the
original recipe, but
is still cheating
and should be
treated as such. 😉
I bought a prepared
rotisserie chicken
(expensive, but at
my house we can get
three meals out of
one of those
suckers), shredded
some of the meat
into a bowl, and
marinated it in the
marinade from the
recipe (I halved the
garlic and ginger,
figuring that it
might be overkill
with the dressing).
Proceeded as
directed using
bagged coleslaw mix
(great idea),
supplemented with
the mint and basil,
more carrots,
cucumber and some
shredded daikon that
I had lying around.
Tossed, garnished
and dressed as
directed. Someday I
want to try the
fancy-dress version,
but my version was
just right for a hot
weekday evening.
Great flavors in
this recipe, no
matter how you put
it together.

For nursebriggs or
anyone else who is
busy : I love this
salad but it is
quite labour
intensive. Here’s
the quick & dirty
version: I toss a
couple of chicken
breasts in to poach
or roast while I am
doing the dishes or
getting ready for
work and then I
stick them in the
fridge to cool. When
I’m ready to make
the salad I just
shred them into a
large bowl and add a
bag of pre-shredded
coleslaw mix
(cabbage and
carrot), a sliced
red pepper, a couple
of minced green
onions, a cup or so
of diced cucumber, a
handful of chopped
mint and another
couple of handfuls
of chopped cilantro.
If I’m feeling
really industrious I
will quickly blanch
a package of snow
peas and toss them
in. If I’m in a
dead hurry I snip
the herbs in with
scissors 🙂
As for
dressing: I buy a
good Asian-style
dressing (like
Renee’s Asian
Sesame) and spike it
with some lime juice
and add a couple of
dashes of chili oil
or a bit of sambal
to give it a kick
(completely
optional). Just
toss this with the
chicken and veg.
This salad keeps great in the
fridge overnight (it
always tastes better
the next day) and
you can even
substitute a can of
good tuna for the
chicken in a pinch
for a great lunch.
I also sprinkle in
toasted sesame seeds
if I’ve got them.
I love this salad
and have made a
version of the one
in the recipe before
but I just don’t
always have time.
Trust me: This
“Express” version is
just as good.

I think this is the
kind of recipe I’ll
get better at over
time. My first
try, with 2
children in the
kitchen, seemed a
bit labor
intensive. None
the less – it has a
great cruch, sweet,
kick all at the
same time – and I
will make again.
AND, the chicken,
prior to the
dressing, could be
fed to children –
not too spicy.

Easy to make,
colorful, flavorful,
most excellent.