Chinese Chicken Noodle Salad (鸡丝拌面)
The Chinese chicken noodle salad is a perfect summer dish. The noodles and shredded chicken are tossed in a nutty, savory peanut butter based sauce. It’s super easy to prepare and addictively good! {gluten-free adaptable}
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1 lbs (450 g) chicken breast (or rotisserie chicken breast)
- 1/2 lbs (225 g) wheat noodles (*Footnote 1)
- 1 cucumber , thinly sliced (*Footnote 2)
- Chopped green onion for garnish (Optional)
Sauce
- 1/4 cup unsweetened natural peanut butter
- 1/4 cup light soy sauce (or soy sauce)
- 2 tablespoons Chinkiang vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sugar (or honey, or agave syrup)
- 1 tablespoon homemade chili oil (Optional)
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 1/2 thumb ginger , sliced
- 4 garlic cloves , coarsely chopped
Instructions
- Add the chicken breast into a small pot and add water to cover for 1 inch (2 cm). Bring to a boil and turn to medium-low heat. Simmer until the chicken breast is just cooked through, that the juice runs clear if you pierce the thickest part with a knife, 15 to 20 minutes. Plunge the chicken breast into ice water immediately to stop the cooking. Drain the chicken and set it aside to cool.
- Cook the noodles according to the directions on the package. Drain and set aside to cool.
- Blend all the sauce ingredients with an immersion blender or a food processor, until it forms a silky paste. If you don’t have a blender, finely chop the garlic and ginger, then mix all the sauce ingredients in a bowl until it forms an even texture. You can store the noodles in an airtight container for up to 2 days or serve immediately.
- To assemble, add the cooked noodles and chicken in a large bowl. Add the sauce. Toss to mix well.
- To serve, transfer the noodles into individual serving bowls. Top with cucumber and green onion. Serve cold.
Notes
- To make the dish gluten-free, replace the light soy sauce with tamari or coconut amino, replace the Chinkiang vinegar with rice vinegar, and use rice noodles instead of wheat noodles.
- You can use many types of noodles to make this dish. If you like a chewy texture, use Udon, or even better, fresh hand-pulled or shaved noodles. If you like thin noodles (the dish will feel more saucy this way), use Japanese somen noodles. You can use rice noodles to make the dish gluten free, or even use zucchini noodles to make the dish paleo friendly.
- If you use a mandoline to slice the cucumber, gently squeeze water out the cucumber before adding them to the bowl, so the sauce won’t get watery.
Nutrition
Serving: 4g, Calories: 469kcal, Carbohydrates: 44.8g, Protein: 38.6g, Fat: 15.2g, Saturated Fat: 2.9g, Cholesterol: 102mg, Sodium: 978mg, Potassium: 577mg, Fiber: 5.5g, Sugar: 5.6g, Calcium: 40mg, Iron: 3.2mg