I’ve been loving this Vietnamese Chicken Salad with a tangy, slightly spicy vinaigrette. Then there’s the cool, crunchy veggies, the chicken, the crushed peanuts and a good hit of lime. I thought you might like it, too.

Vietnamese Chicken Salad Meal Prep

This is another meal that’s going to be a part of my Chicken Meal Prep Plan, and yes, it’s coming, I promise! I wanted to post all the recipes, first. *updated* It’s posted!

about Vietnamese chicken salad

That this salad is healthy, there’s no doubt, but you can be sure it’s so good you’ll hardly notice that it’s good for you, if that makes any sense!

That vinaigrette will transform anything it touches! It has the signature Asian flair with a bit of sweet & sour and a touch of heat. You might want to increase it and keep it on hand in the fridge!

The shredded cabbage, carrots & cucumber are really nice in this salad. Crunchy, cool and delicious. You can absolutely riff on this salad with any vegetables you like. Maybe you’d like thinly sliced bell peppers or zucchini slices or broccoli or waterchestnuts. Really, use what you like and you’ll be guaranteed to like the salad.

I like this recipe for meal prep because the veggies are nice & sturdy, and great for make-ahead, You don’t have to be meal prepping for this recipe. You can cook up chicken just for this recipe or use any leftover chicken you happen to have on hand and not worry about “meal planning” at all. Heck, if you’re a Vegetarian, just leave out the chicken.

Perfectly Cooked Instant Pot or Baked Chicken – large batch for meal prep. Firm enough to slice, tender enough to shred.

optimize your time & when making Vietnamese chicken salad

When making a salad like this, with sturdy veggies like cabbage and carrot, think about prepping the extra for a completely different recipe to make later in the week. Both cabbage & carrots have a tendency to linger in the fridge if you’re not thinking about how to use them up.

I used the same veggies in Carrot & Cabbage Slaw, and turned around and used the cabbage in Shaved Brussels & Kale Salad. As long as I was preparing for this recipe, it just took minutes to peel, slice & dice my way through the veggies for the others.

I love being able to save a little time and get a leg up on dinner for another night whether I’m doing a full on meal prep or just cooking for a regular old weeknight.

Carrot & Cabbage Slaw

money-saving tips for Vietnamese chicken salad

Since I just covered a few tips on the carrots & cabbage in my post for the Quick Carrot & Cabbage Slaw, let’s talk about some of the other ingredients.

When I shop at my grocery store for any items that are considered “Asian” I check around and compare prices – larger stores might have an aisle of International, Global or Imported ingredients & another with more Americanized versions. As a rule of thumb, I think the pricing in the former is usually better.

I also like to stock up on Asian ingredients around the Lunar New Year, when items are usually discounted, often with no advertising. It goes without saying, you’ll want to shop in an Asian market if one’s available to you. You’ll probably be surprised at the low prices if you’ve never been.

Vietnamese Chicken Salad Meal Prep

Vietnamese Chicken Salad

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Good for you vegetables, chicken & a spicy vinaigrette. Topped with crunchy peanuts and a hit of lime.

• Author: FrugalHausfrau
• Yield: 2 servings 1x

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Dressing:

• 2 teaspoons sugar or honey (or more to taste)
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar or white wine vinegar
• 1 lime, juiced
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (or 2 teaspoons sesame oil)
• 1/2 jalapeno, deseeded & minced
• 1 clove garlic, minced

The Salad:

• 2 tablespoons red onion, minced
• 1 1/2 cups (about 1/4 small head) shredded cabbage
• 2 carrots, shredded
• 1/2 julienned cucumber
• 2 cups sliced or diced chicken
• 1 to 2 tablespoons of mint and/or cilantro
• 1/2 cup chopped peanuts
• 1/2 lime, in quarters, for serving, 1 to 2 slices per person
• Optional: If desired, cooked rice noodles to mix in

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Instructions

Dressing:

Combine the sugar, vinegar, lime juice, fish sauce, and oil. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Add the jalapeno and garlic to the liquid.

For the Salad:

Combine the onion, cabbage, carrot, and cucumber together. Divide into two servings. Top with the peanuts and dressing and serve with lime.

If using Rice Noodles, prepare according to package directions, mix with salad before dressing.

Notes

This recipe is a part of my Chicken Meal Prep Plan. Make sure to pack the cucumber, dressing, lime & peanuts separately and don’t add the cucumber until ready to serve.

If you’re not using the Meal Prep Chicken, cook chicken for this recipe, about 10 to 12 ounces, raw; bake, saute or poach or use any leftover chicken.

Nutrition

• Calories: 458
• Sugar: 13.1g
• Sodium: 1561mg
• Fat: 24.6g
• Saturated Fat: 4.2g
• Unsaturated Fat: 17.8g
• Trans Fat: 0
• Carbohydrates: 26.3
• Fiber: 6.9g
• Protein: 37.7g
• Cholesterol: 86.2mg

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I’ll be bringing this recipe to Fiesta Friday #214, hosted this week by Abbey @ Three Cats and a Girl and Antonia @ Zoale.com. There’s always a lot of great bloggers & a lot of great recipes at Fiesta Friday, and this week I couldn’t help but notice a few St. Paddy’s Day recipes being posted!

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