Crispy Rice Chicken Salad
This hearty crispy rice chicken salad with kale, cabbage, cucumber, tons of fresh herbs, rotisserie chicken, and a tangy dressing is full of big, fresh flavors and crunchy textures.
Ingredients
- ½ cup neutral-flavored oil (I like avocado or grapeseed oil), divided
- 1 large shallot or 2 small ones , thinly sliced
- 2 cups cooked white rice such as jasmine or long-grain white rice, (preferably a day or two old)
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- ½ tablespoon Sambal Olek or chili crunch (feel free to add more if you want it hotter)
- 4 cups thinly sliced Tuscan kale
- 2 cups thinly sliced green cabbage
- 2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
- ¾ cup thinly sliced English cucumber (I slice the cucumber in half length-wise, then cut each half into slices so they are half-moon-shaped
- ½ cup roasted lightly salted peanuts, finely chopped
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons fresh mint roughly chopped
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro roughly chopped
Dressing
- 3 tablespoons lime juice
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce or you could use soy sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons reserved neutral oil (from the ½ cup oil you used to fry the shallot in)
- 1 large garlic clove pressed
- ¾ teaspoon fresh pressed ginger , (use 1 teaspoon if you really love ginger)
Instructions
- First, fry your shallot. Place a large, fine mesh sieve over a bowl, and set aside. Add ½ cup of the neutral-flavored oil of your choice to a large skillet and bring to heat over medium. Once the oil is hot, add your shallot slices and fry until golden brown (about 3-5 minutes or so), using a fish spatula to flip them occasionally. Depending on the size of your skillet, you may need to do this in batches. Watch the shallot closely because it does not take long to fry and can quickly burn if you aren’t careful. Drain the oil off the shallots by pouring them into the sieve, then transfer the shallots to a layer of paper towels and set them aside. Reserve the cooking oil.
- Heat the same skillet over medium and add 1 tablespoon of the reserved oil that you cooked the shallot in. Once hot, add the rice, soy sauce, and Sambal Olek, stirring to combine. Use a spatula to press down on the rice in an even layer and let it cook undisturbed for about 5 minutes. Then use the spatula to flip the rice and stir it a bit before repeating this process 1 more time, or until the rice is golden brown and crispy. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Make the dressing. Add all of the dressing ingredients in a small jar or bowl and shake or whisk to combine.
- Prepare the salad. In a large bowl, add the kale, along with the dressing. Use your hands to toss and massage the kale thoroughly, to help soften it. Add the cabbage, shredded roast chicken, and cucumber slices and toss again. To serve, top with crispy rice, fried shallots, and chopped peanuts.