Citrus Asian Chicken Salad

This Citrus Asian Chicken Salad is my take on the classic Chinese chicken salad with mandarins and crunchy fried noodles. And YES – we are making our own crunchy fried noodles because I can’t seem to find these in store (and because it’s actually quite simple!).

Looking for more Asian Inspired salads? Try my Asian Crunch Salad, my Salmon Furikake Salad, or my Crispy Rice Bowl.

The best parts about this recipe

• The sesame ginger dressing is seriously addicting – I LOVE this salad dressing!
• It’s filled with crunchy textures and big flavor – the homemade crispy chow mein noodles bring it to the next level.
• Great for meal prep!

Table of Contents

• Ingredient Notes
• How to make Citrus Asian Chicken Salad Step by Step
• Recipe and Cooking Tips
• Storage and Reheating
• Additions and Substitutions
• FAQ
• Video Tutorial
• The Recipe
• Looking for more similar recipes?

Ingredient Notes: 

Fresh Citrus – I use both fresh oranges and lemons in this recipe. Navel or cara cara oranges would be best for the segmented oranges that are added to the salad. For the sesame ginger dressing, I’m using both orange juice and lemon juice – these both cut through the tahini and bring out a really fresh flavor in the dressing.

Crispy Chow mein noodles – if you are able to find fried Chinese crispy noodles in the grocery store (like these: La Choy ones), feel free to use them. Since I couldn’t find them, I made my own by simply shallow frying cut up Chinese noodles. All you need are the noodles, oil, and salt, and it comes together in just a few minutes.

Shredded Chicken – I used shredded chicken using my poached chicken method in this recipe. You can also use shredded chicken from a roast chicken or even a store-bought rotisserie chicken.

Tahini – this is one of the key ingredients in our sesame ginger salad dressing. I use the once again tahini brand, and find that it this has a better texture than other brands that tend to separate and become really hard to work with. If you don’t like tahini or can’t find it, you can feel free to substitute peanut butter – just know the flavor will be different.

How to make the Citrus Asian Chicken Salad – Step by Step Instructions:

Step 1: Bring a pot of water up to a boil. Cook the fusili pasta according to package directions, then drain and rinse in cool water for 2 minutes. Make sure the pasta is fully cooled so it does not continue cooking and turn mushy.

Step 2: While waiting for the pasta water to boil, prep the chicken. You can poach raw, seasoned chicken breasts in chicken broth for 12-15 minutes, or use already cooked chicken from a rotisserie chicken.

Step 3: Prepare the produce – segment the oranges, and cut the romaine, carrots (if you didn’t get the shredded kind), and scallions.

Step 4: Make the dressing by combining everything into a food processor. Blend until smooth, taste, and adjust with more water (depending on your tahini, you may need 1-2 more tablespoons of water), and salt, and store in a glass jar.

Step 5: Lastly, make the crunchy chow mein noodles. In a cast iron pan or heavy bottomed pan, add ¼ cup of neutral oil. Heat this until 350F, or until bubbles form around a wooden chopstick, then cut the chinese wheat noodles into the pan. If you want to have more control over this, you can pre-cut the noodles and then add this directly to the pan.

Step 6: Cook the noodles until they turn golden brown, about 2-3 minutes, then remove from the pan and add a pinch of kosher salt to the noodles. Repeat with the remaining noodles.

Step 7: Assemble the salad by adding 2 big handfuls of the romaine, carrots, pasta, chicken green onions, almonds, and crispy noodles to a bowl. Add a few tablespoons of the sesame ginger dressing, top with some green onions, and enjoy!

Recipe & Cooking tips:

Tip 1 – Use a food processor for the dressing. Although you could whisk everything by hand (you would also need to finely mince the ginger), a food processor is really helpful here to emulsify the tahini with the rest of the ingredients. If you want to try this without a food processor, try adding hot water to help breakdown the tahini.

Tip 2 – When making the crispy noodles, lower the heat once you add the noodles. You can heat the oil on medium high, but to prevent the noodles from turning brown too quickly, lower the heat once you begin to cook the noodles.

Tip 3 – Right before you toss the salad, you’ll likely need to remix the sesame ginger dressing. Once this dressing sits for a bit, it will begin to harden and thicken near the top. Just use a spoon to give it a mix and it should be spreadable and pourable again.

Storage and Reheating

Storage: Store the chopped ingredients separate from the dressing in an airtight container for up for 3 days in the refrigerator. Store the dressing in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You can keep the pasta and chicken in the same Tupperware, but I recommend storing the oranges in its own Tupperware, and the chopped romaine in a ziplock bag with a paper towel. Feel free to read an example on how best to store salad ingredients for the week here.

Reheating: When making this salad after the first day, I like to gently reheat the pasta and chicken before adding it to the salad. You can give this a quick blitz in the microwave (30 seconds), or warm it up in a pan with a tablespoon of water for ~5 minutes.

Additions and Substitutions

Additions:

• Garlic – if you’re a garlic lover, add a clove to the dressing to kick things up a notch.
• Pickled red onions – I could add this on every salad and always love it!
• Edamame – for added protein and texture

Substitutions:

• Lemon – If you don’t have a lemon for the sesame ginger dressing, you can substitute with 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar.
• Orange – Feel free to substitute mandarin oranges if you want the more classic Chinese chicken salad, skip the fruit entirely if you’re not a fan of sweet and savory.
• Shredded chicken – If you’re looking for a different protein, this salad would also be great with seared salmon.

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