This recipe is a combination of two ideas that came from two different places. The first is the salad in a jar idea which I discussed a few weeks ago and you can read about here. The second is an idea for a Chinese chicken salad that I ate in the wee hours of the morning in a diner inside the old Boardwalk Hotel and Casino which used to be on the Strip in Las Vegas just north of the Monte Carlo Hotel and Casino.
As I was beginning to attempt my first salad in a jar, I noticed that I had a full jar of ginger-sesame dressing. That dressing made me think of the Chinese chicken salad I ate many years ago at the Boardwalk. I thought about the ingredients and decided that if I arranged them correctly, they should make an acceptable combination for creating this salad inside of a quart-sized mason jar.
I began by pouring between 1/4 and 1/3 cup of the Asian flavored dressing into the bottom of the jar.
Next, I added 7 grape tomatoes on the bottom of the jar.
1/4 cup of julienne carrots were evenly distributed on top of that.
1/2 cup chopped cucumbers were next.
1/2 cup chopped cooked chicken
1/2 (11 ounce) can of mandarin oranges in light syrup, drained
1/4 cup blanched broccoli florets broken into small pieces
3 large radishes halved and thinly sliced
2 green onions (white and green parts) thinly sliced
chopped romaine lettuce to fill jar nearly to the top
1 handful of bean sprouts
I placed the lid on jar and stored the salad upright in the fridge until the next morning when I loaded it upright into my lunch box. At lunch time, when I was ready to serve my salad, I turned it upside down and let the dressing run through it. Then I dumped the whole thing into a large capacity bowl.
I packed a small bag containing about 1/2 cup of crunchy chow mein noodles with the salad in a jar and sprinkled them on top.
This salad was very good. It held up well for two days in the fridge. I don’t know how well sprouts would hold up over several days, so I made only two of these and we ate them quickly.
This makes a very large salad and is good for people with big appetites. If your appetite isn’t so big, I suggest that you make the salad in a pint jar instead. Just cut the ingredients in half, or you can do what I do. I make the salad in a quart jar, and share it with a friend.
- ¼ to ⅓ cup of the Asian flavored salad dressing.
- 7 whole grape tomatoes on the bottom of the jar.
- ¼ cup of julienne carrots were evenly distributed on top of that.
- ½ cup chopped cucumbers were next.
- ½ cup chopped cooked chicken
- ½ (11 ounce) can of mandarin oranges in light syrup, drained
- ¼ cup blanched broccoli florets broken into small pieces
- 3 large radishes halved and thinly sliced
- 2 green onions (white and green parts) thinly sliced
- chopped romaine lettuce to fill jar nearly to the top
- 1 handful of bean sprouts
- ½ cup of crunchy chow mein noodles.
- Layer all ingredients, except chow mein noodles, in order listed above into jar. Keep it upright and store in fridge until ready to serve or pack into a lunch box with an ice pack.
- Pack chow mein noodles in a small baggie to sprinkle on the salad when served.
- Invert the salad in a jar to distribute the dressing and then pour into a bowl to serve.
- Sprinkle chow mein noodles on top.
6 thoughts on “Chinese Chicken Salad in a Jar”