Keto Chinese Chicken Salad

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Keto Chinese Chicken Salad combines crisp salad vegetables with tender pieces of chicken, dressed with a tangy and flavorful Chinese salad dressing. This is a great tasting salad main that everyone in the family can enjoy.

Keto Chinese Chicken Salad Save

Keto Chinese Chicken Salad

While I am not strictly following the “Keto” diet, I am trying to include more low carb/keto friendly meals into my diet throughout my week.

I try to intentionally plan to eat a salad 1-2 days per week for lunch, and I do like a variety to keep things interesting and not the same old thing all the time.

This Keto Chinese Chicken Salad is not only delicious but it is really quick to prepare and it makes one of the best tasting chicken salads I have ever eaten.

My healthy Chinese chicken salad recipe is packed with protein and delicious veggies that not only add to your 5-a-day, but also satisfy even the hungriest of diners.

How to make Keto Chinese Chicken Salad

Keto Chinese Chicken Salad Save
  • Start by making the Asian inspired salad dressing.
  • In a small bowl, combine the oil, vinegar, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, ginger, and sesame oil.
  • Whisk until fully combined. 
  • Allow dressing to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes for flavors to blend while preparing the rest of the salad.
  • You can also refrigerate this dressing for up to 4 days.
Keto Chinese Chicken Salad Save
  • To make the salad, get a large salad bowl and combine the cabbage, chicken, carrots, scallions, and cilantro. 
  • Whisk up the salad dressing to recombine and drizzle over the salad.
Keto Chinese Chicken Salad Save
  • Toss everything until evenly coated. 
  • Sprinkle with sesame seeds and optional chow mein noodles and serve.  

Recipe ingredients & substitutions:

Chicken chicken salad dressing:

  • OIL: I use canola oil, but you can use any other light flavored oil.
  • VINEGAR: I use a rice vinegar but you can use white wine vinegar as a good substitute.
  • FLAVORING: I use a combination of hoisin sauce, soy sauce, ginger and toasted sesame oil to flavor this delicious Asian salad dressing.

Chicken salad ingredients:

  • CHICKEN: I use cooked chicken in this recipe, it’s also a great way to use up leftover roast chicken from the weekends roast dinner. You can also use rotisserie chicken if feeding a crowd.
  • VEGETABLES: I use a combination of napa cabbage, red cabbage, carrots and scallions in this salad.
  • FRESH HERBS: Freshly chopped cilantro is also tossed through the salad.
  • GARNISH: I like to garnish the salad with a sprinkle of sesame seeds, but this is entirely optional.
  • NOODLES: You can add some crispy chow mein noodles, but this is optional and should be left off if follow a keto diet.
Keto Chinese Chicken Salad Save

Recipe variations:

This is a delicious salad, packed full of flavor, but you can easily adapt the recipe to suit your own tastes. Here are some ideas:

  • PROTEIN: I have used chicken, but you could use leftover ham, some cooked shrimps, or a boiled egg in this salad too.
  • VEGGIES: Swap the veggies or add in any other vegetables that you and your family enjoy eating, for example tomatoes; cucumber; celery; radish; beetroot; red onion.
  • FRESH HERBS: Swap the cilantro, for parsley or thai basil.
  • CHILI HEAT: For those of you who love your food spicy, add some finely diced red chili to the salad.

Recipe hints & tips:

  • To reduce the carbs in this salad, leave the noodles out of the salad.
  • Make the Asian salad dressing earlier in the day and set aside in the refrigerator. This will allow the flavors to meld together, resulting in a better tasting dressing.
  • Don’t dress the salad until you are ready to sit down or you risk the vegetables becoming soggy and loosing their bite.
  • Feeding the whole family? For ease, buy a rotisserie chicken from your local store.
Keto Chinese Chicken Salad Save

FAQs:

What is a Keto diet?

A keto diet or ketogenic diet is a diet that is low in carbohydrates (sugars) and high in fat.

Does Chinese Chicken Salad have carbs?

There are 16g of fiber and 2g of sugar in a portion of this salad.

Can I use both dark and white meat in this chicken salad?

Yes, absolutely, I waste nothing in my kitchen and this salad works well with both dark and white meat.

How long can you store the salad dressing?

Once combined this salad dressing can be stored in the refrigerator for 4-5 days, ready to add to freshly made salad. Just remember to whisk the dressing to combine again before adding to the salad.

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Yield: 8

Keto Chinese Chicken Salad

Keto Chinese Chicken Salad
Prep Time 5 minutes
Additional Time 30 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes

Ingredients

  • Dressing Ingredients:
  • 2 Tbsp. canola oil
  • 1/3 cup rice vinegar
  • 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
  • 1 1/2 TBsp. soy sauce
  • ½ TBsp. tablespoon ginger
  • 1/2 tsp. toasted sesame oil
  • Salad Ingredients:
  • 4 cups cooked chicken diced
  • 1 pound Napa cabbage cored and shredded
  • 2 cups red cabbage finely shredded
  • 1 cup shredded carrots
  • 1 bunch scallions sliced thin
  • 1/4 cup cilantro minced
  • 2 TBsp. sesame seeds for garnish - optional
  • 1 cup chow mein noodles (optional, leave off if Keto)

Instructions

Asian Dressing:

In a small bowl, combine oil, vinegar, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, ginger, and sesame oil.
Whisk until fully combined.

Allow dressing to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes for flavors to blend while preparing the rest of the salad.
Or, refrigerate for up to 4 days.

SALAD:

In a large salad bowl combine the cabbage, chicken, carrots, scallions, and cilantro.
Remix up the dressing to recombine and drizzle over the salad.

Toss everything until evenly coated.
Sprinkle with sesame seeds and optional chow mein noodles and serve.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

8

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 291Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 65mgSodium: 489mgCarbohydrates: 16gFiber: 2gSugar: 5gProtein: 19g

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment below & if you recreate this recipe, be sure to share a photo on Instagram. Tag me @when.is.dinner and hashtag #whenisdinner!

© Karen Puleski
Cuisine: Asian / Category: Chicken

These are a few items I find helpful in my own kitchen when preparing this Keto Chinese Chicken Salad Recipe:

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Pyrex Glass Mixing Bowl Set (3-Piece)
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PHILWIN Cutting Boards for Kitchen, Plastic Chopping Board Set of 5 with Non-Slip Feet and Deep Drip Juice Groove, Easy Grip Handle, BPA Free, Non-porous, Dishwasher Safe Save
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I am an Austin, TX stay at home, blogging mom of three grown children. Cancer Survivor. I love to cook, bake, read, craft, and spend time with my children.

Friendly & Kind comments welcome. This is a positive environment. Recipe Ratings Appreciated!

102 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    I feel like I would struggle with keto, but this meal looks so flavorful and delish! Going to definitely pin to try later. The dressing sounds so good!

  2. Because the salad looks as delicious as it does, I can’t wait to try this special recipe out. I only hope I will be able do as good as you did in the heartwarming photos.

  3. 5 stars
    I would love to make this Keto Chinese Chicken Salad recipe. I like the ginger included in this recipe.

  6. My hubby is on the keto diet so I am always on the hunt for good lunch options like this yummy-sounding salad for him.

  8. The Keto Chinese Chicken Salad Recipe looks great. I enjoy eating different types of cabbage in my meals.

  9. This looks really good! I don’t eat keto, but I will try new recipes! I’m going to save it to my pinterest so I can find it later.

  10. I’m trying to loose weight this recipe sounds awesome..I can’t wait to try it !thank yo

  11. I would not personally make this recipe because I do not eat meat; however, it looks like a good meal for meat eaters.

  12. This is a salad I would love to try. I’d use low sodium soy sauce and probably leave out the cilantro.

  13. 5 stars
    Very refreshing dish that requires very little in preparation. I easily give this five stars.

  20. This salad looks really good. I’m always looking for new ideas. I think I’ll have to try this one.

  21. The chicken salad sounds delicious. Love that it is Keto and the hoisin sauce with cruchy noodles!

  25. 5 stars
    This Keto Chinese Chicken Salad Recipe looks so good my family would love it will try it soon.

  26. 5 stars
    This Keto Chinese Chicken Salad Recipe looks so good my family would love it will try it soon.

  28. This salad sound yummy. I would definitely try this even though we are not on a keto diet.

  37. This salad sounds like a salad my family would love to eat. We love salads . The only thing I would change is I would leave the cilantro out. I personally do not like cilantro ( it taste like soap to me ).

  40. The salad is so colorful and looks delicious. We have some family members on keto, so I always am on the lookout for new recipes.

  42. This recipe sounds like a delicious and nutritious dish that my family would love. Can’t wait to try it.

  46. We have been incorporating more salads into our lives, and this looks delicious.

  48. That salad looks amazing especially on these hot summer days when I dont feel like cooking much.

  51. This sounds like a wonderful summer salad – I love how easy the dressing sounds to make too!

  53. I’m not on a Keto diet but that chicken salad looks delicious. I’m counting calories and it would easily fit within my calorie range. Yummy!

  64. I like this recipe as it uses raw cabbage which I prefer over lettuce. I also like to use raw radicchio and think that this could be used in this recipe as well. 🙂

  66. I have several friends who are doing the Keto diet. This chicken salad looks great, and I’d eat it even though I’m not following the diet!

  67. 5 stars
    This recipe looks really really good and super healthy. I will be making it this week. Thanks.

  71. I don’t follow Keto, but this recipe looks amazing. I love Chinese chicken salads, this one looks particularly delicious!

  72. This looks like a great, healthy meal to eat. The dressing sounds delicious. I haven’t tried making my own before, but I definitely want to try to make this!

  76. That looks beautiful and it sounds delicious! I’m always looking for new ideas on this keto diet. That dressing is going to come in handy, not just for salads. Sometimes I get lazy and just do the same old lunch/dinner everyday, so I really do appreciate it when I find a good keto idea. Thanks for a great recipe!

  81. 5 stars
    This sounds delicious! I will have to make it for my husband and not let him know it’s healthy for him!

  85. 5 stars
    I absolutely LOVE dishes with an Asian taste profile and this one looks so fresh and yummy! Thank you for sharing, this is definitely going on my menu next week!

  86. I am definitely bookmarking this recipe . This looks amazing and now I’m hungry LOL.

  90. I no longer eat Keto but LOVE salads and this looks so good. Thank you for a great recipe.

  92. I am a huge fan of Asian foods but they tend to be carb-heavy. I would love to try this recipe!

  98. I am looking for a meal that has protein and doesn’t have a lot of carbs and I love chicken. Thank you for the recipe. I love ginger so that is great that it is part of the recipe.

  99. This salad looks delicious! Being on Keto has been life changing so it’s always nice to find new fun recipes!

  100. The salad looks refreshing….nice, light and perfect for these hot summer months

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