Chinese Chicken Salad
This is a classic Barefoot Contessa recipe from back in the days when Ina Garten was just making a name for herself with a little, specialty food store in East Hampton. For those unfamiliar with Barefoot Contessa, it was the perfect place to pick up salads to take to the beach or round out a barbecue in the backyard of someone’s gorgeous Hamptons home–be it a summer rental or if you were lucky like me, a best friend’s parent’s house, rent-free. Barefoot Contessa was the perfect launching pad for Ina because it showcased her beautiful food and perfect palate. She never missed and in my opinion, still hasn’t.
Enjoy this classic Contessa recipe for Chinese Chicken Salad for your 4th of July picnic and all summer long. I guarantee it will make its way onto your regular rotation. And with this, I am signing off for summer. Enjoy your beach days, poolside chats, swim meets, tennis matches, lazy mornings, late night suppers, cocktails on the deck, outings on the water, travels and more. Happy Summer!
PS: Photo taken before my daughter intervened in this aspect of Sly Rooster. My apologies. I promise it tastes better than it looks!
- 4 split chicken breasts (bone-in, skin-on)
- Good olive oil
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 lb asparagus, ends removed, and cut in thirds diagonally
- 1 red bell pepper, cored and seeded
- 2 scallions (white and green parts), sliced diagonally
- 1 Tbls white sesame seeds, toasted
- 1/2 c vegetable oil
- 1/4 c good apple cider vinegar
- 3 Tbls soy sauce
- 1 1/2 Tbls dark sesame oil
- 1/2 Tbls honey
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 tsp peeled, grated fresh ginger
- 1/2 Tbls sesame seeds, toasted
- 1/4 c smooth peanut butter
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Place the chicken breasts on a sheet pan and rub with the skin with olive oil. Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is just cooked. Set aside until cool enough to handle. Remove the meat from the bones, discard the skin, and shred the chicken in large bite-sized pieces.*
- Blanch the asparagus in a pot of boiling salted water for 3 to 5 minutes until crisp-tender. Plunge into ice water to stop the cooking. Drain. Cut the peppers in strips about the size of the asparagus pieces. Combine the cut chicken, asparagus, and peppers in a large bowl.
- Whisk together all of the ingredients for the dressing and pour over the chicken and vegetables. Add the scallions and sesame seeds and season to taste. Serve cold or at room temperature.
- *Once again, I cheat here by using Costco's unseasoned, shredded rotisserie chicken breasts instead of cooking my own chicken. Feel free to do the same or shred chicken from a store-bought rotisserie chicken.