The Best Summer Salad, or Spring, or Fall, or Winter

We love this recipe.  Barbara gave it to me last century, so you know how long I’ve been making it.  She called it Chinese Chicken Salad.  I’ve been making it so long I’ve made lots and lots of changes to the original recipe.  I’ll give you the recipe I received originally and how I currently make it and we’ll discuss.

Chinese Chicken Salad

1 head lettuce cut into bite-sized pieces

3 green onions, sliced

3 tablespoons sesame seeds

2 ½ ounces rice threads

1 cup cubed chicken

Combine all ingredients except rice threads.  Rice threads need to be cooked in hot oil before adding.

Dressing:

1 cup vegetable oil

½ cup sugar

¼ cup white vinegar

2 tablespoons soy sauce

¼ teaspoon pepper

½ teaspoon dried mustard

Make the dressing the night before.  Add right before serving.

* From the Recipe Box:

OK, let’s start at the beginning.  I can’t tell you the last time I bought a head of Iceberg lettuce; I usually use Romaine.  For this salad, cabbage helps maintain the crunch if it’s going to be sitting out for a while.  I usually shred it.   I use any kind of lettuce or cabbage or a combination.

I no longer use rice threads, I just use chow mien noodles.  I hated wasting all the peanut oil needed to cook the threads and the whole purpose is the crunch.  Also, I love the way black sesame seeds add a pop of color, so they are my new go-to.

Rotisserie chicken from Costco makes this easy squeezy.  What did I do before Costco?  I love you Costco!!!!  Their rotisserie chicken is the best food money you can spend, especially if you are married to someone who loves chicken skin.  Half of the chicken works perfectly for a batch of salad.

Everyone loves this.  When Chris was in high school, he always volunteered to bring this to school potlucks.  One of his teachers told me he called it the best food in the world.  Greg and I like it for dinner and eat the whole batch.

I usually have everything I need to make this salad on hand at any given time which makes it a total bonus.  I don’t even worry if the dressing doesn’t get made the night before.  It will be fine.  As you can see, it’s a very forgiving recipe and it likes you as much as you like it.

And remember:   I am fairly certain that with a cape and a nice tiara, I could save the world.  Big Kiss, Lynn