Let’s all take a moment to appreciate the humble unsung hero, the rotisserie chicken. Dress her up or dress her down, she’s always recipe ready! Like a lot of people, I can’t resist grabbing one of Costco’s famous chickens whenever I’m there, and I’ve developed several recipes that take advantage of its delicious convenience (not to mention its budget friendly price). This Lemon Chicken Salad is one of my favorites, and I hope it will be one of yours too. I know it’s all pumpkin spice this and autumn that, but frankly the weather across much of the country is still really hot, and this cold no-cook salad with a bright and savory dressing is a great way to beat the heat.
Lemon Chicken Salad Dressing
I love this dressing so much. It’s got all of my fave flavor boosters; like freshly grated ginger, minced garlic, toasted sesame oil, soy sauce, oyster sauce, and mirin. Lots of lemon zest and fresh squeezed juice add bright citrusy flavor.
Then I just stir in the minced garlic and ginger, and a sliced Thai bird chili. You can omit the chili if you’d like; we like it hot around here…
Make the Lemon Chicken Salad
Once the dressing is done, I quickly compose the salad. I used rotisserie chicken in this recipe, but any leftover chicken will do. And the flavors are so robust that any mild seasoning on the chicken will not interfere. You can give the chicken a quick rinse if you are concerned, but I wouldn’t bother.
I like to cut the chicken into large chunks so it feels substantial and I like the herbs to be roughly chopped so you can tell what they are. The secret to making leftovers appealing is to have it look fresh and deliberate, like you intentionally made the salad this way. No sad leftovers here…no one will know.
I love endive in this salad. Its slight bitterness plays really well with the dressing and it’s available well into the cold winter months. You can sub any other chicory you prefer, or even arugula or watercress.
My Lemon Chicken Salad makes a wonderful light supper, or brunch highlight and leftovers are perfect the next day…leftovers from leftovers? Let’s make it a thing. Grab a rotisserie chicken today and see for yourself! Let me know what you think by leaving a comment, and of course tag us in your pics @funkyasiankitchen, we love hearing from you.
Lemon Chicken Salad
- Prep Time: 10 Minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
- Category: salads
- Cuisine: Pan-Asian
Ingredients
- 1 pound leftover chicken cut into bite sized pieces
- A handful of cilantro (about ¼ cup), roughly chopped
- 2 scallions trimmed and cut thin on an angle
- 2 small endive, radicchio, or a couple handfuls of lettuce leaves
- Sliced lemon for garnish
Dressing:
- 1 Tablespoon neutral oil
- 1 Tablespoon sesame oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon peeled, minced ginger
- 2 Tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 Tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 Tablespoon mirin
- 1 large lemon
- 1 fresh thai bird chili, stemmed and thinly sliced (optional)
Instructions
- Wash and zest the lemon into a mixing cup/bowl. Juice the lemon into the bowl and then add the other dressing ingredients. Stir to combine.
- Put the chicken, cilantro, scallion, and dressing into a mixing bowl and toss to combine.
- Wash and slice the endive into thin rounds. Pile the endive onto a platter. Nestle the chicken onto the endive and serve.
Keywords: rotisserie chicken, lemon, quick, salad, dinner salads,
