This is one of my favourite salads to make for dinner – I crave it frequently and get excited to make it. It’s something that’s been in one of my regular meal rotations for a long time, that I finally felt like I should write the recipe down.
Highlighting sweet-sour-salty Thai flavours, the salad includes both flaked coconut and coconut milk along with chicken, peanuts and vermicelli noodles.
It’s quick to make and it’s a great way to use leftover chicken – and the salad dressing is seriously delicious, as well!
How to Make a Thai-style Chicken & Coconut Salad
Before assembling the salad, there are a few things to do to get started. First off, you need to soak your vermicelli noodles.
Ignore the instructions on the packet that say to boil them for several minutes – that’s wrong! I’ve found that the noodles get perfectly soft with a short soak in some cool water.
Simply add them to a bowl and cover them with room-temperature tap water. After around 20 minutes, you’ll have perfectly rehydrated rice noodles – I find they’re always ready by the time I toss the salad!
The other thing you need to do is toast your coconut and peanuts. I highly recommend not skipping this step as it really amplifies the flavours in the salad.
All you need to do is add some unsalted peanuts and unsweetened coconut flakes to a rimmed baking tray.
Move the tray to a 180°C/350°F for about 3-5 minutes (keep an eye on it!), or until the coconut is golden and everything is very fragrant. Set this aside.
Now, onto the dressing! This is super simple and can be used across a lot of different salads, not just this one.
All you need to do is very finely mince some red Thai chilies and the tender stems of some cilantro. If you want to curb the heat, go ahead and remove the seeds and ribs from the chilies before chopping them.
Add these to a small bowl along with some grated garlic and a bit of brown sugar. Pour over a bit of fish sauce, some fresh lime juice and a couple of tablespoons of coconut milk.
If you want a good use for any leftover coconut milk, consider making my red curry sea bass or coconut dal.
Whisk all of this to combine and then set it aside while you assemble the rest of the salad. You can also make the dressing a few days in advance and simply stash it in the fridge.
Now all you need to do now is assemble your salad! First off, add some shredded napa cabbage (aka wombok or Chinese cabbage) to a large salad bowl. Also add in a thinly sliced cucumber and some chopped cilantro leaves.
Go ahead and add in your toasted peanuts and coconut flakes. Also, drain the water from the vermicelli noodles, roughly chop them and add them to the bowl as well. Finally, add some shredded chicken to the salad.
This is a great usage for leftover chicken or a supermarket rotisserie chicken. However, if you don’t want to use chicken, you could also prepare tofu like I do for my tofu Caesar salad and use it in place of the chicken (I’ve done this plenty of times – it just depends on what I have in my fridge!).
Finally, pour the dressing over the salad and toss it to combine. Then, simply serve and enjoy!
Thai Chicken Coconut Salad
Ingredients
- 60 g (2 oz) rice vermicelli noodles
- 30 g (2 tbsp) unsalted peanuts
- 15 g (3 tbsp) unsweetened coconut flakes
- 2-4 Thai chilies very finely minced (see note 1)
- 2 cloves garlic grated or finely minced
- 10 g (2 tbsp) cilantro/coriander leaves picked & tender stems finely minced
- 45 ml (3 tbsp) lime juice
- 45 ml (3 tbsp) fish sauce
- 30 ml full-fat coconut milk
- 10 g (2 tsp) light brown sugar
- 300 g (4 cups) wombok/napa cabbage/Chinese cabbage thinly shredded
- 150 g (1 cup) cucumber thinly sliced
- 200 g (1½ cups) cooked chicken breast shredded
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F. Add the noodles to a large bowl and cover with room-temperature water. Allow to soak until the noodles are tender – about 20 minutes – before draining and roughly chopping.
- Add the peanuts and coconut flakes to a rimmed baking tray. Move to the oven and toast until golden and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, add the chilies, garlic, cilantro/coriander stems, lime juice, fish sauce, coconut milk and brown sugar to a small mixing bowl. Whisk until thoroughly combined and set aside (see note 2).
- In a large salad bowl, add the cabbage, cucumber, chicken, cilantro/coriander leaves, the drained vermicelli noodles, and the toasted peanuts and coconut. Toss to combine and pour over the dressing. Serve.
Notes
- If you’re sensitive to heat, split the chilies in half and scrape out the ribs and seeds before mincing.
- Stored in an airtight container in the fridge, the dressing will last for up to 5 days so it can be made in advance.
Nutrition
Disclaimer: Nutritional information is automatically generated and provided as guidance only. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
This Thai-style chicken salad with coconut is super bright, fresh and delicious. It’s quick to make and perfect for a light dinner or lunch!
Are you after a meal salad with Thai flavours? Have any questions about this recipe? Let me know in the comments!
