Ah, summer is officially here. To the Hodges family, that means dining al fresco, lots of pool time, and crisp summer salads. Today, I bring you one that is definitely going to be a regular weeknight recipe in our house this season.
This Asian Salad is of the chopped variety, and contains 7 different vegetables. It is as colorful as it is healthy! Since this is a weeknight meal, I used a local pre-made sesame ginger salad dressing; however, I will link up to a great homemade alternative in case you an overachiever.
I added in some grilled teriyaki chicken to this salad as well. Once again, this is a weeknight meal, so I used some store-bought — and VERY yummy — teriyaki sauce as my chicken marinade. After it sat for an hour or so, Mat threw it on the grill. It was the perfect sweet addition to this insanely good salad.
Asian Salad with Grilled Teriyaki Chicken
4 entree servings
1 large yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced
5 cups chopped kale leaves (stalks removed)
3 large carrots, thinly sliced
1/3 cup chopped cilantro leaves
16 ounces shelled frozen edamame
5 green onions, chopped
8-ounce bag of blended chopped cabbage mix
SASS Sesame Garlic Dressing (or the homemade dressing found here)
4 medium chicken breasts
Veri Veri Teriyaki marinade (or the homemade version here)
Directions
Place the chicken breasts in a large Ziploc bag and cover with the Teriyaki marinade. Don’t over do it; just pour in enough to cover all four breasts. Place the bag in a bowl, and let the chicken marinade in the refrigerator for at least an hour.
Cook the edamame by boiling for 5 minutes in a pot of boiling water or steaming per the package directions. Drain and let cool.
While the edamame is cooling down, chop or slice all of your veggies and toss in a large serving bowl.
Once the edamame is cool, pour into a food processor or chopper. Pulse to barely chop 5 to 10 times until the beans are coarsely chopped. Toss in with vegetables.
Now, the chicken should be ready for the grill. Heat your grill to a medium-high fire of about 375 to 400 degrees. You don’t want your fire to be too hot so that it chars the outside before the inside is done. On the other hand, you want to get that delicious golden crust on your chicken, so you don’t want to go too low. Throw it on the grill, and let it sit for 5 minutes or so. Flip each breast and cook for another 5 minutes or so. Your cooking time will ultimately be determined by the thickness of each breast.
If you are a seasoned grill master, you will be able to tell when the chicken is just right. However, if you are like me, you need a meat thermometer. You want the meat to register at 160 degrees. Once off the grill, the chicken will continue to cook a bit, and will reach that 165 degree temperature you are going for.
Take the chicken off the grill and let it rest for about 10 minutes. Next, thinly slice the chicken, against the grain, and throw into your salad bowl with your veggies. Mix in about 1/4 cup of sesame dressing (more or less to your liking). I also added in about 2 tablespoons of the extra teriyaki marinade (FROM THE BOTTLE, not the Ziploc) to the salad as well.
Toss and enjoy!
What are your favorite weeknight summer meals??
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