Chicken and Spinach Salad
with Japanese dressing
We're still recovering from Thanksgiving feasting with this simple salad that's all about the dressing. This Japanese dressing (the creamy, orange one we've seen at every Japanese restaurant) does have quite a list of ingredients, but it's worth the effort (plus your blender does most of the work). Slightly sweet, it'll turn your leftover chicken (or tofu) and quinoa into a whole different dish. Also please forgive me, but I somehow forgot the carrots and cucumbers in my shopping list (even professional meal planners have their days), which is why they're missing in this photo.
Ingredients
- Homemade Japanese dressing - 3/4 cup ((ingredients listed separately))
- Carrots - 1/2 lb, grated
- Cucumbers - 1/2 lb, cubed
- Leftover chicken breasts - 1 lb, sliced
- Leftover quinoa - 1 1/2 cups
- Baby spinach - 6 oz
- Onion - 1/4, peeled
- Green onion - 1 stalk, just the white part
- Ginger - 1/2 inch, peeled
- Garlic - 1 clove, peeled
- Cooking oil - 1/4 cup
- Rice vinegar - 2 1/2 Tbsp
- Water - 1 Tbsp
- Ketchup - 1 Tbsp
- Soy sauce, low-sodium - 2 tsp
- Sugar - 1 tsp
- Lemon juice - 1 tsp
- Salt - 1/4 tsp
- Black pepper - pinch
Nutrition Facts
Prep
- Japanese dressing - Mix all ingredients together in a blender. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Carrots - Grate. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Cucumbers - Cube.
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Make
- Warm up leftover chicken and quinoa from Monday's dinner
- Toss spinach, quinoa, carrots, and cucumbers with as much dressing as you want. Top with proteins and drizzle on more dressing.
Nutrition Facts
Reviews
Ratings
12 reviews
LOVED the dressing -- had no idea that's what the pinkish dressing on many Japanese restaurant salads was made from! It was strong but I like spicy onions! Would definitely make this again. Substituted BBQ sauce for ketchup since that's what I had on hand -- tasted great and didn't overpower the dressing at all.
0 HelpfulI made his for us and for a guest, so instead of 4 servings...it was just 3 massive salads. It was super easy to make, very fresh tasting, and the dressing was excellent. I can't wait to eat this again.
0 HelpfulBased on other reviews, I used a small mild onion and it wasn't overpowering. Great use of leftovers!
0 HelpfulNice, healthy meal. Salad dressing was yummy and super easy! We didn't have any leftover quinoa so I cooked some whole wheat spiral pasta and tossed it in with my husband's salad, and I ate mine sans carbs. We rarely have salads as a main course, so this was a great change of pace!
0 Helpful