I’ve gotten into the habit of making this salad at least every other week. Sometimes it’s once a week. It’s very easy to make with a little prep work involved. I recently bought and OXO mandoline slicer to make julienning carrots easier – my knife skills are least to be desired. The great things about this salad: The flavor and kick are amazing and for two people, this salad stretches out over at least 2 meals each. To make this meal vegan, you can use WestSoy’s Seitan Strips – sometimes I prefer them over the chicken.
The original recipe called for sugar, which is something that is annoying the hell out of me lately with the supposed healthy options at restaurants. I had this great salad at a mexican restaurant, only to find out afterwards that the dressing had sugar in it. The dressing would have been just as good without the added sugar. And with this Thai Cabbage Salad we have a perfectly robust and flavorful salad with a dressing that has some amazing spice and kick and we want to ruin it with sugar? Sure, sugar tastes good, but can’t we get the same effect by omitting the sugar? The lemon and lime juice are added to give it a little sweetness without the damaging effects of blood sugar spikes. Something that I am trying to avoid to lose excess fat. Lemons, limes and grapefruit have a surprisingly leveling effect on blood sugar, but it should be noted that it doesn’t work all the time, only occasionally and in small amounts. I try to incorporate a small squeeze of lemon in almost every salad I make.
Thai Cabbage Salad (adapted from the epicurious recipe)
Makes: 4 humongous bowls
Serving Size: 1 humongous bowl
Protein: 20 grams
Carbs: 14 grams
Salad
1 small to medium head Red Cabbage, shredded
1 small to medium head Savoy or Green Cabbage, shredded
1 large red pepper, diced
3 carrots, julienned
1 large cucumber, seeded and diced thin
1 bunch green onion, sliced thin
1/2 cup tightly packed basil, chopped
1/2 cup tightly packed cilantro, chopped
1 cup unsalted peanuts
Mix all ingredients together, except for the peanuts, top with dressing, chicken and peanuts just before serving, season with a little salt and Sriracha if necessary.
Dressing
1/2 cup sunflower oil
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp, Sesame Oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, minced (seeded for less spice)
Zest and Juice of 1 Lemon
Zest and Juice of 1 Lime
2 Tbsp Sriracha
Mix all ingredients together, shake vigorously in a jar to emulsify.
Chicken
2 chicken breasts, diced
1 tsp, turmeric
1 tsp, ground ginger
1 tsp, garlic
1 tsp, salt
1 tsp, cumin
Season the chicken with the spices and cook over medium heat, stirring regularly for about 6 minutes or until thoroughly cooked.
