I ran across this recipe for Chinese Noodle and Chicken Salad the other day and thought it would be a great pasta salad dish to make for the weekend: tender noodles, crunchy snow peas and a creamy, peanutty Asian-inspired dressing. Yumm! Husband loved it, too. 

You’ll notice that this recipe serves 20 people, which is great for a potluck or when feeding a crowd. I didn’t need to serve that many so I made half a recipe. Heck, you could even make a 1/4 recipe if you wanted to (you’re on your own with the math).

For the salad, feel free to roast your own chicken or buy one at the grocery store (I used a Costco roasted chicken). Also,  I wanted to bump up the veggie content of the salad so I added about a half bag of shredded cole slaw mix (cabbage and carrots). If you can’t find snow peas or they’re expensive, you could substitute a whole bag of shredded coleslaw mix (for a half recipe of the noodle salad) and some thinly sliced red bell pepper.

For the dressing, I added a tablespoon or so of chopped fresh ginger to the other ingredients and processed until smooth. I liked the extra flavor and zing that the nobby root added. 

Chinese Noodle and Chicken or Turkey Salad
-recipe from Bon Appétit Magazine

Leftover roasted chicken or turkey makes this rendition of a popular salad a snap to prepare. It’s made spicy by combining chilies with linguine, green onions, snow peas, cilantro and a peanut dressing.

Yield: Serves 20

Salad
2 pounds linguine
1/4 cup oriental sesame oil
2 2 1/2-pound roasted chickens, skinned, boned, shredded or 12 cups cooked turkey
4 bunches green onions, sliced
2 bunches fresh cilantro, chopped
4 jalapeño chilies, seeded, deveined, minced
1 1/4 pounds snow peas, stringed, thinly sliced lengthwise

Dressing
1 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter (do not use old-fashioned style or freshly ground)
1/2 cup rice vinegar
1/2 cup oriental sesame oil
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, chopped

Napa cabbage leaves

For salad:
Cook linguine in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite. Drain. Rinse with cold water to cool; drain well. Transfer to large bowl. Add sesame oil; toss to blend. Mix in chicken or turkey, onions, cilantro and chilies.

Cook snow peas in medium saucepan of boiling salted water until just crisp-tender, about 1 minute. Drain. Rinse with cold water to cool; drain well. Mix into salad.

For dressing:
Combine soy sauce, peanut butter, vinegar, sesame oil, sugar and ginger in processor; blend until smooth.

Pour dressing over salad and mix with hands to blend well. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.) Line large platter with Napa cabbage leaves. Mound salad over and serve.

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Tags: Chinese Noodle and Chicken or Turkey Salad, cilantro, feeding a crowd, green onions peanut butter, jalapeno chilies, Pasta, potluck, rice vinegar, sesame oil, snow peas, soy sauce