This Mandarin Chicken Spinach Salad is a beautiful, delicious Asian style salad recipe.
I love this salad because it’s one that you can make and have for dinner, and that’s it. It’s a nice main-dish salad. And it’s perfect for the summer months when you don’t really want to cook, and you’re craving more veggies and salads every day! Mandarin Chicken Spinach Salad is full of shredded chicken, cherry tomatoes, sliced radishes and mushrooms and crumbled bacon. And it’s tossed in a slightly sweet Asian style dressing.
How to make Mandarin Chicken Spinach Salad:
You’ll begin by making the dressing for the salad. The ingredients include canola oil, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, sugar and ground pepper. Those ingredients are heated briefly in a saucepan, just until the sugar dissolves.
Fresh spinach is added to a salad bowl and topped with all of the salad fixings. Then you can toss your salad with the dressing, and sprinkle toasted sesame seeds on top.
How to cook bacon in the oven:
This mandarin chicken spinach salad recipe calls for cooked bacon. I always make my bacon in the oven because it’s so easy to do, and there is very little clean-up or mess involved. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil. Lay the strips of bacon on the foil. Bake until the bacon is browned and crispy, 15 to 20 minutes. Time in the oven will depend on how thick your bacon is. Let the bacon cool and drain on a paper towel lined plate, and then chop it into smaller pieces.
How to toast sesame seeds:
This recipe calls for toasted sesame seeds. Toast sesame seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring occasionally. Or bake on an ungreased baking sheet at 350° for 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Watch closely to avoid burning.
Try this mandarin chicken spinach salad for dinner this summer, and let me know what you think. Enjoy!
Here are a few more spinach salad recipes you might like to try:
- Southwest Spinach Salad
- Spinach Salad with Hot Prosciutto Dressing
- Chickpea and Spinach Salad with Cumin Dressing
- Spinach Salad with Chicken, Avocado and Goat Cheese
- Spinach Strawberry Salad
- Turkey Spinach Salad with Chutney Vinaigrette
- Cranberry Spinach Salad with Cashews and Goat Cheese
- Autumn Apple and Spinach Salad
Mandarin Chicken Spinach Salad
Ingredients
DRESSING:
- 3 tablespoons canola oil
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon granulated white sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
SALAD:
- One 8-ounce bag fresh baby spinach leaves
- 1½ cups cooked, shredded chicken breast
- 1½ cups halved cherry tomatoes
- 1 cup thinly sliced radishes
- 8 ounces sliced fresh mushrooms
- 8 ounces bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted
Instructions
MAKE THE DRESSING:
- In a small saucepan, combine the dressing ingredients, and heat over low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat.
- In a large bowl, combine the salad ingredients (except sesame seeds). Toss with the dressing, and then sprinkle in the sesame seeds. Serve!
Notes
- If you are preparing this salad as gluten-free, just be sure to use brands of soy sauce and bacon that are known to be GF.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
