Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Salad

Herbs like ginger, cilantro and mint make a beautiful medley when paired with smoked chicken in this Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Salad.  Smoked chicken has its own aroma and flavor profile that is best elevated with fresh flavors.  When its barbecue season, I’m fortunate to enjoy a lot of barbecue chicken.  Great recipes to use leftover barbecue chicken are always appreciated.  This recipe is one of them.

With “mint” as the theme for Supper Challenge, I struggled to think of how to feature mint.  The ability to pair mint with barbecue is an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.  Smoke on!  Freshen up!

Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Salad

Herbs like ginger, cilantro and mint make a beautiful medley when paired with smoked chicken in this Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Salad.

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Ingredients

  

• ½ package ~100g thin rice noodles/ vermicelli
• 2 cups hot water
• 6 cups baby spinach leaves
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1-2 chicken breasts smoked (or pan fried/ roasted cooked) and shredded

Ginger Dressing – dressing recipe may be doubled if preferred

• 1 teaspoon lemon grass minced very fine
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger ~2” pieces, minced fine
• 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce or tamari
• 1 ¼ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
• ¼ cup sesame oil
• 1/3 cup cilantro minced fine
• 1/3 cup fresh mint minced fine

Instructions

 

• In a square pan, pour hot water on top of the vermicelli or thin rice noodles to soften.
• Meanwhile in a medium size pan on medium heat, wilt the spinach leaves and set aside.
• In a large salad bowl, whisk the Ginger Dressing ingredients – minced lemon grass, fresh ginger, white wine vinegar, light soy sauce / tamari, kosher salt and sesame oil.
• On medium heat, add 1-2 teaspoons Ginger Dressing into the medium size pan, place the thin rice noodles/vermicelli into the pan and cook to soften.
• Add warm rice noodles into the salad bowl with the Ginger Dressing and toss.
• Add spinach leaves to rice noodles and Ginger Dressing and toss.
• Allow to Ginger Dressing to marinate with spinach and rice noodles for at least 15 minutes.
• Add shredded smoked/ cooked chicken.
• Toss half of the minced cilantro and mint into the noodle and chicken mixture.
• Garnish Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Salad with remaining minced cilantro and mint.