MandarinOrange Chicken Salad is a flavorful, tasty meal for busy school nights. With grilled chicken, mandarin oranges, red bell peppers, almonds, and a bed of greens, it's a healthy satisfying meal or a tasty side dish.
When it comes to satisfying our taste buds with a burst of flavors and textures, few dishes can rival the delightful appeal of a Mandarin Orange Chicken Salad. It's one of the favorite salads!
This vibrant and refreshing crunchy salad brings together the perfect combination of succulent grilled chicken, crisp vegetables, and the juicy sweetness of mandarin oranges. And it's all dressed in a tangy vinaigrette.
With its harmonious blend of savory and citrusy notes, this salad has earned its rightful place as a beloved favorite among food enthusiasts worldwide – including me!
This Mandarin Orange Chicken Salad recipe is a tasty salad to serve as a main dish for two people. It's a large salad, so you can also serve it as a side salad for 4-6 people.
Get ready to tantalize your taste buds and elevate your salad game to new heights. Let's dig in!
[feast_advanced_jump_to]🍊Ingredient notes
There are four components to this dish: the marinade, the chicken, the salad, and the dressing. But don't worry: you only need a few ingredients to make this chicken salad recipe. And it all comes together quickly!
- For the chicken, you'll need boneless skinless chicken breasts or chicken breast tenders.
- To make the marinade, you'll need orange juice, garlic, thyme, and honey.
- For the salad, you'll need romaine lettuce (or your favorite greens), red bell pepper, sweet mandarin oranges, and sliced almonds. Feel free to add other favorite crunchy vegetables, such as red cabbage, sliced red onion, bright green onion, fresh ginger.
- Salad dressing ingredients include orange juice, white wine vinegar or rice vinegar, and olive oil. You can substitute sesame oil for the olive oil for a richer flavor.
Optional: add sesame seeds and sliced green onions to garnish the salad. You can also top this Chinese chicken salad with crispy chow mein noodles, sunflower seeds, and/or wonton strips.
✅ Step-by-step instructions
This mandarin chicken salad is simple and simple to make.
- Marinate the chicken for several hours. You can either start marinating the chicken the night before, or in the morning before you head off to work. This makes the meat so tender and juicy, and truly helps it soak up the citrus garlic flavors.
- Grill the chicken either on your outdoor grill or on an indoor grill pan.
- Make the dressing.
- Add your greens and vegetables to two bowls, top with 2 or 3 grilled chicken pieces, and serve with the dressing.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! Leftover rotisserie chicken is a great option to use instead of grilled chicken in this salad.
What kind of oranges should We use?You can either use fresh mandarin oranges or a can of mandarin oranges for this mandarin salad.
🍷 Wine pairing
This tangy mandarin orange chicken salad pairs deliciously with a white wine such as a dry Riesling or a Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris.
🍽 Serving ideas
If serving this mandarin orange salad as a main course, add a side of homemade French bread or some air fryer garlic bread.
If you are serving this as a side salad, it goes well with Thai Curry Pizza or Cauliflower Carrot Soup.
More chicken recipes
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Grilled Honey Orange Chicken Salad
By Marlynn Schotland Prep Time: 25 mins Cook Time: 6 hrs 40 mins Marinade time: 6 hrs Total Time: 7 hrs 5 mins Servings: 4 people This salad is tangy and flavorful, perfect for a weeknight meal or as a side salad!Ingredients
- 1 pound Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast Fillets
- 2 teaspoons finely shredded orange zest
- ⅓ cup orange juice plus 2 tablespoons, divided
- 6 cloves garlic, minced, divided
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried thyme, crushed
- ½ teaspoon salt, divided
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper, divided
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons white-wine vinegar
- 1 ½ teaspoons finely chopped shallot
- 4 cups torn baby salad greens
- 1 medium red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 2 medium oranges, peeled and sectioned
- Sliced almonds, toasted (optional)
Instructions
- Place chicken in a sealable plastic bag. Combine orange zest, ⅓ cup orange juice, 4 cloves minced garlic, honey and thyme. Pour over chicken; seal bag. Marinate in the refrigerator for 6 to 8 hours, turning bag occasionally.Drain chicken, discarding marinade. Prep grill pan with olive oil, then grill chicken for about 8-10, until chicken is no longer pink, turning once halfway. Slice chicken crosswise; set aside on a plate.Meanwhile, in a screw-top jar, combine oil, vinegar, the remaining 2 tablespoons orange juice, the remaining 2 cloves minced garlic, the shallots and the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon pepper. Cover and shake well.Divide greens among four dinner plates. Top with bell pepper slices. Arrange chicken and orange sections over greens. Drizzle with dressing. If desired, sprinkle with almonds.
Notes
Storage: Grilled chicken salad with keep for up to 5 days in an airtight container in the fridge.Nutrition
Calories: 288 kcal, Carbohydrates: 24 g, Protein: 26 g, Fat: 10 g, Saturated Fat: 2 g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g, Monounsaturated Fat: 6 g, Trans Fat: 0.01 g, Cholesterol: 73 mg, Sodium: 436 mg, Potassium: 747 mg, Fiber: 3 g, Sugar: 18 g, Vitamin A: 1628 IU, Vitamin C: 97 mg, Calcium: 60 mg, Iron: 2 mgNutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
