Chinese Chicken Salad

Описание

Исходное описание на английском языке. Русский перевод ещё не добавлен.

Chinese chicken salad is a cold, crunchy mixture of shredded chicken, chopped greens, and fried noodles tossed in a sweet sesame-ginger vinaigrette. Its origins trace to mid-20th-century California. In 1956, Ming’s restaurant in Palo Alto added a version to its menu. During the 1960s, restaurateur Sylvia Wu created a highly popular version at Madame Wu’s Garden in Santa Monica after actor Cary Grant requested a salad similar to one he had eaten elsewhere. The salad developed as a West Coast restaurant invention rather than as a direct import from East Asia. Preparation begins with whole chicken breasts that are poached or roasted, cooled completely, and then torn by hand into thin shreds. The vegetable base usually consists of roughly chopped iceberg lettuce or shredded Napa cabbage, mixed with julienned raw carrots, sliced scallions, and thin strips of red cabbage. The ingredients are tied together with a sharp, acidic vinaigrette made from rice vinegar, toasted sesame oil, light soy sauce, minced fresh ginger, and a small spoonful of white sugar. The shredded chicken and raw vegetables are placed in a wide bowl and coated generously with the dressing. For the essential crunch, deep-fried wonton wrapper strips or puffed rice vermicelli noodles are scattered evenly over the dressed greens. Changes in ingredients alter the balance between sweetness and savoriness. Canned mandarin orange segments or sliced water chestnuts are sometimes added for bursts of sweet juice and extra crispness. In richer nut-based versions, creamy peanut butter or dark hoisin sauce is blended into the vinaigrette, creating a thicker, heavier dressing that coats the greens more completely. Other versions replace the fried wonton strips with toasted sliced almonds or crushed peanuts, avoiding deep-frying while retaining the crunchy texture. The salad is served fully chilled. The dressing is tossed with the greens at the last moment so the fried dough and delicate lettuce do not become soggy. Because the bowl of Chinese chicken salad is usually large and filling, it can serve as either a substantial appetizer or a standalone lunch.