Thai-Style Chicken And Green Mango Salad Recipe

While the thought of salad typically conjures up images of leafy greens, this Thai-style chicken and green mango salad recipe switches things up in a refreshing way. You won't find any leafy greens here, but you will find plenty of fruits, vegetables, and herbs including carrot, cucumber, cilantro, basil, and of course, green mango. 

"This light, fresh salad with green mangoes is a really excellent way to take a familiar ingredient and put it in a new setting," recipe developer A.J. Forget describes. "In this case, mangoes, typically relegated to the sweet side of the kitchen, take on a whole new role in a savory salad."

Of course, no salad is complete without a dressing, and this one features such a sauce that covers all of the flavor bases: Umami, saltiness from the fish sauce, a touch of sugar, a kick of heat from a Serrano pepper, and some finishing acidity thanks to fresh lime juice. Topped off with some thinly-sliced chicken breast, this salad is a welcome switch-up from your typical lunch routine, and we can guarantee that it's more flavorful than a plate of mixed greens. "There are crisp vegetables, tender pieces of chicken, fragrant herbs, crunchy peanuts, a nice touch of heat, and a balanced, salty, sweet, and sour dressing," Forget says, adding that "It is an exquisite melange of varied tastes and textures."

For the salad portion of this dish, you'll need a green mango, a large carrot, and a large cucumber, all of which will be julienned. You'll also need some finely chopped cilantro and basil, along with some chopped peanuts for extra crunch. As for the chicken, you'll need a 1-pound breast that's cut into thin slices along with fish sauce, water, a smashed garlic clove, some fresh ginger, and vegetable oil. Finally, for the dressing, you'll need some more fish sauce, sugar, a finely diced shallot, minced garlic, a minced serrano pepper, and the juice of two limes.

Before you cook the chicken, you'll give it a quick marinating session first; to make the marinade, combine 1 tablespoon of fish sauce with ½ cup of water and add in the sliced chicken, smashed garlic, and sliced ginger. Let the chicken sit for about 15 minutes, then remove it from the marinade and pat it dry. 

Place a skillet over high heat and add in the vegetable oil. Once hot, add in the marinated chicken, cooking for about 3 to 4 minutes — because it's thinly sliced, it shouldn't take long to cook. Once it's done, remove the chicken from heat and allow it to cool down to room temperature. 

If you've spent a fair amount of time in the kitchen, then you might be familiar with julienning, which is the method of cutting food into thin strips. Even if you've never julienned before (much less a mango, one of the tricker fruits to cut in general), fear not — "Fortunately, there isn't much to it," Forget assures us. He goes on to explain, "All you have to do is peel and then slice the vegetables into the smallest strips you can. With this salad, the thinner the cuts, the better the mixture of flavors in each bite, and the tastier the final product." And, when it comes to the tricky mango, simply cut thin slices off the sides of the pit, then cut those slices into thin strips.

To whip up the dressing, combine the fish sauce, sugar, finely diced shallot, minced garlic, minced serrano, and lime juice in a small bowl and mix until the sugar has fully dissolved. Then, add all salad elements — including the mango, vegetables, herbs, peanuts, and chicken — to a large bowl and pour the dressing over top. Mix well to evenly distribute the dressing.

The fresh and light nature of this salad makes it ideal for lunchtime, though you could easily serve this as a dinnertime appetizer or side dish. "This dish would make an excellent starter or side with Thai chicken satay, a noodle dish like pad see ew, or even just a nice piece of grilled fish," Forget suggests, adding, "It is difficult to go wrong with a light, well-balanced salad like this on the side."