Bang Bang Chicken Salad with Crispy Noodles

Amarante

Mon, Nov 30 2020, 11:07 am

I guess this could also be posted in chicken forum but this is a salad and the dressing would probably be versatile as well.

Since I made the dressing ahead of time this came together easily. The addition of the tortilla chips was a fun variant on the more expected chow mein noodles or fried wonton strips.

Bang Bang Chicken Salad with Crispy Noodles

Excerpt From: Dark Clarke - Whole Chicken

The contrast of cold salad, warm crispy chicken thighs and spicy peanut sesame oil is incredible. The nacho chips add a nice twist by adding another layer of crunch. Use any flavour of nachos you like. It is a really great and super-easy salad that can be made up for one or served in a large family-style bowl for everyone to help themselves

SERVES 4

4 boneless chicken thighs, skin on
2 tablespoons rapeseed (canola) oil
2 baby gem lettuces, leaves separated
4 celery stalks, peeled and thinly sliced diagonally
handful of coriander (cilantro) leaves, torn
2 green (bell) peppers, sliced into thin strips - I used red peppers because I don't like green peppers
handful of tortilla chips
chopped shop-bought dry-roasted peanuts, to garnish

FOR THE ‘STRANGE FLAVOUR’ SAUCE

6 tablespoons light soy sauce
2 tablespoons tahini
2 tablespoons good-quality crunchy peanut butter
2 tablespoons Chinese black vinegar (Chinkiang) or red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons sesame oil
4 teaspoons caster (superfine) sugar
½ teaspoon Maldon sea salt
6 tablespoons Chinese chilli oil
2 small spring onions (scallions), thinly sliced
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger root
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 teaspoon Sichuan peppercorns, crushed to powder

Brine the chicken for 1 hour according to the brine instructions (optional).

Meanwhile, to make the sauce, mix all the ingredients together in a bowl until combined. Set aside.
Heat the oil in a cold pan over the lowest possible heat, add the chicken and cook for 8–10 minutes or until the skin is golden and crispy and the thighs are almost cooked through. Turn and then cook for a further 2 minutes. (You can also grill/broil the chicken under a medium heat, if you prefer.)

To build the salad, slice the chicken, then place in a large bowl along with the lettuce leaves, celery, torn coriander and green peppers. Spoon over the sauce and mix until everything is coated. Add the whole tortilla chips at the last minute and mix again. Divide the salad among 4 bowls and sprinkle with the roasted peanuts to garnish.

Bang Bang chicken is traditionally a dish of cold chicken served with a spicy peanut and sesame sauce sold by street vendors in the Sichuan region of China. The chicken is tenderised and shredded by pounding it with a heavy wooden stick, hence the name, but you will be pleased to know that I have left that part out here! ‘Strange flavour’ sauce is also known as ‘odd flavour’ sauce and is so because it’s the closest English translation to describe it. The sauce is actually not strange or odd at all, but is super delicious as it is creamy from the peanut butter and sesame paste and sweet, spicy and numbing from the Sichuan pepper. I have used it in this recipe to create a beautiful fresh crunchy salad.