Having another ‘What’s for dinner?’ midweek meltdown? This simple Vietnamese salad is fresh and filling, and features chicken, noodles, herbs and a zingy dressing. It’s light, lush and full of crunch, thanks to some rather delicious crispy toppings!
1 x roast/rotisserie chicken, bones discarded, meat shredded
1 small carrot, finely julienned
1 cup finely shredded cabbage
1 long red chilli, finely sliced
½ cup torn mint leaves, plus extra to serve
2 spring onions (scallions), finely sliced
¼ cup fried shallots
270g packet rice vermicelli noodles
Thai basil, to serve (optional)
butter lettuce leaves, to serve
¼ cup crunchy fried noodles
Dressing:
¼ cup honey
2 tbsp white vinegar
2 tbsp fish sauce
- Put a large pot of water over high heat and bring to the boil.
- In the meantime, place the chicken in a large bowl along with the carrot, cabbage, chilli, mint, spring onion and fried shallots. Set aside until ready to serve.
- For the dressing, whisk all the ingredients together. Drizzle half of the dressing over the chicken mixture, then use your hands to give everything a good toss. You want a mere whisper of dressing on everything rather than everything to be saturated. Save the remaining dressing for later.
- Cook the noodles in the boiling water for 2 minutes or until just cooked. Drain and rinse under tap water to cool. Use your hands to form little bundles of noodles and place them on a platter. Add the lettuce to the plate too, as well as the extra mint and Thai basil (if using).
- Sprinkle the crispy noodles over the dressed salad. Serve with the bundles of noodles, herbs and lettuce on the side, plus the additional dressing.
