One of Junior Too’s favorite salads is Panera Bread’s Asian Sesame Chicken Salad. Several years ago, I set out to duplicate it and this recipe resulted. Granted, Junior Too still puts his thumb a bit higher for Panera Bread’s version, but my version is a close second. Note: Senior and I like the addition of Craisins, whereas Junior prefers to stick with the original non-Craisin version.
1 tbsp olive oil
2 chicken breasts, sliced into thin, bite-sized pieces
sea salt
ground black pepper
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
2 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp sesame seeds (I used duo–white and black mix)
8 cups chopped romaine lettuce
1 cup rice noodles
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup Craisins (optional)
1) 60 minutes before assembling salad, add olive oil to large skillet over medium-high heat; add chicken pieces, lightly season with salt and pepper, and cook 2 minutes each side until lightly golden and cooked through; transfer chicken to paper-towel lined plate and chill in refrigerator
2) 45 minutes before assembling salad, prepare dressing: whisk vegetable oil, rice vinegar, brown sugar, sesame oil, and sesame seeds in small bowl and chill in refrigerator
3) Assemble salad, dividing ingredients between 4 plates in this order: romaine lettuce, chicken, rice noodles, sliced almonds, and Craisins (optional); serve with dressing
Servings: 4 dinner-sized portions; 8 side-salad portions
TAMARA LEIGH: The Kitchen Novelist 