Asian Assurance

I am willing to admit that I have probably completely alienated my non-New Orleans related readers with my last couple of posts. Normally I try to vary the themes of my posts, but somehow I got carried away and the last three have all been New Orleans focused. I wanted to break the habit and cook something that didn't have anything to do with the Big Easy.

Forrest is a huge fan of salad and asked for a salad for lunch yesterday. I purchased some Wasabi Powder at Saratoga Salsa and Spice Company a couple of months ago in Saratoga Springs, NY and have been looking to find a recipe that required the spicy horseradish powder. This salad dressing was perfect. The heat of the wasabi powder was balanced out perfectly by the sweetness of the maple syrup. The flavor of the dressing was very smooth and this scrumptious salad was effortless to put together.

Asian Chicken Salad with Sweet and Spicy Wasabi Dressing
Adapted from Cooking Light April 2009

Yield

4 servings (serving size: about 1 1/2 cups salad and 3 wonton strips)

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3/4 teaspoon wasabi powder (dried Japanese horseradish)
• 1/4 teaspoon NO-SALT salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 (11.4-ounce) package Asian supreme salad mix (such as Fresh Express) - if you find this brand it will contain the wonton strips and dried cherries.
  
• 1 (8 1/4-ounce) can mandarin oranges in light syrup, drained
• 2 cups shredded cooked rotisserie chicken breast (about 3/4 pound)
• 1 diagonally cut green onion

Preparation

1. Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl; stir well with a whisk.

2. Add salad mix to vinegar mixture, reserving wonton strips for topping and sesame-orange dressing from salad mix for another use. Add oranges, dried cherries and chicken; toss gently to coat.

Top evenly with green onion and reserved wonton strips.