I am on a neverending quest to keep my lunches interesting.  Since I work 25 minutes from home and don't want to go out to lunch every day, I bring my lunch most days.  I am not a sandwich-every-day kind of person, so I am always up for new ways to keep my lunches on the appealing side rather than making lunch banal.  I'm glad to add a new one to the repertoire, my Asian slaw salad.  I developed this recipe after reading several utilizing everything from pre-packaged slaw to ramen noodle soup mix packets.  Yuck!  At the base, however, each recipe was fairly similar and I liked the fresh ingredients as well as the balance of vegetables and protein.  I think (hope) my recipe strikes a nice balance between freshness and convenience. 



Asian Slaw Salad
serves 3-4 as an entrée

1-2 cups chopped or pulled cooked chicken (rotisserie chicken, anyone?)
1 large or 2 small red bell peppers, sliced thin lengthwise (think julienned like french fries)
1/2 bunch green onions, sliced thin (think small, thin rounds like a frisbee)
1/2 cup almons, chopped or slivered
1 large carrot, shredded
1 medium napa cabbage (about 1.5 lb), shredded or sliced very thin
1- 3 oz. package ramen noodles, crushed (discard seasoning packet)
1 Tb. creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup asian sesame salad dressing (see notes)

Combine your carrot and cabbage and sit them in a strainer or collander for about an hour to allow the excess moisture to dry out.  Discard liquid.  Place the carrot and cabbage in a large bowl and add the bell pepper, onions, almonds, chicken, and ramen noodles.  Toss all ingredients to combine. 

In a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the dressing and the peanut butter.  If serving all the salad at once, pour the dressing over the salad and toss to combine; serve.  If portioning the salad out to be eaten over several meals, leave the dressing and salad separate and only add as much dressing as you desire, tossing to combine. 



Notes

• On salad dressings- I used Olde Cape Cod brand's all natural Sesame and Ginger salad dressing.  Other recipes used other brands, and some even made a dressing utilizing the ramen noodle seasoning packet.  Feel free to search asian salads to find what works for you, but I liked that the dressing is easy to make while I can still somewhat control the ingredients. 
• On chicken- I almost never have chicken in my freezer or fridge, which I know makes me sort of odd.  If you want to cook chicken breasts and chop them yourself, feel free.  This is a great use, though, of a rotisserie chicken.