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Vietnamese Chicken Salad with Sweet Lime-Garlic Dressing (Goi Gà)

Vietnamese Chicken Salad with Sweet Lime-Garlic Dressing (Goi Gà)

By Julia RackowOctober 15, 2019

  • Makes
    6 servings
  • Cook Time
    15 minutes
  • Rating

This refreshing salad is a symphony of tastes, colors and textures. Fish sauce, known as nuoc mam in Vietnam, gives the dressing savory, umami-rich underpinnings, while lime juice, sugar and garlic punch up the flavors. The jalapeños add moderate spiciness; if you prefer mild heat, seed the jalapeños before slicing them. Store-bought rotisserie chicken makes this salad simple to prepare; a small to average-size bird yields about 3 cups of shredded meat. The finished salad can be covered and refrigerated up to an hour.

Tip

Don't tear the basil too far in advance or it will discolor. When preparing the herbs, leave them on the large side. Bigger pieces punctuate the salad with color, flavor and texture. Marinating the sliced onion in the dressing for about 10 minutes tames its raw bite, so don’t skip this step.

Ingredients
  • ⅓

    cup lime juice, plus lime wedges, to serve

  • 3½

    tablespoons fish sauce

  • 1½

    teaspoons white sugar

  • 2

    medium garlic cloves, finely grated

  • 1

    small red onion, quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced

  • 3

    cups shredded cooked chicken

  • ½

    medium head green or red cabbage (14 ounces), cored and shredded (about 4 cups)

  • 4

    medium carrots, peeled and shredded on the large holes of a box grater (about 2 cups)

  • 3

    medium jalapeño chilies, stemmed, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

  • 1

    cup lightly packed fresh basil, torn

  • 1

    cup lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems, roughly chopped

  • 1½

    cups roasted, salted peanuts, roughly chopped

Step 1

In a small bowl,stir together the lime juice, fish sauce, sugar and garlic, until the sugar dissolves. Add the onion and let stand for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Step 2

In a large bowl, toss together the chicken, cabbage, carrots, chilies, basil and cilantro. Pour on the red onion–dressing mixture and toss. Toss in half of the peanuts, then transfer to a serving bowl. Sprinkle with the remaining peanuts and serve with lime wedges on the side.

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