Chicken Salad With Rice Noodles

This simple low cal salad is a great way to use up some Asian ingredients. The original recipe suggests to put the salad (chicken vegi) over the rice noodles but I tossed everything together. Recipe source: Bon Appetit (September 2007)

• Ready In: 33 mins
• Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

• 4 1⁄2 ounces  rice sticks (malfun)

• For the dressing

• 4  garlic cloves
• 1⁄4 cup soy sauce
• 3  limes, juice of, only
• 1  tablespoon peanut butter (I used low-fat peanut butter)
• 2  teaspoons ginger, chopped
• 1 1⁄4 teaspoons  hot chili paste (sambal oeleck)
• 1⁄4 cup canola oil (or your favorite vegetable oil)

• For the salad

• 3  chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
• 3  cups napa cabbage, shredded
• 1  cup carrot, grated
• 1  red bell pepper, cut into strips
• 1  red onion, thinly sliced
• 1  cucumber, halved lengthwise and sliced crosswise
• 1⁄3 cup peanuts, chopped (optional)

Directions

1. Cook noodles in a pot of boiling water until tender (3 minutes); drain; and cut noodles in several places with scissors. (The original recipe suggests to spread noodles out on a platter, but I added them to the large salad bowl instead).
2. Puree next 7 ingredients (garlic - chili paste) in a blender and with machine running add oil, blending until dressing is smooth. Season with salt and pepper if desired. Set aside.
3. In a large salad bowl combine salad ingredients (chicken - cucumbers). (I tossed the salad ingredients with the noodles in the salad bowl).
4. Toss with dressing.
5. Although I tossed the noodles with the salad in the bowl, the original recipe suggests to arrange noodles on a platter and arrange salad on top of noodles and sprinkle with peanuts, passing additional dressing.
6. Can be served warm or is best refrigerated.