Light, healthy and packing a good kick, these bowls make for the perfect easy midweek lunch. (Hello, work-from-home perk!)
While the recipe below features chicken, Napa cabbage, carrots and cashews, this is very much an outline to choose your own adventure. Feel free to substitute whatever you have on hand: avocado for chicken, cucumber for carrots, peanuts for cashews— there’s lots of room to play here. The dressing is really the star, made of equal parts honey, vinegar, oil and sambal oelek (an Indonesian chile paste that you can find in most grocery stores). She’s a hot one, but so addictive!
Makes two bowls.
Ingredients
- 1 cup cooked shredded chicken (rotisserie chicken is great here!)
- 1 cup thinly sliced Napa cabbage
- 1/4 cup Sambal Dressing (see below)
- 1 and 1/2 cups cooked grains (wild rice is pictured, but brown rice is another favorite)
- 1/2 cup chopped carrot
- 1/4 cup cashews, toasted and chopped
- 1 tablespoon torn cilantro
Sambal Dressing
- 1/4 cup Sambal Oelek
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Method
First, make the dressing. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl or mason jar and whisk/ shake to combine. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, add your pulled chicken, cabbage and 1/4 cup of the dressing. Toss to combine and set aside. Save the rest of the dressing in an airtight container in the fridge for future dishes.
If your grains are cold, reheat them covered in the microwave or on the stovetop with a tiny splash of water.
To plate, add 3/4 of a cup of warm grains in each of two bowls. Split the chicken and cabbage mixture over the top. Sprinkle half of the carrots and cashews over each portion. Finish with torn cilantro, and serve!
