Rice wine, soy sauce, and a dash of Penang Chinese Five Spice.
Just three ingredients for a flavorful Chinese-style marinade. It’s the starting base for our Chinese Gourmet BBQ Pork Jerky, and everything you need to marinate the chicken in this Chinese Honey BBQ Chicken Salad.
We’ve been hearing from more and more of you requesting low-carb or Paleo-friendly recipes. Keep those emails coming, we love to hear from you!
For those of you who did contact us, many of you had mentioned that with a diet change, you’ve also craved more flavor – spicier or richer flavors.
That’s when Asian ingredients, like sauces and vibrant spice blends, are fun to incorporate into your recipes to give your dishes that much needed kick.
Marinate lean chicken breasts with a combination of rice wine, Penang Chinese Five Spice, and soy sauce (or liquid or coconut aminos for an alternative). Then grill outside for that extra smoky flavor, or keep it simple on a frying pan on the stove. When the chicken is almost cooked, brush on some honey to give the chicken a nice, caramelized sweetness.
Chop up the Chinese Honey BBQ Chicken into small cubes, then toss it with a large bowl of refreshing romaine lettuce, crisp cucumbers, bell pepper, crunchy bean sprouts and scallions.
For the dressing, combine vegetable oil with more honey and soy sauce. Stir in some rice vinegar and toasted sesame oil, and a generous amount of freshly chopped garlic, to create a balance of savory, sweet flavors. Then sprinkle in Japanese Chili Flakes to spice it up.
Enjoy a big bowl of Chinese Honey BBQ Chicken Salad all to yourself, or make it for your next summer potluck!
Chinese Honey BBQ Chicken Salad recipe
Ingredients
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1.5 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry
- 1 1/2 tsp of Season with Spice’s Penang Chinese Five Spice
- 1 tbsp honey
For the salad:
- About 3-4 cups of chopped romaine lettuce
- 1 yellow or orange bell pepper – chopped
- 1 cucumber – chopped
- A large handful of bean sprouts
- 1-2 scallions – chopped
- Toasted sesame seeds and Roasted Black Sesame Seeds to sprinkle on top
For the soy-garlic dressing:
- 2 tbsp neutral-tasting oil I used sunflower oil
- 3 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
- 1.5 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- 4-5 cloves garlic – minced
- 1/2 tsp Japanese chili flakes Ichimi Togarashi, or more to taste
Instructions
- Combine chicken, soy sauce, rice wine, and our Penang Chinese Five Spice in a shallow baking dish, and let marinate for at least 15 minutes (or preferably, keep in a Ziploc bag to marinate overnight in the fridge).
- Heat the grill, brush it clean, then lightly apply oil to the grate. Grill chicken for about 3-4 minutes on each side.
- When it’s almost cooked, brush the chicken generously with honey and cook until done. Remove and let rest for at least 3-4 minutes. (Alternatively, you can just cook the chicken on a frying pan over the stove)
- As you are waiting for the chicken to rest, whisk all the ingredients for the dressing together. Then chop the grilled chicken into small cubes.
- In a large bowl, toss together chopped romaine lettuce, bell pepper, cucumber, bean sprouts, scallions and the chopped chicken.
- Pour in the Soy-Garlic Dressing and give everything another toss. Sprinkle with the toasted sesame seeds. Serve immediately.