I love salads, and I’ll make them year-round. Of course, summertime is when I make the most because I can walk out back to the garden and pick fresh lettuce, spinach and other spring veggies to get my salad fix. But today is February 24, and it’s a cold and windy day here in Iowa. No fresh veggies outside, but my salad craving was in high gear. I turned to Pinterest (as usual) to find something that sounded delicious yet easy to throw together that would both take care of my desire for salad and serve as a main dish for dinner.

I stumbled across an Asian chicken salad on Reluctant Entertainer. It called for packaged coleslaw mix, cranberries and rotisserie chicken, ingredients I could easily find in my small-town grocery store. Using a premade slaw mix is a super time saver, but you could easily make your own by shredded some green and purple cabbage and adding in some shredded carrots. I made a few other modifications to the recipe (omitted the cilantro because some family members aren’t big fans). It’s a salad – not rocket science – and you can change ingredients however you wish to suit your family’s tastes.

Asian Chicken Slaw

2 small bags of coleslaw mix (about 12 cups)
4 cups rotisserie chicken, finely chopped
1 1/2 cups toasted sliced almonds
8 ounces dried cranberries
3/4 cup red onion, finely diced
1 1/2 cups chopped cilantro
1/4 cup black sesame seeds
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons honey or brown sugar
2 tablespoons minced ginger
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

Layer the cabbage in a large bowl with chicken, almonds, cranberries, red onion, sesame seeds, and fresh cilantro.

Combine the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, honey, ginger and sesame oil in a blender. Add 2 tablespoons of water. Process until smooth.

Lightly pour the dressing over the salad mixture and toss; serve.

Visit Canning and Cooking Iowa Style’s profile on Pinterest.