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In honor of my love of eating cooking, I've decided to start a little series on the blog devoted exclusively to all of my favorite sweet treats and good eats. My goal is to post at least one main dish, side dish, and dessert recipe each week to share with all my beloveds in attempt to give you a peek at what we are enjoying that week should you be looking to add anything new to your own menus! I know that I am always looking for new recipes to try and love having a primary source review to warn yay or nay before I cash out for all of the ingredients. I love Pinterest just as much as the next gal, but let's be honest -- sometimes the internet just doesn't tell the whole truth. . .especially when it comes to food.
First up to share is a popular side dish that my two boys just can't get enough of. Having passed this recipe around a few times, I know that many friends of mine also have their own version of an Asian Cabbage Salad that they or their families love. I did a little internet investigation and found a great base recipe that almost mirror images the way I start my version of the salad. I think anyone who starts with this particular base will set themselves up well to throw in any additions as they see fit.
Disclaimer: Before I go into my favorite add-ons, I should probably cop to the fact that almost all of my cooking is built from the ground up using a foundational recipe and then sprinkled with ingredients I think will enhance the dish and kick it up a notch. Whenever I'm making anything new I always follow the recipe exactly as it is written for the first go-round before I start assuming that I know better. After the first try, all bets are off and I do as I please. There are very, very few recipes I employ regularly that I have not adapted in some way or other -- which, unfortunately, means I have very few exact recipes to share. I also grew up with a German mother from an Old World household who didn't believe in measuring anything but hard work, so I learned to cook in the school of "a little of this" and a "pinch of that." However, as this series progresses and I get my blogging wits about me a bit more, I will do my best to share exact measurements and ingredients wherever I can.
Back to the salad!
One thing that I love about this recipe is that many of the ingredients are located in the same aisle of the grocery store. Nothing makes me happier than not having to tote the Bash Brothers up and down 8 different aisles all for the sake of making one dish. For this salad, you can grab all you need in just one lap.
In addition to the Napa cabbage, I also throw in shredded red cabbage and carrots. If you're not in the mood to shred, you can also buy both of these items precut in the produce aisle. To take it one step further, if you're not in the mood to cut anything, grab a bag of the shredded coleslaw mix and all of your main ingredients have taken care of themselves. Instead of throwing the sliced almonds in the oven to toast, toss them around in a bare skillet on medium heat for a few minutes and you're all set. I love a good crunch in any salad, so I also crush a package of uncooked Ramen noodles and toast them along with the sliced almonds. Delicious!
If you're looking for a way to make this side salad go more main dish, shredded chicken is the answer. If you don't happen to have a freshly roasted chicken lying around like Martha would, a grocery rotisserie will do the trick. (Here's where I offer up thanks to the sweet soul who placed ready made rotisserie chickens in grocery stores. Someone find them and buy them a round!) Shred whichever portions of the bird that you favor (we teeter-totter between white and dark meat in this house) and toss it with the rest of the ingredients.
Where the dressing is concerned, I like to ditch the vegetable oil and substitute sesame oil. It just gives the dressing that much more flavor and the salad so much more life. Many a great salad has met its maker via a subpar dressing. If you like a little kick, a dash of sweet chile sauce can give the dressing a sweeter and spicier feel.
For me, the cilantro is the cherry on top of this recipe. If you want to change everything else about the dish and keep just one element -- the cilantro is the keeper. It just gives such a fresh feel to the whole shebang.
