Vietnamese Banh Mi Salad
This Vietnamese Chicken Banh Mi Recipe, served as a Vietnamese Salad, is a favorite you can enjoy, even when you’re watching your waistline.
After the annual holiday free-for-all, It’s now time to refocus on healthy eating habits and exercise.
Boy, do I ever need it!
I could probably use a couple weeks of solid greens to get myself back on track.
It can be a little tricky to recalibrate your diet and still enjoy what you eat…
This Vietnamese Salad should make my annual January transition from sugar-laden gluttony to healthy eating a bit easier. (Few things make me happier than Vietnamese cuisine.)
It’s a variation of a personal favorite, the traditional Vietnamese Banh Mi sandwich.
I like to call it a Banh Mi Recipe, yet since “Banh Mi” refers to bread, I guess the name isn’t really appropriate.
This bread-less Banh Mi Recipe, is light, healthy, and has all the bright flavors of a classic Banh Mi sandwich, stacked on a bed of crispy greens.
Spicy grilled chicken, sweet pickled cucumbers and radishes, carrots, herbs, even the mayonnaise is represented in a light creamy vinaigrette.
The Vietnamese Chicken is marinated in a savory, yet tangy, mixture of fish sauce, lime juice, garlic and jalapeno to give it a bold “umami” flavor.
A touch of sugar in the marinade causes the outside of the Vietnamese chicken to caramelize when it grills, so it’s dark and crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside.
I tossed the cucumbers and radishes in a sweet pickling liquid, so they absorb the flavor and soften just a little. The vinegar mixture is then used as the base of the vinaigrette, to make this Vietnamese Salad come together in a flash.
This Banh Mi style Vietnamese Salad is loaded with flavor. So much so, you won’t even miss the bread!
More Figure-Friendly Salads:
Smoked Trout Salad with Peaches and Avocado
Shaved Fennel Salad with Roasted Beets
Crunchy Kale Salad ~ Use Real Butter
Edamame and Quinoa Salad ~ Ambitious Kitchen
Chopped Brussels Sprouts with Blue Cheese ~ Two Peas & Their Pod
Vietnamese Banh Mi Salad
Ingredients
For The Vietnamese Chicken:
- 1 pound chicken breast
- 1/2 cup fish sauce
- 1/2 cup lime juice
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 4 cloves garlic chopped
- 1 jalapeno chopped
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
For the Vietnamese Salad:
- 1 cup sliced cucumber heaping
- 1 bunch radishes sliced
- 1 bunch green onions chopped
- 1 cup shredded carrot
- 1 cup roughly chopped cilantro
- 1 head romaine lettuce roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup hot tap water
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
For the Banh Mi Dressing:
- 2 tablespoons reserved vinegar mixture
- 3 tablespoons light mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Combine the ingredients for the chicken marinade in a baking dish. Place the chicken in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, chop the vegetables for the salad. Mix the hot water, vinegar, red pepper and salt in a medium bowl. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Then place the cucumbers and radishes in the mixture to pickle. Toss and set aside.
- Preheat the grill to medium heat. Grill the chicken for 5 minutes per side, then cover with foil and let it rest for 5 minutes before slicing.
- Place the romaine lettuce on dinner plates, topped with carrots, pickled cucumbers and radishes, sliced chicken, cilantro and green onions.
- Mix 2 tablespoons of the pickling vinegar liquid with mayo and olive oil. Whisk well and salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle over the top of the salads.
SO MANY pretty colors!!!
So much flavor, I love it.
What a gorgeous salad! It looks so fresh and delicious. And ahhhh, I love your redesign! It is fabulous!
I love banh mi sandwiches – but salad form? Yes please!
Beautiful salad!
I have never tried anything like this, it looks amazing and I need to get on the healthy track in a bad way!
What a bright and lovely salad! Thanks for sharing this carb free version of such a great recipe. :)
looks awesome!
Wow, look at the gorgeous colors on this salad! I’ve never had a banh mi before and I hear I’m missing out! Lovely.
What a gorgeous salad!! I am on a Vietnamese food kick lately.. love this!
Sommer, this looks so healthy and delicious! I definitely need this after my holiday food free for all!
So fresh and gorgeous, Sommer! I love it!
I love the flavors in this! Pinned! :)
This is my kind of salad!! I love cooking with Vietnamese flavors and ingredients (and always have fish sauce on hand.) LOVE that you made it healthier!
What a smart idea! I have yet to try a Bahn Mi sandwich and I still can’t believe that. I know I would love it (and this salad too!)
My only suggestion: add 1 tsp fish sauce, 1 tsp line, and 1 tsp Sriracha to the mayo and olive oil. It ain’t Banh-mi without that za-zing!
Just found a place that’s way off the beaten path (out here in Denver) that sells $3 Banh-mis. Three dollars!! I want to buy then a food truck so bad.
Great looking salad!
Ohhhhh wow!!! That dressing is soooooo easy and I love the marinade for the chicken.