Asian Crunch Salad with Ginger Dressing (Meal Prep)

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• Quick Look: Asian Crunch Salad
• Key Ingredient Notes and Substitution Ideas
• Recipe Variations
• How to Make this Asian Crunch Salad
• Expert Tips 
• Mallory's Dietitian Tip!
• Asian Crunch Salad FAQs
• Here are some recipes with similar ingredients
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

Key Ingredient Notes and Substitution Ideas

This Asian Crunch Salad is made with simple ingredients. Below are some notes. Check the recipe card at the bottom for measurements.

Salad Ingredients

• Cabbage - I use a combination of green cabbage and red cabbage. Cabbage adds crunch, flavor, and essential nutrients including dietary fiber and antioxidants. To make this recipe even easier, buy packaged slaw or shredded cabbage and give it one more run through with your knife. Feel free to use napa cabbage if you prefer. It's a bit more delicate than regular cabbage so it won't be quite as crunchy. 
• Carrots - for this recipe, I love the texture of carrots thinly sliced using a vegetable peeler. Grated carrots work too. I suggest buying whole carrots and shredding or grating them yourself if you have a couple minutes. To save time, you can use packaged shredded carrots. If you love a carrot ribbon salad, you may also like my carrot cucumber salad with sesame ginger dressing.
• Red Pepper - to add more color, nutrition, and flavor. If you love red peppers and want something a little different, try my cucumber red pepper salad.
• Green Onions - green onions compliment the flavor of the crisp veggies. Keep in mind that the white parts of a green onion have a stronger flavor. I use the greens with just a little bit of the white part for this recipe. If you prefer, you can use red onion or scallions instead.
• Fresh Herbs - cilantro & fresh mint add so much flavor to this salad! Basil or parsley would go well with the other flavors here too.
• Cashews - cashews add extra crunch and healthy fats to support brain health. I use roasted cashews.
• Shredded Chicken - this is optional to add protein. If you want to keep it vegan, edamame beans or tofu are great plant sources of protein.
• Toppings of choice - add toasted sesame seeds, bean sprouts, crunchy rice noodles, or crispy wontons on top of the fresh veggies!

Dressing Ingredients

• Fresh Lime Juice - using fresh lime juice instead of lime juice from a bottle makes a big difference in the taste.
• Toasted Sesame Oil - toasted sesame oil has a depth of flavor that adds a nuttiness to this dressing and a little goes a long way. You can use regular sesame oil if it's what you have.
• Olive Oil - extra virgin olive oil balances out the stronger sesame oil. You can substitute with avocado oil if you prefer! Both avocado oil and olive oil contain healthy fats.
• Rice Wine Vinegar - rice vinegar is a bit sweeter than other vinegars. You can substitute with white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar.
• Low Sodium Soy Sauce - to add umami flavor. To make this recipe gluten-free, substitute soy sauce with coconut aminos.
• Maple Syrup - adding a sweetener like maple syrup balances out the citrus flavor in this dressing. Honey, agave, or your sweetener of choice work here as a substitution.
• Fresh Ginger Root - freshly grated ginger root is an easy way to add a bit of spice. Ginger contains antioxidants and has anti-inflammatory properties.
• Garlic
• Crushed Red Pepper Flakes - to add a little kick.
• Optional: black pepper to taste.

Recipe Variations

One of the best parts about a crunchy Asian cabbage salad is that you can easily customize it with different flavor combinations to your taste. Below are a few ideas for variations.

• Spicy -some of the easiest ways to kick up the spice level in this dish are to double the crushed red pepper chili flakes in the dressing, add sriracha or hot sauce, or add a jalapeno or serrano pepper.
• Deluxe - in addition to the green and purple cabbage, carrots, and bell pepper, you can add more crunchy vegetables like snap peas, radishes, or celery. Feel free to add chopped kale or romaine lettuce for even more flavor and nutrition. 
• Peanut Dressing - if you prefer, use a simple peanut dressing instead of the Lime Ginger Dressing.

For another recipe using shredded purple cabbage and carrots, try my purple cabbage coleslaw with a creamy Greek yogurt dressing.

How to Make this Asian Crunch Salad

Below are the instructions for how to make this recipe with visuals I hope are helpful!

Hint: use a vegetable peeler to peel the carrot into ribbons.

Expert Tips 

• I suggest shredding the vegetables pretty finely for this recipe. It helps to ensure everything gets coated with the lime dressing.
• For the dressing, use a citrus zester to grate your ginger.
• For a shortcut, use packaged slaw and a bag of shredded carrots. 

Asian Crunch Salad FAQs

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do! I would love to hear from you! If you made this recipe, please leave me a review below or tag me in a photo or story on Instagram. Your reviews help support me and make it possible for me to continue to create the recipes you know and love. 🙂 IG: @mallorythedietitian

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