Cilantro Chicken Salad

  4.3 – 29 reviews  

This is my adaptation of a traditional chicken salad dish I found, sans mayo. The ideal way to serve it is over your preferred green salad or in a wrap with lettuce and tomato. Using fat-free broth, light soy sauce, and sugar substitute, none of which alter the flavor, makes it even simpler to make lighter.

Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 15 mins
Total Time: 35 mins
Servings: 4
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

  1. 1 lime, zested and juiced
  2. 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  3. 1 (10.5 ounce) can chicken broth
  4. 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
  5. 2 tablespoons olive oil
  6. 1 teaspoon anchovy paste (Optional)
  7. ½ teaspoon white sugar
  8. ½ teaspoon salt
  9. freshly ground black pepper to taste
  10. 2 cloves garlic, minced
  11. 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
  12. 2 shallots, chopped

Instructions

  1. Place the lime peel, soy sauce, and chicken broth in a skillet over medium heat. Place the chicken breasts in the skillet, and bring to a boil. Cover, and simmer until the chicken is fully cooked. Remove from heat, and allow to cool. Shred chicken, and set aside.
  2. In a separate bowl, whisk together lime juice, olive oil, anchovy paste, sugar, salt, and pepper. Stir in garlic, cilantro, shallots, and chicken. Mix well.

Nutrition Facts

Calories 230 kcal
Carbohydrate 9 g
Cholesterol 71 mg
Dietary Fiber 1 g
Protein 29 g
Saturated Fat 1 g
Sodium 1341 mg
Sugars 2 g
Fat 9 g
Unsaturated Fat 0 g

Reviews

Danielle Harris
I substituted green onion for shallots. I also added a sliver of red onion. Delicious! Great as a sandwich, lettuce wrap or salad topping. I will make this again.
Gavin Morgan
delicious!
Jody Moreno
Very easy to make; and it smelled wonderful.
Heather Cooper
This was very easy and a delicious mix for a wrap for lunch!
Katie Mcmahon
I liked this.. added more lime, soy mixture to the shredded chicken after it was cooked. Refreshing
Tabitha Carter
This was so easy to make. And it tastes good, too!
Amanda Shepherd
I really enjoyed this recipe! Didn’t use the anchovy paste but I just don’t like anchovies. I added chopped fresh mushrooms and red peppers to the broth mixture and then put the cooked down pieces in the salad with the other ingredients. It was absolutely delicious! I will definitely make this dish again.
Robert Mcknight
Great, non-mayo, chicken salad. My husband thinks this is the best chicken salad ever (he does not like mayo). I’ve made it several times to have for lunch with weekend visitors and we just took it to an evening, outdoor concert. Followed the recipe as-is (did not use anchovy). Lots of flavor from the cilantro, garlic and shallots, but not too much. It is great.
Justin Santiago
This recipe was very good. I was a bit worried about it being too overpowering, but it wasn’t. The shallots and the cilantro go well together. Others mentioned that cooking the chicken in the soy sauce/lime mixture was for naught, so I saved 2 tablespoons of that mixture and mixed it in with the shredded chicken to make sure I had some of that flavor still. I also added a large handful of shredded parmesan cheese and we ate this on pitas with a slice of swiss cheese. It was very good. Will definitely make this again.
Rachael Blair
WOW! ABSOLUTELY GREAT!!! My entire family liked it! I served it on a tomato basil tortilla wrap with some tomato and avocado, like one review suggested. The chicken was moist and shredded nicely and we used fat free chicken broth. We estimated this at 7 or 8 Weight Watchers points for 1 wrap. Will definitely make again. This recipe is a keeper! Thanks!!!
Cindy Mason
I loved this salad. Im a vegetarian so I substituted soy chicken and made it exactly the same way and it turned out great!
Corey Clark
this was ok, I guess I just prefer the mayo based chicken salad.
Steven Johnson
Oh how I wanted to love you Cilantro Chicken Salad! As a cilantro fan, I thought this would be the best chix salad of my life. Unfortunately, I found that the poaching process didn’t add additional flavor to the chicken, but alas, the cilantro addition was too overwhelming. I tried in a salad, plain and in a sandwich and although as a part of a lettuce salad was the most palatable, it was a disappointment overall.
Todd Gonzalez
GOOD GOOD GOOD…I had left over chicken from a previous recipe (unbelievable chicken) so I used those pieces to make this salad. I love cilantro so I added a little more than it calls for. I didn’t have the anchovy paste so left it out. GREAT chix salad. Will definitely store in my “do again” recipes.
Christopher Butler
This was pretty simple and quick to make. It looked a little bland and lifeless, but the taste was anything but! It had nice flavor and didn’t make you feel heavy and full. I will be making this one again!
Thomas Roberts
I was looking for a light chicken salad without mayo, and this satisfied. It was delicious tossed with spinach and shredded carrots. I only shredded two chicken breasts into the lime mixture; next time I’d double the dressing if using all four chicken breasts. Added a splash of rice vinegar to the lime juice. To improve even more, I’d add a dash of sesame oil to give it a bit more Asian flavor, and perhaps a bit of minced green onion. Nonetheless excellent, and a wonderful base for ideas.
Steven Saunders
This recipe was awesome! I added quite a bit more cilantro for more flavor. It was served over vermicelli noodles as a cold pasta salad.
Timothy Shaw
The addition of pine nuts made it even more delicious. It made a good filling for lettuce wraps.
Frank Hudson
Excellent! Great summertime dinner. Chicken was moist and light. I served with slices of tomato and avacado and jersey lettuce on tortillas. WONDERFUL! Thanks
Brandon Hughes
Made some changes after reading the reviews. I marinated the chicken in soy sauce and chicken broth, and we grilled the chicken at a very high temperature to make it just a little crisp, but still tender on the inside. I mixed the rest of the ingredients as a dressing and served the chicken strips over a green salad. It was fabulous!
Emma Martinez
Very flavorful recipe. I used leftover chicken and reheated it in the sauce like it called for and then just followed the recipe the rest of the way. I served it over sliced, slightly seasoned avocado and it was wonderful.

 

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top