This Thai-Inspired Mango Chicken Salad is the showstopper your salad game needs. Think Saigon salad but make it bold. Juicy mango, crunchy cabbage, and shredded chicken team up with a zingy lime vinaigrette and fresh herbs that know how to party.

Squeezing lime juice over a mango chicken salad.

Here is Why This Thai Chicken Salad Recipe Works

Bright, Fresh Flavors: Juicy mango, zesty lime, and fresh herbs make this salad anything but basic. It’s like a tropical vacation, but without the awkward tan lines.

Perfectly Poached Chicken: No dry, sad chicken here! Poaching with ginger and chili keeps it tender, juicy, and full of flavor.

Texture for Days: Crunchy cabbage, crisp veggies, and salty peanuts give every bite that satisfying crunch we all love.

Customizable Spice Levels: Want it mild? Skip the chili. Feeling bold? Double it up. This salad plays nice with your heat preference.

If you like this salad, try our Chicken larb salad.

Ingredients used to make a Thai chicken salad with mango.

The Ingredients

Meat: Chicken breasts
Produce: Green cabbage, mango, carrot, daikon radish, red chili peppers, ginger root, green onions, fresh Thai basil leaves, fresh mint leaves, limes, garlic
Pantry: Salted peanuts, toasted sesame oil
Pantry Seasonings: Salt, black pepper,
Condiments: Spicy peanut sauce, pickled ginger, Asian fish sauce, soy sauce

Variations

Spicy Cashew Mango Chicken Salad: Swap the peanuts for cashews and add a teaspoon of chili oil to the lime vinaigrette. Serve it with a hot bowl of Beef Pho.

Grilled Pineapple Chicken Salad: Replace the mango with grilled pineapple slices.

Crunchy Sesame Slaw Chicken Salad: Toss in ¼ cup of sesame seeds and add a splash of rice vinegar.

If you like this recipe, try our Lemongrass Chicken Satay recipe.

A salad bowl with shredded chicken, crunchy veggies and mango slices.

Tips for Success

For the best texture and flavor, make sure the shredded chicken is fully cooled before tossing it with the salad.
Cut the veggies in uniform slices.
Don’t skimp on the Thai basil and mint, they’re the secret to that fresh, bold flavor.
Poach the chicken and prep the vinaigrette in advance to save time on busy days.
Adjust the amount of chili pepper to suit your spice preference…. mild, medium, or full-on fire.
Toast the peanuts to bring out their flavor and add an extra layer of crunch.

A chicken salad with mango and peanut sauce.

Storage

Refrigerating: Store leftover salad and chicken separately in airtight containers to keep the flavors fresh. The salad should be eaten within 2 days. Keep the lime vinaigrette in a small container and drizzle just before serving.

Freezing: While the salad ingredients don’t freeze well, you can freeze the poached chicken. Place the cooled, shredded chicken in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months.

A dish filled with mango chicken salad with lime vinaigrette.

Mango Chicken Salad with Peanut Sauce

This Thai-Inspired Mango Chicken Salad is the salad that gets it. Sweet, spicy, crunchy, and totally fresh. It’s a flavor-packed upgrade to your dinner routine.

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Thai Mango Chicken Salad

This mango chicken salad is a great summer salad with moist, tender, flavorful shredded chicken, a lot of good crisp veggies, sweet mango slices, and fresh herbs. It is tossed with a tangy lime vinaigrette dressing and served with chopped salty peanuts and a spicy peanut sauce.

4.94 from 15 votes

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Prep Time: 30

Cook Time: 20

Total Time: 50

Servings: to 8 servings

Calories: 401kcal

Author: Pat Nyswonger

Ingredients

To Poach the Chicken:

4 cups water more as needed
2 teaspoons salt
1 Fresno red chili pepper sliced lengthwise and seeds removed
1 (2-inch) piece of ginger root peeled and thinly sliced
4 chicken breasts about 1-¼ pounds

For the Salad:

6 cups shredded green cabbage about ½ head
1 mango peeled, pitted and julienned
1 large carrot shredded
1 cup grated daikon radish
1 Fresno red chili pepper seeded and sliced into thin rings
5-6 green onions thinly sliced, white and green parts
1 cup coarsely torn fresh Thai basil leaves
1 cup coarsely torn fresh mint leaves
2 fresh limes cut into wedges
1 cup chopped salted peanuts
1 cup spicy peanut sauce
Mint and Thai sprigs for garnish

For the Lime Vinaigrette

¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
1 garlic clove grated
4 tablespoons soy sauce
pinch of fresh ground black pepper
2 tablespoons finely chopped pickled ginger
⅓ cup toasted sesame oil

Instructions

In a deep saucepan or skillet, combine the water, salt, chili pepper, and ginger root slices. Bring to a boil over high heat.
Add the chicken breasts (add more water so the chicken is fully covered), reduce the heat to low, cover the pan and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and let sit until the chicken is fully cooked, (testing in the thickest part with an instant read thermometer to 165°F) for an additional 10 minutes.
Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and shred with two forks and place on a plate. Refrigerate chicken until cool.

For the Lime Vinaigrette:

Whisk together the lime juice, fish sauce, garlic, soy sauce, pepper and pickled ginger. Slowly add the toasted sesame oil and whisk to combine.

For the Salad:

In a large bowl, combine the cabbage, mango, carrot, radish, chili pepper, onions, basil and mint. Add ½ of the cooled shredded chicken and the prepared lime vinaigrette. Toss to combine.
To serve: Divide the tossed salad between 6 individual chilled plates and top each with an equal portion of the remaining shredded chicken.
Garnish each salad with sprigs of basil and/or mint. Serve with lime wedges, salted peanuts and the spicy peanut sauce.

Notes

Nutrition values represent a portion size, 1/6 of the salad and vinaigrette and without the peanuts and spicy peanut sauce.

Nutrition

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4.94 from 15 votes (15 ratings without comment)

mimi rippee

Tuesday 21st of January 2020

This is fun! I love all of the ingredients - the flavors and textures especially - in this salad! Plus peanuts and a fabulous dressing. Perfect for summer!

Pat Nyswonger

Thank you, Mimi....It is really a great salad, one of my favorites and like you say "Perfect for summer"! ?

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