Vietnamese Chicken and Noodle Salad

An Asian inspired chicken and noodle salad will add some zip to your day and shake up your normal meal routine. I like to make these salads and portion them out for various meals throughout the week. Here is a recipe for Vietnamese Chicken and Noodle Salad from Eating Well.

Vietnamese Chicken & Noodle Salad

4 servings, 2 1/2 cups each

Active Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

INGREDIENTS
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed
4 ounces wide rice noodles
1/2 cup rice-wine vinegar
1 tablespoon fish sauce, (see Ingredient Note)
2 teaspoons sugar, or to taste
3 cups shredded napa cabbage
1 English cucumber, halved, seeded and thinly sliced
1 cup shredded carrot
1 cup slivered fresh basil
1/2 cup finely chopped unsalted roasted peanuts

PREPARATION
Place chicken in a skillet or saucepan and add enough water to cover; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and gently simmer until the chicken is cooked through and no longer pink in the middle, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board. When cool enough to handle, shred into bite-size strips.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Stir in rice noodles and cook until just tender, 6 to 8 minutes, or according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water.
Whisk vinegar, fish sauce and sugar to taste in a large bowl until the sugar is dissolved. Add the chicken, noodles, cabbage, cucumber, carrot, basil and peanuts; toss to combine. Serve immediately.

TIPS & NOTES
Make Ahead Tip: Prepare salad up to 8 hours in advance. Toss with peanuts just before serving.
Ingredient Note: Fish sauce is a pungent Southeast Asian sauce made from salted, fermented fish. It can be found in the Asian section of large supermarkets and in Asian specialty markets

NUTRITION
Per serving: 402 calories; 12 g fat ( 2 g sat , 5 g mono ); 63 mg cholesterol; 44 g carbohydrates; 31 g protein; 5 g fiber; 667 mg sodium; 454 mg potassium.

Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin A (100% daily value), Vitamin K (60% dv), Vitamin C (40% dv), Selenium (37% dv).

Carbohydrate Servings: 2 1/2

Exchanges: 2 starch, 1 vegetable, 3 lean meat, 1/2 fat