Applebee’s Vegan Oriental Chicken Salad (copycat recipe)

A healthier and vegan version of Applebee’s Oriental Chicken Salad. Crispy, healthy, sweet and savory, this salad hits all the right spots. Easy to make and low cholesterol.

I recently went out to dinner with my parents and some of their friends.  The couple sitting next to me ordered the Oriental Chicken Salad.  As soon as the plate hit the table, I was hit with a flood of memories of eating Applebee’s version of this dish.  

It made me realize I missed this salad quite a bit and haven’t eaten it in the 14 years I’ve been vegetarian and then vegan. Voila!  I was hit with inspiration for a new recipe.  

The base of this salad can be made to fit your tastes.  I used romaine lettuce and napa cabbage.  To make it easier, you can use the pre-made coleslaw mix instead of chopping up napa cabbage. I then added cilantro, carrots, red cabbage and red onion.  Mint would also be good in this if you don’t like cilantro.

 I then baked up some Gardein seven grain crispy tenders to put on top.  If you don’t want to buy the vegan chicken, you can use tofu instead.  Freeze it overnight to give it the chewiness of chicken,  and then bread it and fry or bake it just like you would chicken.  

The dressing was incredible as well.  It had the perfect blend of sweet and savory.    Most recipes I saw for this dressing involved mayonnaise.  To make this a tad healthier, I used vegan plain almond yogurt.  I made sure to make a bigger batch of this to have on hand to 

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Applebee’s Vegan Chicken Salad

A healthy vegan alternative to Applebee’s Oriental Chicken Salad.

5 from 2 votes

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Course: Salad

Cuisine: Asian

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Servings: 4

Calories: 244kcal

Author: Maria

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Ingredients

Dressing

• 1 Cup Plain Vegan Yogurt or Vegan Mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp Maple Syrup or Sweetener of Choice
• 1 tbsp Rice Vinegar
• 1 tbsp Dijon Mustard
• ¼ tsp Sesame Oil
• 1 tbsp Soy Sauce

Salad Base

• 1 Head of Chopped Romaine
• ¼ cup Handful of chopped Napa Cabbage or Fresh Coleslaw Mix
• ¼ cup Handful of chopped Red Cabbage
• ¼ cup of chopped Cilantro or Fresh Mint
• ¼ cup of chopped Red Onion

Toppings

• 4 Gardein Vegan Seven Grain Crispy Tenders
• ¼ cup Handful of Chopped Almonds or Peanuts
• ¼ cup Handful of Dry Chow Mein Noodles

Instructions

• Bake vegan Chicken Tenders
• Chop up and mix together all of the fresh salad base
• Mix together all of the dressing ingredients. Add more vegan yogurt if thicker consistency is desired. Add more vinegar or soy sauce if thinner consistency is desired
• Plate the lettuce. Top with vegan chicken, chow mein noodles, almonds and dressing

Video

Notes

You can use tofu instead of the Gardein Chicken Tenders if you like. Just squeeze the water out of the tofu and freeze over night. Let thaw and then bread and fry or bake it like you would chicken.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Applebee's Vegan Chicken Salad

Amount per Serving

Calories

244

% Daily Value*

Fat

 

9

g

14

%

Saturated Fat

 

2

g

13

%

Trans Fat

 

1

g

Cholesterol

 

40

mg

13

%

Sodium

 

480

mg

21

%

Potassium

 

454

mg

13

%

Carbohydrates

 

24

g

8

%

Fiber

 

3

g

13

%

Sugar

 

10

g

11

%

Protein

 

18

g

36

%

Vitamin A

 

874

IU

17

%

Vitamin C

 

8

mg

10

%

Calcium

 

116

mg

12

%

Iron

 

2

mg

11

%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.