A quick, high-protein lunch idea I canโt get enough of – this sushi-inspired chicken salad with creamy avocado, crunchy cucumber, spicy chili crisp, garlicky aioli, and pickled ginger is basically my ideal sushi roll in salad form. Serve it in nori sheets, in a sandwich, or over rice for an easy, flavor-packed, preppable meal.
Lunch has always been the meal I find hardest to get inspired for. Too often it ends up being dinner leftovers, or a quick peanut butter-on-toast situation. And while thereโs nothing wrong with that, Iโve been making an effort to prep lunches that actually keep me full and fuel me through the afternoon.
Enter this lovely, sushi-inspired chicken salad situation. Inspired by a version I spotted from The Daily Kale on TikTok, I loved the concept and decided to put my own spin on it.
This all started as a simple way to prep a topping for a poke bowl – or loaded rice bowl – for my boyfriendโs dinner while I was going to be out. He loved it (heโs obsessed with anything high-protein), so I knew it was worth turning into a full recipe.
Iโve essentially taken everything I adore about a sushi roll and turned it into a salad: creamy avocado, crunchy cucumber and scallions, spicy chili crisp, garlicky aioli, pickled ginger – all mixed with shredded chicken for an easy protein hit. Serve it up in nori sheets as sushi bites, use it as a sandwich filler (it’s lovely with no-knead chili cheese focaccia), scoop it up with baked crispy pita chips, or pile it on top of rice (or even loaded baked rice) to make a cheat’s poke bowl (kind of like this juicy chicken poke bowl).
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- High in protein (nearly 50g!) and lower in carbs.
- Perfect for weekday lunches.
- All the best sushi flavors, without the faff (or price tag).
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Shredded chicken. Use a rotisserie chicken for ease. I’m using chicken breast, but thighs are great too.
- Chili oil. Use your favorite – or make your own 30 minute chili oil – it’s super easy!
- Pickled ginger. You can skip this if you can’t find it (it’s usually in the Asian food aisle in the grocery store), but I love it for adding another sushi-inspired element.
- Avocado. Make sure your avocado is nice and ripe – this makes it easier to mix into the salad.
- Cilantro. If you don’t like it, you can swap the cilantro for chives, flat-leaf parsley or mint leaves.
- Nori. This is for serving the chicken salad – I like to scoop it up and spoon it into small pieces of the nori to make sushi bites.
How to Make the Chicken Salad
This is a step-by-step photo overview of how to make the chicken salad – the full recipe with ingredient quantities and instructions is at the bottom of the page for you.
1. Add all the ingredients for your chicken salad to a mixing bowl.
2. Use the back of a spoon to lightly mash the avocado and mix the ingredients.
3. Taste, then season with a little more salt and lime juice if needed.
4. Serve the chicken salad however you’d like – I love using little pieces of nori or seaweed crisps to make sushi bites. Or, use it as a sandwich filler, or pile it onto sushi rice for an easy cheat’s poke bowl.
Sushi-Inspired Chicken Salad FAQs
Totally! If you’re not a cilantro fan, swap it for flat-leaf parsley, chives, or fresh mint leaves. You could also add extra scallions.
It will keep well in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. You might notice the avocado will dull in color over time (it’ll go slightly brown). The lime juice helps to preserve the color, but don’t worry if it does go a little brown. Just give the salad a mix before you serve it again.
You definitely can – it’s great as a prep-ahead lunch option. If you like, you could even mix everything except the avocado, and then mix it through when you’re ready to serve. This will preserve the color.
This is a super versatile salad! I love serving it scooped into pieces of nori for little sushi bites, but it’s great as a sandwich or wrap filler. Or, you can use it as a dip and scoop it up with baked crispy pita chips, or use it as a cheat’s poke bowl topping by serving it over rice.
Like this recipe? Try these easy chicken ideas next
If you make this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! You can leave a recipe rating and a comment below. And remember to tag @DishedByKate on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok if you’ve made one of my recipes. Seeing your recreations really makes my day ๐.
Print
High-Protein Sushi-Inspired Chicken Salad
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 2 servings
- Diet: Low Calorie
Description
A quick, high-protein lunch idea I canโt get enough of – this sushi-inspired chicken salad with creamy avocado, crunchy cucumber, spicy chili crisp, garlicky aioli, and pickled ginger is basically my ideal sushi roll in salad form. Serve it in nori sheets, in a sandwich, or over rice for an easy, flavor-packed, preppable meal.
Ingredients
- 2 cooked chicken breasts, chopped or shredded (use a rotisserie chicken for ease)
- 1 large ripe avocado
- 2 tablespoons lime juice (juice of a whole lime)
- 1 tablespoon egg-free garlic aioli, regular mayo, or homemade Kewpie mayo
- 1 tablespoon chili crisp (or 30 minute chili oil)
- 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon pickled ginger, chopped
- 1 tablespoon crispy onions
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 scallions, finely sliced
- 1/2 a cucumber, diced
- Handful of cilantro leaves, chopped
- 2 teaspoons furikake seasoning (optional, to serve)
Instructions
- Combine the salad ingredients.ย In a mixing bowl, add the shredded chicken, the flesh of the avocado, 2 tablespoons of lime juice, 1 tablespoon garlic aioli, 1 tablespoon chili crisp, 2 teaspoons of sesame seeds, 1 teaspoon light soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of chopped pickled ginger, 1 tablespoon of crispy onions, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, the sliced scallions, diced cucumber and cilantro leaves.
- Mix the chicken salad.ย Use the back of a spoon to lightly mash the avocado in the bowl, and mix the ingredients. Taste, then season with a little more salt if needed. Sprinkle the salad with the furikake seasoning if you’re using it.
- Serve the chicken salad.ย You can serve the salad any way you like – I love to spoon it into little pieces of nori sheets to make little sushi bites. But, it’s equally great as a sandwich filler, topper for crackers, or you can pile it on top of rice to make a quick, cheat’s poke bowl.
Notes
INGREDIENT NOTES:ย If you’re not a fan of cilantro, swap it for chives, flat-leaf parsley, or mint leaves. You can skip the cucumber and scallions if you like – it’s great either way! For ease, I like to use a rotisserie chicken to make this salad. If you have MSG, I often like to add a tiny pinch to the salad too. It just bumps up the flavor even more.
STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS:ย The chicken salad will keep well for 2 days in the fridge – the color of the avocado will dull over time – but it’ll still taste great. The lime juice does help to preserve the color a little, but don’t be worried when you see the color dull.
- Prep Time: 10
- Category: salads
- Method: no cook
- Cuisine: asian
Nutrition
- Calories: 484
- Sugar: 1.7g
- Sodium: 999.5mg
- Fat: 25.9g
- Saturated Fat: 4.4g
- Unsaturated Fat: 21.5g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 12.2g
- Fiber: 5.9g
- Protein: 49.4g
- Cholesterol: 129mg
0 Comments