Thai Turmeric Chicken Salad – A fresh chicken salad that’s bursting with amazing flavours and vibrant colours!

If you love thai food, then this recipe is for you! This Thai Turmeric Chicken Salad is loaded with the most delicious flavours and it tastes similar to something you would get in Thailand!

In this recipe, the chicken is marinated in a marinade consisting of turmeric (hence the name), fish sauce (essential in thai cooking and a real umami bomb!), pepper, ground coriander, a dash of soy sauce and a little bit if brown sugar. You can use either chicken breast or chicken thigh – if using chicken breast, slice it horizontally. This will help the flavours from the marinade to penetrate the meat but also shorten the cooking time, preventing the chicken breast from getting dry. If you’re short on time, you can score the chicken breast to create more area for the marinade to work its magic!

Here the chicken is served with a massive veggie packed salad! This salad can get really hot, so if you’re sensitive to chilli heat, do remove the seeds and the white membranes from the chilli before making the dressing for the salad, as most of the heat is located there. And don’t add any more chilli!

This salad is great on its own, but if you want the salad to be more substantial, serve it with a bowl of jasmine rice or some sticky rice!

Thai Turmeric Chicken Salad – Nutrition Breakdown

This colourful and vibrant thai turmeric chicken salad is packed with nutrients such as

Glucosinolates – Red cabbage contains the compound glucosinolate, which can support the livers detoxification system and may also have anticancer properties!
Anthocyanin – An antioxidant found in many red and purple vegetables that may protect against cell damage, premature ageing and may also be good for cardiovascular health!
Selenium – This trace mineral is important for thyroid health and for immune function! Eating a diet rich in selenium is believed to have a protective effect against both cancer and heart health.
Curcumin – Turmeric is the star in this recipe but also one of the most hyped spices right now. Turmeric contains curcumin, which gives turmeric it’s yellow colour but also believed to be responsible for the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of turmeric! And as an added bonus this recipe has black pepper in it, which enhances the absorption of curcumin!
B-vitamins – This meal is rich in most b-vitamins, which are all important for healthy brain function, metabolism of the food you eat and the production of neurotransmitters that make you feel good!

This recipe is both dairy free and can be made gluten free by using a GF soy sauce!

Want more chicken recipes?

Ginger Lime Chilli Chicken – A fresh and flavour packed chicken recipe that’s perfect for both frying in the pan or throwing on the BBQ!
Chicken Piperade – Do you have red peppers in the fridge you need to eat? Then this meal is for you! Loaded with flavour and really easy to make!
Chicken and Brussels Sprouts Stir-Fry – A stir fry with flavours of ginger, soy and sesame! A perfect weeknight dinner!
Shredded Chicken Salad – Another veggie loaded chicken salad with flavours of soy and sesame!
Sriracha Chicken Stir-Fry – If you love kung pao chicken this meal is for you!

If you make this recipe, please comment and rate it! And don’t forget to take a picture and @nutritionistmeetschef on Instagram!

Print Recipe

Thai Turmeric Chicken Salad

This Thai Turmeric Chicken Salad is a veggie packed salad that's LOADED with amazing and delicious flavours! Serve this with salad on its own as a lighter meal or add rice to make it more substantial.

Prep Time4

Cook Time10

Total Time4 10

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Asian, Thai

Servings: 2

Ingredients

0.5 hole black peppercorns
1 ts whole coriander seeds
2 garlic cloves
0.5 tbsp turmeric
1.5 tbsp fish sauce
1.5 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp soy sauce
2 tbsp inely chopped coriander cilantro (stalks & leaves)
2 chicken breasts

Salad

1/2 cucumber, sliced into matchstick
2 carrots, sliced into matchstick
1/2 head of a small iceberg lettuce, shredded
2 handfuls of finely shredded red cabbage (about 1-2 cup packed)
1 shallot, sliced
mungbeans
peanuts

Salad Dressing

1 (2 tbsp) lime
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 glove
1 bird eye chilli
1 tbsp chopped coriander /cilantro
rice wine vinegar
1-2 tsp sugar

Instructions

Grind the black pepper and coriander in a pestle and mortar.
Add the garlic and coriander and grind until it becomes a paste.
Add the fish sauce, turmeric, sugar and soy and whisk until combined and the sugar's dissolved. Set aside.
Take the two chicken breasts and slice them horizontally so you get two thinner pieces of chicken breast (or 4 in total as there are two breasts)
Place the breast in an airtight container or in a plastic bag and pour the marinade over the chicken. Rub the marinade all over the chicken so each piece is covered with the marinade.
Set aside and marinade overnight or at least for a couple of hours (read notes).
Grill the chicken either on a BBQ on medium heat or in the pan (or in a griddle pan) with a little bit of oil on medium heat.
Serve the chicken with on a bed of salad and rice!

Salad + Dressing

Place all ingredients for the salad in a bowl (except for the peanuts)
Prepare the dressing by placing garlic, chilli and coriander in a pestle and mortar and grind until paste like (it's ok if there are small bits of garlic, chilli or coriander – the most important things it that you don't want to have big chunks of any of the ingredients)
Add the fish sauce, lime, vinegar and sugar. Mix until sugar has dissolved. Taste and adjust the flavour – If you want it more sour, add more lime! More salt? Add fish sauce! Is it too sour? Add a little bit more sugar!
Pour the dressing over the salad just before serving and add a few handfuls of fresh coriander leaves, peanuts and perhaps some fresh chopped chilli if you like it hot!

Notes

If marinating the chicken for a shorter time such as 1-2 hours, score the chicken if using chicken breast. This will create more surface area for the marinade to penerate the meat and it will become more flavourful.
The dressing is HOT! If you're sensitive to the heat from chilli, remove the seeds and the white membranes inside the chilli before you add it to the salad and use less chilli.
The dressing is best made in a pestle and mortar, as this will help to release the flavours and oils from each ingredient.
Prep time INCLUDES time for marinating the chicken. Prep time is around 10 minutes without marinating time.