Thai Crunch Salad with Peanut Dressing
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Inspired by California Pizza Kitchen’s recipe, this Thai crunch salad with peanut dressing always satisfies.
Photo by Alexandra Grablewski (Chronicle Books, 2018)
This recipe was inspired by the popular Thai crunch salad served at California Pizza Kitchen. It’s made with crisp Napa cabbage, crunchy vegetables, and edamame, but it’s the creamy peanut dressing that makes it so good. I guarantee you’ll want to put it on everything! Serve this salad as a light lunch or pair it with grilled chicken or steak for a more substantial meal. It’s excellent with my honey, lime and sriracha chicken skewers. This is one of those recipes with a long list of ingredients but don’t let that deter you; you can use many of the prepared vegetables available at the supermarket, and the dressing is quickly puréed in a blender.
“This salad was such a big hit at dinner last night that my guest requested seconds. It’s so over-the-top delicious that it’s insane!”
What You’ll Need To Make Thai Crunch Salad With Peanut Dressing
What You’ll Need To Make The Peanut Dressing
- Creamy Peanut Butter: Provides the rich, nutty base essential for the dressing’s flavor and texture.
- Unseasoned Rice Vinegar: Adds tanginess and helps balance the richness of the peanut butter.
- Fresh Lime Juice: Introduces a zesty citrus note and a bit of tang, enhancing the overall freshness of the dressing.
- Vegetable Oil: Helps emulsify the ingredients and provides a smooth consistency.
- Soy Sauce: Contributes savory depth and a touch of umami flavor.
- Honey and Sugar: Sweeten the dressing, balancing out the acidity and saltiness.
- Garlic Cloves and Fresh Ginger: Infuse aromatic and pungent notes, adding complexity to the flavor profile.
- Salt: Enhances other flavors and helps balance the sweetness.
- Crushed Red Pepper Flakes: Provide a subtle heat and depth of flavor.
- Fresh Cilantro: Adds a bright, herbaceous flavor and a pop of color to the dressing.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
What You’ll Need To Make The Salad
- Chopped Napa Cabbage or Shredded Coleslaw Mix: Forms the base of the salad, providing crunch and freshness. (I like to toss in a little shredded red cabbage for color.)
- Shredded Carrots: Add sweetness and color, enhancing the visual appeal of the salad. Buying the bagged shredded carrots at the supermarket saves time!
- Red Bell Pepper: Contributes vibrant color and a crisp texture.
- English Cucumber: Also known as hothouse cucumbers, offer a refreshing and crunchy element to the salad.
- Cooked and Shelled Edamame: Provides plant-based protein, a subtle nutty flavor, and adds substance to the salad.
- Scallions: Impart a mild onion flavor and a pop of green color, enhancing the overall freshness.
- Fresh Cilantro: Adds a fragrant and herbaceous note, elevating the flavor profile of the salad.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
Begin by making the dressing. Simply combine all of the ingredients except for the cilantro in a blender and process until completely smooth. It’s best to roughly chop the garlic and ginger beforehand, as most blenders aren’t able to process large pieces.
Add the cilantro and process for a few seconds until the cilantro is finely chopped. (If you add it in the beginning, it will completely blend into the dressing and give it a greenish hue.)
It will look like this.
Next, make the salad. I typically use a blend of Napa cabbage, cucumbers, red bell peppers, shredded carrots, shredded purple cabbage and edamame, but you can use any crunchy vegetables that you like.
If you use cucumbers, be sure to remove the seeds, as they can make the salad watery.
Combine all of the vegetables in a bowl along with the chopped spring onions and cilantro, and toss to combine.
If you’re serving the salad right away, drizzle the peanut dressing overtop and toss; otherwise serve the dressing on the side so the salad doesn’t get soggy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Definitely! The dressing keeps nicely refrigerated in an airtight container for up to a week.
While you can make the dressing and prepare the veggies ahead (the veggies can be prepped up to 2 days in advance), wait until you’re ready to serve the salad to toss everything together.
Sure, you can use almond butter in place of peanut butter.
You can replace the cilantro with flat-leaf parsley. The salad and dressing will still be delicious!
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Thai Crunch Salad with Peanut Dressing
Inspired by California Pizza Kitchen’s recipe, this Thai crunch salad with peanut dressing always satisfies.
Ingredients
For the Peanut Dressing
- ¼ cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, from one lime
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2½ tablespoons sugar
- 2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 1-inch square piece fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped (see note)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves
For the Salad
- 4 cups chopped Napa cabbage or shredded coleslaw mix (I like to toss in a little shredded red cabbage for color)
- 1 cup prepared shredded carrots
- 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced into bite-sized pieces
- 1 small English cucumber, halved lengthwise, seeded and thinly sliced
- 1 cup cooked and shelled edamame
- 2 medium scallions, thinly sliced
- ½ cup loosely packed chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
- For the dressing, combine all of the ingredients except for the cilantro in a blender and process until completely smooth. Add the cilantro and blend for a few seconds until the cilantro is finely chopped. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- For the salad, combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and toss to combine. If serving right away, drizzle the peanut dressing over top and toss; otherwise, serve the dressing on the side so the salad doesn't get soggy.
- Note: Check out easy guidance on how to peel, grate, and chop fresh ginger here.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (4 servings)
- Serving size: Approximately 2 cups
- Calories: 282
- Fat: 18 g
- Saturated fat: 2 g
- Carbohydrates: 28 g
- Sugar: 17 g
- Fiber: 6 g
- Protein: 7g
- Sodium: 505 mg
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Love this recipe just as is. I add any veggies I have but love to always use edamame and sprouts. I’m curious if there’s a way to use PB powder (as a lower-fat alternative) as a dressing ingredient?
Hi Lauren, so glad you like this! I’ve never worked with peanut butter powder so I can’t say for sure how it would impact the dressing but I suspect it would work. I’d love to hear how it comes out if you end up trying it!
I could take a bath in this dressing! It is so beloved amongst my family, and neighbors that I’m asked to make it for them at parties, since they only know limited English. I’ve also doubled the recipe with great success.
So glad I made this for lunch today – it was perfectly delicious, and has definitely made its way onto my MA (make again) list. Thank you!
This is simply delicious. One of my top 5 favorite salads. My husband loves it too. He generally isn’t overly enthusiastic about salads…he likes them okay but isn’t blow away by them and he said this one is REALLY GOOD. My mom asked for the recipe and makes it now too. Family favorite!
My go-to Asian style dressing. Quick, easy and perfectly balanced. Thank you for sharing, Jenn!!
I live alone. I made this salad last night for dinner. It is delicious – 5 stars. The peanut dressing is perfect. I liked the tiny bit of heat on my palate, but the next time I make it I might add an additional 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes. The ingredients of each item in the salad were perfect for me – loved them all.
I’m embarrassed to say it was the first time I ever purchased Napa cabbage. I have enough cabbage left to make another batch of this recipe in a few days.
I have your cookbook, Once Upon a Chef, and have purchased the ingredients to make the Creamy Wild Mushroom soup. Looking forward to another delicious meal.
Thank you,
Paige Marshall
LaPorte, IN
My husband avoids salads, UNTIL NOW! He LOVES this salad and so do I. I cannot wait to serve it to guests and have already notified friends who love to cook and eat well that they should make this recipe(and visit your site for others) because it can be prepped ahead for a quick to serve meal that is wonderful! I had it with salmon, my husband with chicken, and the extra dressing spooned over the meat was a real treat!
Time to order your cookbooks. I have time to try out LOTS of recipes, and hope to give copies to several friends next Christmas if all goes as I expect it will. Thank you so much for such tasty, healthy, and simple to prepare recipes so carefully presented.
Sooooooooo Good!!! I could not find edamame at my local grocery store, but I did find a bag of frozen mukimame (precooked and shelled edamame) so I decided to give it a try. I was doubtful using defrosted, previously frozen beans would taste alright in this salad, but I was pleasantly surprised. Plus all the work of cooking and shelling the beans, was already done for me – bonus!! I added chicken to make this a delicious lunch (or dinner). Definitely a keeper – thanks for sharing!!
We LOVE this recipe. We leave out the cucumber and sprinkle roasted peanuts on the top at the end as a garnish. We also add rotisserie chicken if we have it to make a hearty meal.
Also, we often use bagged coleslaw mix to make super quick prep.
Another winner! The dressing is the bomb and came together very quickly. I used my food processor. For the salad, I used a bag of shredded cabbage, then added the green onions, chopped up mini cucumbers, edamame, and chopped red peppers. I added some grilled chicken breast and it was out of this world! Love the blend of flavors.
This salad is so delicious. I’ve made it four times lately for company and it’s been enjoyed by all. I would cut down on the sugar next time. I add chopped snap peas instead of the edamame beans. So good and crisp.
Thanks Jenn for this great idea for a refreshing healthy salad.
delicious!
added a dash of fish sauce to the dressing… it’s just not thai without a little bit o that wonderful funk!