I’ll be honest, the Erewhon price tags have always felt a little ridiculous to me. But when I lived right next to the Silver Lake location, convenience won more often than I’d like to admit.
The Asian Chicken Salad became one of my go-tos. Crunchy cabbage, tender kale, sesame-crusted chicken, that miso-ginger dressing. Healthy but actually satisfying, and I never got tired of it. But $20 for a salad still stung every single time.
So I made my own. Same balance of textures, same clean ingredients, same dressing you’ll want to put on everything. Except now it costs a fraction of the price and I can make four servings at once.
Let’s get into it.
Key ingredients
Here’s everything you need to recreate this iconic salad.
- Crisp greens: Chopped romaine, shredded red cabbage, and finely chopped kale. The mix gives you crunch, color, and enough fiber to actually keep you full instead of hungry again in an hour.
- Julienned carrots: Natural sweetness and snap to balance all the savory sesame flavor happening elsewhere.
- Scallions and cilantro: The brightness that makes this taste like a restaurant salad instead of something you threw together from whatever was in the fridge.
- Sesame-crusted chicken: Thin cutlets coated in sesame seeds and baked until golden. Clean protein with actual texture, not the sad plain chicken breast situation.
- Miso-ginger dressing: White miso, tamari, rice vinegar, honey, toasted sesame oil, garlic, ginger, chili flakes. Creamy, tangy, a little heat. This is the thing you’ll want to double.
- Gluten-free sesame sticks: Toasty, salty, made with gluten-free flour and sesame seeds. The crunch factor that makes this salad feel like more than just a salad.
Looking for more high-protein salads? Don’t miss our Greek Chicken and Orzo Pasta Salad. It’s fresh, filling, and perfect for meal prep.
How to Make This Erewhon Asian Chicken Salad at Home
It looks more complicated than it is to make this salad. But even so, it’s totally worth the effort.
Step 1: Make the sesame sticks
Mix your gluten-free flour, sesame seeds, olive oil, and salt into a dough, roll thin, slice into sticks, and bake until golden and crisp.
Step 2: Bake the chicken
Slice the chicken into thin cutlets, coat with tamari and sesame seeds, then bake until just cooked through so it stays juicy and light.
Step 3: Make the dressing
Combine white miso, tamari, rice vinegar, honey, toasted sesame oil, garlic, ginger, and chili flakes. It’s creamy, savory, and full of flavor.
Step 4: Assemble and drizzle
Top your salad with sliced chicken, sesame sticks, a sprinkle of sesame seeds, and that dreamy dressing.
Looking for more healthy lunch ideas? Check out 7 high-protein low-calorie lunch ideas, perfect for meal prep.
Tips & Variations
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Storage Tips
Keep the salad and dressing in separate airtight containers in the fridge. The greens stay fresh for up to 4 days, dressing for 5. Toss it all together right before you eat so the cabbage stays crisp and the sesame sticks don’t go soggy.
Nutrition
One serving with chicken, dressing, and sesame sticks comes out to roughly:
- Calories: 441
- Protein: 30g
- Carbs: 30g
- Fat: 23g
- Fiber: 6.6g
Those are solid macros for a salad that actually keeps you full. The protein and fat slow digestion enough that you’re not thinking about food again an hour later, and the fiber from all those greens helps too.
Are you an Erewhon fan? Check out this dupe for the famous White Bean and Kale salad. It’s super easy to make and packs in nearly 20 grams of plant-based protein.
FAQ
Sesame-crusted chicken breast, romaine, red cabbage, kale, carrots, scallions, cilantro, crunchy sesame sticks, and a miso-ginger dressing.
Around 450 calories per serving, though it varies a bit depending on how heavy you go with the dressing.
The original has wheat in the sesame sticks. This version uses homemade sesame sticks made with gluten-free flour, so the whole salad is GF.
To make it vegetarian or vegan, swap the chicken for crispy tofu, tempeh, or even edamame for a plant-based protein option.
Erewhon Asian Chicken Salad (Copycat Recipe)
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Ingredients
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment.
- In a bowl, mix:– 1 cup gluten-free flour (or regular all-purpose flour)– 2 tablespoons each white and black sesame seeds
- Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 tablespoons gluten-free tamari, mixing until a firm, non-sticky dough forms. Add more water only if needed, 1 teaspoon at a time until the dough comes together into a ball.
- Roll the dough thin between two sheets of parchment paper (aim for about ¼ inch thick).
- Slice into thin sticks using a sharp knife or pizza cutter, then transfer to the baking sheet.
- Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until lightly golden and crisp. Let cool fully before using.
- With your oven set to 350°F (175°C), line a baking sheet with parchment.
- Slice 2 chicken breasts into thin cutlets (4 cutlets in total). Add to a bowl with 1 tablespoon of gluten-free tamari and toss to coat.
- In a shallow bowl or plate, combine 3 tablespoons white sesame seeds and 3 tablespoons black sesame seeds. Add the chicken, one piece at a time, and press the sesame seeds onto each side.
- Arrange the cutlets on the baking sheet and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until just cooked through but not browned. Let rest for 5 minutes, then slice into strips.
- In a small bowl, combine:– 2 tbsp white miso paste– 2 tbsp unseasoned rice vinegar– 2 tbsp olive oil– 1 tbsp honey– 1 tbsp gluten-free tamari– 1 tsp toasted sesame oil– 1 in fresh ginger (peeled)– 1 garlic clove– the juice of 1 lime– a pinch of chili flakes (optional)
- Blend with an immersion blender until smooth and taste for seasoning. Add salt if desired.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine:– 2 cups chopped romaine– 1 cup shredded red cabbage– 1 cup finely chopped kale– ½ cup shredded carrots– 4 thinly sliced scallions– 1 cup roughly chopped cilantro
- Toss well to combine, then divide into bowls or containers.
- Top with chicken and sesame sticks and drizzle with the miso-ginger dressing just before serving.
Nutrition
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I have been looking for a recipe for this FOREVER. THANK YOU!
I’m so glad you found it! It tastes exactly like the original 🙂