Oriental Chicken Pasta Salad

This is our favorite pasta salad. With chicken and vermicelli, it is substantial enough for a main dish and has a very nice mixture of subtle flavors with a little kick from the ginger.

We’re not sure of the origin of this recipe. It’s definitely oriental and reminds us of Thai cooking—though it really should be made with authentic Thai noodles. We think you will enjoy this recipe.

Ingredients

8 to 10 ounces of uncooked vermicelli

1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup plain yogurt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground ginger

2 chicken breasts, grilled or fried and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 red bell pepper, cut into pieces and cooked until crisp-tender
1/2 cup peanuts
1 8-ounce can sliced water chestnuts, drained
1/2 cup matchstick carrots
1/2 cucumber, peeled and cut into chunks
salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, snipped

Directions

1. Cook the vermicelli according to the instructions on the package. Drain and rinse them in cold water.
2. Make the dressing by mixing the mayonnaise, yogurt, sugar, soy sauce, and ground ginger together.
3. In a large bowl, toss the pasta, chicken pieces, red bell pepper, peanuts, water chestnuts, carrots, and cucumber with the dressing. Salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with the cilantro.