Description
Air fryer coconut chicken salad with crispy shallots combines juicy coconut-poached chicken and a vibrant salad, perfect for a healthy and satisfying lunch or light dinner. Made entirely in your air fryer (or oven!), it’s a breeze to prepare and perfect for busy weeknights.
Ingredients
Units
For the Coconut Poached Chicken:
- 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast (around 150g)
- 2 slices ginger
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 scallion/spring onion, roughly chopped
- 2 red mild red chillies, thinly sliced
- 1 small tin (160ml) coconut milk (or half a regular tin)
For the Crispy Baked Shallots:
- 1 shallot, peeled and thinly sliced into strips
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 3–4 tablespoons plain or gluten-free flour
- Pinch of salt
For the Salad:
- 120g sugar snap peas, thinly sliced
- 400g small cabbage, thinly sliced
- A bunch of coriander leaves picked
- A bunch of mint leaves picked
Dressing:
- 6 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
For Serving:
- 100g chopped roasted and salted peanuts
Instructions
- Place the chicken breast in a snug air fryer or oven-safe roasting dish. Pour in the coconut milk, covering the chicken breast. If it isn’t fully submerged, top it up with a little water.
- Add the sliced ginger, fish sauce, scallion, and 2-3 slices of chilli (reserve the rest for the dressing) to the roasting dish.
- Cook
Air Fryer Method: No preheating needed! Simply place the dish in your air fryer and cook at 120°C (250°F) for 20 minutes until cooked through. Check the chicken at about 15 minutes to gauge your progress.
Oven Method: Preheat your oven to 150°C (300°F). Bake the chicken for 20 minutes or until cooked through. Check the chicken at about 15 minutes to gauge your progress. - While the chicken cooks, peel and thinly slice the shallot into long, slender strips.
- In a bowl, toss the shallots with a maximum of 1 tablespoon of oil, adding just enough to ensure they’re lightly coated.
- Add 3-4 tablespoons of plain or gluten-free flour to the shallots. Toss them again until they’re lightly coated and no longer sticky. If they seem clumpy and wet, add more flour, a tablespoon at a time, until they have a fine, dry, scraggly coating.
- Season the shallots with a pinch of salt. Spread them out in a single layer on a baking tray or your air fryer’s tray.
- Place the shallots in the air fryer or oven. If your air fryer is a basket model, scatter them around the chicken in the basket. If you have an air fryer or regular oven, slide the tray with the shallots in above the chicken.
- Cook the shallots for the remaining 10-12 minutes of the chicken’s cooking time or until they are golden brown and crispy. Keep an eye on them as they cook and toss if necessary to ensure even colouring.
- While the chicken and shallots cook, thinly slice the sugar snap peas and cabbage. Pick the coriander leaves and place them in a large bowl.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the water, sugar, lime juice, and fish sauce.
- Once cooked, remove the chicken from the poaching liquid and allow it to cool slightly. Shred the chicken with two forks into thin strips. Adding a little of the coconut cooking liquid to keep it moist and flavourful.
- Add the shredded chicken to the bowl with the salad ingredients (sugar snap peas, cabbage, coriander, mint).
- Pour over the fish sauce dressing and toss everything together.
- You can add an additional 2-3 tablespoons of the poaching liquid to the salad for extra moisture, but leave the solids like ginger and scallion behind.
- Taste the salad and adjust seasonings as needed, adding more salt or lime juice if desired.
- Plate the salad and top generously with chopped roasted peanuts. Enjoy!
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 30 min
- Category: Salad
- Method: Air fryer or oven
