This Vintage Asian Salad is the perfect side dish for the hot days of summer! It’s a fresh and simple leaf lettuce salad with sweet mandarin oranges, crunchy water chestnuts, chow mein noodles, and a flavorful Asian salad dressing. You can whip it up in just 10 minutes, and it’s a real crowd-pleaser!
Looking for more summer salads to try? Check out our California Salad with a Jalapeno Ranch Dressing, Strawberry Chicken Salad, Best Ever Wedge Salad, or this tasty Summer Spinach Salad.
It is a mixture of savory and sweet ingredients like canola oil, sugar, vinegar, onion, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and parsley.
As soon as the weather starts to warm up, I start craving fresh salads for every meal. This Asian Salad is an old favorite and is so easy to make! It’s a great side dish with your favorite summer meat and noodle recipes, and the flavors are amazing. If you love a simple green salad recipe, you’re definitely going to want to try this one!
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What Is In Asian Salad?
This Asian Salad recipe only requires a few ingredients, but it’s amazing how much flavor is packed into those few simple ingredients. It’s a perfect combination of sweet, salty, and crunchy! Here’s what you’ll need to make this Vintage Asian Salad.
Ingredients
Leaf Lettuce – You can usually find heads of leaf lettuce at any major grocery store (and at the farmers market in the summer!). Look for a medium to large head of lettuce for this salad.
Mandarin Oranges – Look for canned mandarin oranges packed in light syrup. These little orange slices are bursting with a bright, sweet flavor.
Water Chestnuts – You can find canned water chestnuts in the Asian foods section of most grocery stores. They add the most satisfying crunch to this salad.
Green Onions – These add a mild flavor and crunch to the salad. Use only the green part of the green onion.
Crispy Chow Mein Noodles – You can find these in cans or bags in the Asian foods section of the grocery store. Like a crouton, they add a tasty crunch to the salad.
Canola Oil – This is the base of the salad dressing. You don’t want to use an oil with a lot of flavor, like coconut or olive oil, so a neutral oil like Canola or Vegetable oil works best.
Sugar – Use granulated white sugar to sweeten the salad dressing.
Vinegar – This adds acidity to the salad and helps balance out all the flavors in the dish. Use white vinegar for best results.
Onion – Adding a small, grated onion adds flavor to the dish without overpowering.
Worcestershire Sauce – This enhances the flavor of the salad dressing and gives it depth.
Soy Sauce – Similar to Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce adds flavor and increases the umami in the dish, making it more satisfying to your tastebuds. Low-sodium soy sauce works fine, too.
Fresh Parsley – This brightens up the dish, just make sure to finely chop it.
How to Make Vintage Asian Salad?
First, combine all of the salad dressing ingredients in a pint-sized mason jar. Shake well to combine, making sure that all of the sugar gets dissolved. Set aside, but you may need to shake it up again just before serving.
In a large mixing bowl or other similar serving dish, combine the lettuce, mandarin oranges, water chestnuts, and green onions. Pour the salad dressing over the lettuce mixture and gently toss until well combined. Top with crispy chow mein noodles and serve immediately.
Recipe Pro Tips!
How can I Store this Salad?
This Asian Salad is best made and served. Because of the crispy chow mein noodles, this salad won’t last and will go soggy. It is best to make smaller amounts and serve immediately to avoid leftovers. We just love it and gobble it down, so it is not a problem at all. It always disappears.
Can I make the Salad Dressing Ahead of Time?
Yes, you can make the salad dressing in a jar and save it in the refrigerator for hours. If you want to make it overnight, then hold off on adding the parsley until serving.
DO YOU WANT MORE SALAD OPTIONS?
Salads are our favorite for the summer months, and I could eat one every night, but I like to mix up recipes, as I don’t want the same one all the time. Here are some other great summer salads!
Vintage Asian Salad
Ingredients
Salad
- 1-2 heads of leaf lettuce
- 1 small can mandarin oranges (8 oz)
- 1 small can waterchestnuts (8 oz)
- 3 green onions chopped
- Crispy chow mein noodles
Dressing
- 3/4 cup canola oil
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup vinegar
- 1/2 small onion, grated
- 2 tsp. worcestershire sauce
- 3 tsp. soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp. parsley chopped
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Pour all of the dressing ingredients into a jar and shake well, making sure the sugar is completely dissolved. Mix together the lettuce, mandarin oranges, green onions, and water chestnuts. Top with the crunchy chow mein noodles and pour on as much dressing as desired. Serve at once.
Comments & Reviews
Alice says
my last Asian salad like this was a complete and total failure. So I’m hoping that this one will work out better when I try it! I love them in restaurants but I haven’t been able to re-create it at home yet… thanks for the inspiration!
Noshing with the Nolands says
This is a very old recipe that I have made loads of times, I hope you like it.
Bobbi's Kozy Kitchen says
What a lovely, refreshing salad! I love every single ingredient!!
Alice says
my last Asian salad like this was a complete and total failure. So I’m hoping that this one will work out better when I try it! I love them in restaurants but I haven’t been able to re-create it at home yet… thanks for the inspiration!
[email protected] says
A beautiful blend-satisfying yet light for a great summer meal.
Bobbi's Kozy Kitchen says
What a lovely, refreshing salad! I love every single ingredient!!
Hezzi-D says
Sounds perfect! I really enjoy a crunch to my salad and dressings using soy are definitely a favorite of mine!
Serena | Serena Bakes Simply From Scratch says
What a gorgeous salad Tara! I love asian salads! The flavors are always so light and refreshing for summer time!
Shaina says
Those cripsy noodles are the best part 🙂