Have you ever tried Applebee’s Oriental Chicken Salad? The flavors are great, but I can’t believe how many calories are in the salad!! On their website they have a nutritional information sheet which states the Oriental Chicken Salad has
- 1380 calories,
- 1.5 grams of trans fats,
- 91 grams of carbs,
- 1413 milligrams of sodium, and
- 99 grams of fat (15 grams are saturated fat).
Yikes!! Applebee’s version of the salad might feed myself and my seven-year-old daughter. I put the ingredients for my healthified version into a really great resource for counting calories, Calorie Count Recipe Analysis, and it spit out this information:
- Calories 774 (Calories from Fat 120)
- Total Fat 13.3g
- Saturated Fat 3.4g
- Sodium 320mg
- Total Carbohydrates 70.8g
- Based on a 2000 calorie diet
This recipe feeds my family of five (3 kids ages 7, 5, & 3). So the calorie count is even less per individual. The craziest thing to me is how much sodium the Applebee’s version actually has, 1413mg verses 320mg. They say when you eat out, your sodium intake is greatly increased. Boy, is this ever true!
What is so fun and great about food is that there are many alternatives out there to get the same effect and flavor combinations without compromising the taste. You won’t feel cheated. My recipe is adapted from Food.com. I do use shredded chicken instead of breaded chicken, along with using yogurt instead of mayo in the dressing. There are a variety of ways to healthify tastily.
Applebee’s-Inspired Oriental Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 1-2 cups chicken
- 3 cups chopped romaine lettuce
- 1 cup red cabbage
- 1 cup green cabbage
- 1/2 orange sliced & chopped, or whole mandarin orange
- 1/2 carrot julienned or shredded
- 1 tablespoon sliced almonds
Instructions
-
Combine all of the salad fixing.
-
Top with Oriental Dressing (recipe below).
-
Enjoy!
Applebee’s-Inspired Oriental Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 1-2 cups chicken
- 3 cups chopped romaine lettuce
- 1 cup red cabbage
- 1 cup green cabbage
- 1/2 orange sliced & chopped, or whole mandarin orange
- 1/2 carrot julienned or shredded
- 1 tablespoon sliced almonds
Instructions
-
Combine all of the salad fixing.
-
Top with Oriental Dressing (recipe below).
-
Enjoy!
The Verdict: We love this recipe! I love having this recipe in our arsenal.
Charles Edward says
Hi,
This looks so yummy! I don’t normally have sesame oil on hand. Is there another oil that I could substitute?
Sonja says
You can use avocado or olive oil, but it won’t give you the depth of flavor that the sesame oil gives. The other oils will work though. I hope you enjoy!
Rebecca says
This looks so yummy! I don’t normally have sesame oil on hand. Is there another oil that I could substitute?
Sonja says
Hi Rebecca. You can omit it. It just deepens the flavor of the salad. Enjoy!
Genie says
Will definitely try this!
Sonja says
Hi Genie. Hope you enjoy!
Stacy @Stacy Makes Cents says
Well this looks stinkin’ awesome. I love Applebees, but I’ve never had this salad. I love the Chicken Fajita Roll-Up. You should healthify that. 😉 Thanks for linking at Centsibly Sugar and Grain Free!
Sonja says
Hi Stacy. I’ve never had the Fajita Rolls there. It’s been awhile since I’ve been there. Have a great day!
Cathy says
I would love for you to share and link up at my weekly TGIF Link Party if you haven’t already this week. Your favorite posts, most popular, recent or new! The party is open every Thursday night and closes Wednesday’s at midnight. http://apeekintomyparadise.blogspot.com/. Hope you will join us! Have a wonderful week!
Hugs, Cathy
Ellya Brill says
I love applebee oriental salad, therefore I am pinning this. Thanks for sharing.
Ellya
Sonja says
Hi Ellya, You are welcome for sharing, and thanks for visiting! Sonja
Christi @ The Not So Perfect Mom says
This used to be my FAV salad! I got it all the time. Thanks for the recipe!
Sonja says
Hi Christi, You are welcome, and I hope it can save you some money and calories!
KIDS TOYS says
The Applebee’s-Inspired Oriental Chicken Salad looks delicious, after work, I will do it for my kids, thank you for sharing!
Jolie Hall says
This sounds so yummy and I can’t wait to try it. This was my favorite thing to eat at Applebee’s. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Sonja says
Hey Jolie!! Just make sure that you don’t forget to add the carrots and oranges like I did last time I made this. It was a bit boring without the citrus. I love the combination of flavors together!