It’s already heating up here in Phoenix, it’s like we didn’t even get the mild winter we usually get this year, so I’m sick of hot lunches suddenly, and craving a salad.  I came up with these for this week – you know how I love my mason jars (affiliate link) and plastic lids (another one), so they are back in the rotation!

Chinese Chicken Mason Jar Salads (Makes 4)

Ingredients:

• 1/4 c fresh-squeezed orange juice
• 1/4 c rice vinegar
• 1/4 c soy sauce
• 3 TB grated fresh ginger or jarred minced ginger
• 2 TB raw/turbinado sugar
• 1 TB Asian chili-garlic sauce
• 1 TB extra virgin olive oil
• 2 TB sesame oil
• 1.5 to 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast (depending how much chicken you want per salad)
• 1/4-1/2 a head of purple cabbage, equivalent of 4 cups, sliced thin
• 1 c shredded carrots
• 2 bell peppers, cut into matchstick size
• 1 head of romaine lettuce, sliced thin
• 4 green onions, sliced thin
• 1/2 c sliced almonds
• 4 clementines, peeled and sectioned

Directions:

1. Whisk together orange juice, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, sugar and chili-garlic sauce.  Transfer 1/2 cup of this mixture to a large skillet.  Whisk olive oil and sesame oil into remainder of mixture and set aside. This will be the dressing.
2. Bring orange juice mixture in skillet to a boil.  Add chicken, tossing to coat.  Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until chicken is cooked through, 10-15 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking.  Transfer chicken to a platter or plate and let rest for 10 minutes.
3. Boil pan juices until reduced to 1/4 cup and set aside.
4. Shred or cut chicken into bite size pieces.  Add chicken and any accumulated juices back to skillet (off heat), toss to coat and allow to cool to room temperature, at least 30 minutes.
5. Divide dressing among 4 quart-sized mason jars.
6. Layer ingredients in jars as follows, bottom up:

• cabbage
• carrots
• bell peppers
• green onions
• romaine
• chicken
• almonds

Store oranges in a separate container until ready to serve.  I like to keep them in the top of the mason jar in little apple sauce cups – they fit perfectly there and don’t keep the lid from screwing on tight!  See pictures below.

When ready to serve, add oranges to jar, replace lid and give it all a shake, pour on a plate and dig in (or, as I’ve noted before, when you’re in a hurry, eat out of a jar on the go…..)