Sesame Chicken Pea Salad (41g Protein & 11g Fibre)
Jump to Recipe
If you’ve seen the frozen pea salad doing the rounds online, this chicken pea salad is my high protein, meal prep take on it, using a whole 900g bag of peas and a punchy sesame soy dressing. It’s the latest episode of my Salads That Last series, so there’s no lettuce to wilt, just crunchy green beans, shredded chicken and over 40g protein in every tub. Seven minutes on the hob and your lunches are done until Friday.
Recipe Summary: Chicken Pea Salad
- ✅ Recipe Name: Chicken Pea Salad
- 🕦 Ready in: 17 mins
- 🤝 Serves: 5
- 🍴 Calories: 424 kcal
- 🧑🍳 Main ingredients: Frozen peas, Green beans, Cooked chicken breast, Soy sauce, sesame oil and ginger
- ✨ Summary: This sesame soy chicken pea salad uses a whole bag of frozen peas, packs 41g protein and stays fresh for 4 days. Meal prep lunch, sorted.
Why you’ll love this recipe
- It lasts all week: Most chicken salad with peas recipes are built on lettuce, which means they’re limp by Tuesday. I’ve ditched the leaves completely (the same trick that keeps my green goddess chicken salad fresh), so the beans and peas stay crisp right through to day four.
- Protein and fibre in one bowl: You’re getting 41g protein and 10g fibre per portion for around 425 calories. It slots straight into my high protein recipes if you’re keeping an eye on your macros.
- Barely any cooking: One pan, seven minutes, and shop-bought cooked chicken. No grill, no marinating, no faff.
- Seriously cheap: A whole bag of frozen peas does the heavy lifting here, and they’re one of the best value veg in the freezer aisle.
Table of Contents
Ingredients For chicken pea salad
Only a handful of things make this chicken pea salad work, and most of them are probably in your freezer already:
- Frozen peas: The whole 900g bag goes in. Frozen within hours of picking, they’re often sweeter than fresh and bring a surprising amount of protein and most of the fibre.
- Green beans: These give the salad its snap and hold their crunch for days, turning it into a pea and green bean salad that never goes soggy.
- Cooked chicken breast: Shop-bought keeps this speedy, but leftover roast chicken works just as well.
- Soy sauce, sesame oil and ginger: The backbone of the sesame soy dressing, with a squeeze of lime to keep it bright.
See the recipe card for full information on all ingredients and quantities.
Variations/ Adaptations
- Make it veggie: Swap the chicken for smoked tofu or an extra bag of frozen edamame, which keeps the protein high and the cost low.
- Bulk it out: Toss through some cooked rice noodles for a more filling lunch, or if you fancy something warm and slurpy instead, my chicken hoisin noodles use a very similar flavour base.
- Go satay: Whisk a tablespoon of peanut butter into the dressing for a nutty, richer version, a bit like the sauce in my rainbow noodles.
How to make chicken pea salad
Step 1: Boil the green beans in salted water for 5 minutes.
Step 2: Add the frozen peas and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Step 3: Whisk together the soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, vinegar, ginger, garlic and lime.
Step 4: Add the drained veg, chicken and spring onions to a large bowl.
Step 5: Pour over the dressing and toss until everything is evenly coated.
Step 6: Divide between 5 containers and keep in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Tips for the best result
- Plunging the beans and peas straight into cold water stops them cooking and keeps them bright green for the whole four days. Chuck in a few ice cubes if you have them.
- Any water clinging to the veg will dilute the dressing, so give the colander a good shake (or pat everything dry with kitchen paper).
- Don’t worry about dressing the whole batch at once. Unlike leafy salads, this one gets better as it sits, and by day two the dressing has soaked into the chicken.
- If you’re adding chilli crisp, spoon it on just before eating so it keeps its crunch.
- Soy sauce brands vary a lot in saltiness, so start with a little less and top up if needed.
Serving Suggestions
This chicken pea salad is a full meal on its own, but it’s easy to dress up. On a cold day, I’ll pair a tub with a bowl of my dan dan noodles for something warming. If you’re batch cooking, it sits brilliantly alongside my meal prep Caesar salad so you’re not eating the same lunch five days running, and when I want a heartier dinner later in the week, it makes a fresh, crunchy side for my Cajun steak salad or a few slices of chipotle chicken.
Leftover Storage and Reheat Instructions
Refrigerator: store in airtight containers for up to 4 days. Keep any chilli crisp separate until serving.
Freezer: I wouldn’t freeze this one. The green beans turn watery once defrosted and lose all their snap.
Reheat: no need. It’s designed to be eaten cold, but take it out of the fridge 10 minutes before eating so the sesame oil loosens up.
chicken pea salad FAQs
Absolutely, it’s built for it. Because there’s no lettuce, this meal prep chicken salad keeps its crunch for up to 4 days in the fridge, and the flavour improves as the dressing soaks in. If you want a second lunch to rotate with it, my salsa verde chopped salad lasts just as well.
Yes, I’d always cook them. Most UK packs say to cook before eating, and a quick 2 minutes in boiling water gives you a better, sweeter texture anyway.
Very. Each portion has 41g protein, with the chicken doing most of the work and the peas adding a good chunk too, which makes it a seriously filling high protein chicken salad.
Easily. Swap the soy sauce for tamari and use rice vinegar rather than Shaoxing wine, which usually contains wheat.
Nine times out of ten, the veg wasn’t drained well enough after the cold water bath. Shake the colander hard, then let it sit for a minute before mixing in the dressing.
Of course. Pull off the skin, shred the meat and you’re good to go. It’s a great way to use up leftovers from a Sunday roast too.
Explore More Salad Recipes
If you tried this Chicken Pea Salad, it would mean so much to me if you could leave a review & a star rating to let me know how you found it! I love hearing about your experiences – it motivates me to keep creating more and more recipes for you guys 💛 Let’s get cooking! – Mimi x
Chicken Pea Salad
Ingredients
Salad
- 400 g green beans trimmed and cut into 2cm pieces
- 900 g frozen peas
- 500 g cooked chicken breast roughly shredded
- 1 bunch spring onions thinly sliced
Dressing
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar or Shaoxing wine
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger grated
- 1 garlic clove crushed
- ½ lime juice only
To serve (optional)
- 5 tsp chilli crisp 1 tsp per portion
Method
- Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Add the green beans and cook for 5 minutes, then add the frozen peas and cook for a further 2 minutes.
- Drain, then pour the beans and peas into a bowl of cold water to keep their colour. Leave for 5 minutes whilst you prepare the dressing.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, sesame oil, brown sugar, rice vinegar or Shaoxing wine, ginger, garlic and lime juice.
- Drain the beans and peas well, then add them to a large bowl with the cooked chicken breast and spring onions. Pour over the dressing and toss until everything is evenly coated.
- Divide between 5 containers and store in the fridge for up to 4 days. Optionally, serve each portion with 1 tsp chilli crisp.
Notes
• Any water clinging to the veg will dilute the dressing, so give the colander a good shake (or pat everything dry with kitchen paper).
• Don’t worry about dressing the whole batch at once. Unlike leafy salads, this one gets better as it sits, and by day two the dressing has soaked into the chicken.
Nutrition
