Wolfgang Puck and his Chinois chicken salad are here to stay

At 75 years old, world-renowned chef Wolfgang Puck has no plans of slowing down.

“[I plan to] keep cooking until I die — I hope,” he said last month. Earlier in his career, when he spoke with older chefs, they shared how much they looked forward to retirement. Puck feared he might succumb to the same fate. But his passion is as strong is ever, he said, and he remains heavily involved with his restaurants. “My wife has to tell me, ‘Hey, when are you going to spend time with the family?’ So I always tell her, ‘Well, the restaurant is my family, too.’”

Quality ingredients continue to fuel Puck’s passion for cooking. “For me, cooking is not about putting little dots on a plate and make it fancy looking,” he said. “It’s basically about the products.” He points out how fashion brands such as Loro Piana can produce simple designs with great fabrics and have them always be stylish. The same can be true of food, as evidenced by his Chinois Chicken Salad — named after his Santa Monica restaurant, Chinois on Main — which has been on the menu since the restaurant opened in 1983 and remains one of his most popular recipes.

The restaurant — and the salad — were inspired by Puck’s interest in Chinese cuisine, which he nurtured through frequent visits to L.A.’s Chinatown. “I was always interested in what I don’t know,” he said. Chinois allowed him to delve deeper into that curiosity, and it became one of the early pioneers of fusion cooking, in which Puck combined his French techniques with Chinese spices and ingredients that he then infused with his own signature flair.

“The Chinese chicken salad usually has cabbage — and that’s it,” Puck said. His version is a celebration of color, with magenta radicchio, orange carrots, golden mango, pale green cabbage, and verdant watercress or spring greens. “I love color because we eat with our eyes first,” he said.

The secret to this salad’s popularity? “If I would know exactly why everything is like that, I would just create recipes [that] would be popular all the time,” he said. “Sometimes it’s the price. Sometimes it’s something you can eat all the time.”

“Everything in life has to have balance,” Puck said. “The same thing is with flavors.” There’s the bitterness of the radicchio; the sweetness of the carrot and mango along with the honey of the vinaigrette; the nuttiness of the cashews, sesame paste and toasted sesame oil; layers of acidity and spiciness from the rice vinegar, pickled ginger, chile oil and mustard; and, of course, salty, savory soy sauce.

To play with texture, all the ingredients are cut to roughly the same size, allowing you to get a mix of tender chicken, crisp leaves and carrots, juicy mango, and crunchy wonton strips with each forkful. (If you leave the radicchio and cabbage out on the counter for too long and they start to wilt, put them in a bowl of ice water to perk them up before drying and dressing the salad.)

There have been lots of versions of the Chinois chicken salad over the years — at Puck’s own restaurants and from other cooks who have put their twists on the dish. That versatility is another reason I’d posit for its staying power. The produce can vary based on what’s available and in season. You can use whatever sturdy greens you like. Change up the flavor profile, such as by adding lemongrass and makrut lime. Use dark meat instead of white meat, take a shortcut by using store-bought rotisserie chicken, or skip the chicken entirely.

I’ve made small tweaks; he suggested using whole leaves of the cabbage and radicchio to line the plate when serving like at his restaurants, but I’m all about ease for weeknight dinners. However, I think he’d be pleased with the end result. As with any dish you’re preparing, “the most important thing is to taste,” Puck said — and this colorful salad hits all the right notes.

•••

Wolfgang Puck’s Chinois Chicken Salad

For the salad

1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Fine salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons neutral oil, such as peanut, canola or avocado

4 cups (8 ounces) thinly sliced napa cabbage

3 cups (2 ounces) loosely packed spring mix greens or watercress

1 medium carrot (3 ounces), peeled and julienned (cut into matchsticks) or coarsely grated

1 medium mango, peeled, pitted and julienned

1 small head radicchio, halved, cored and thinly sliced (about 3 cups)

Wonton chips or strips, for serving

Black and/or toasted white sesame seeds, for serving

Fresh cilantro leaves or thinly sliced scallions, for serving

For the dressing

1 large egg yolk (optional*)

¼ cup roasted, unsalted cashews

2 tablespoons pickled ginger

2 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons Chinese hot mustard

2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar

2 tablespoons Chinese sesame paste

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon chile oil, plus more as needed

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

¾ cup neutral oil, such as peanut, canola or avocado

Cook the chicken: Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350°F.

Pat the chicken dry, and sprinkle all over with salt and black pepper. In a large (12-inch) stainless-steel skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the chicken and cook until golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast registers 165°F. Remove from the oven, transfer to a cutting board and let cool for 5 to 10 minutes. While the chicken is in the oven, prep the vegetables for the salad. (If they wilt, you can perk them up in a large bowl of ice water, dry them thoroughly, then proceed with making the salad.)

While the chicken is cooking, spread the wonton chips on a small sheet pan and toast in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until slightly darker and extra crisp.

Make the dressing: In a blender, combine the egg yolk, if using, cashews, ginger, honey, mustard, vinegar, sesame paste, soy sauce, chile oil and sesame oil. Blend, increasing from low to medium speed, to combine. With the blender motor running, slowly stream in the neutral oil until fully emulsified. You should have about 1½ cups.

Make the salad: When the chicken is cool enough to handle, thinly slice the chicken breasts at an angle, then cut into thin strips.

In a large bowl, gently toss together the chicken, cabbage, greens, carrot, mango and radicchio until combined.

Add half the dressing and gently toss to combine. Taste, and add more dressing, a little at a time, until the salad is dressed to your liking. Taste again, and season with more salt, pepper and chile oil, as desired. Transfer the salad to a serving bowl or divide among shallow bowls. Top with wonton chips, sesame seeds, and cilantro or scallions, and serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings (12 cups salad)

*Note: This recipe calls for a raw egg yolk. If you are concerned about the risk of foodborne illness, look for pasteurized shell eggs or a pasteurized liquid-egg product (use about 1 tablespoon in lieu of the large egg yolk). Or omit the yolk.

Substitutions: Gluten-free? Use gluten-free tamari in place of soy sauce and gluten-free wonton strips. For Chinese hot mustard, use Dijon mustard or 2 teaspoons mustard powder. For honey, use agave or maple syrup. For Chinese sesame paste, use tahini. For boneless, skinless chicken breasts, use boneless, skinless chicken thighs. Don’t want to cook chicken? Use leftover or rotisserie chicken. Vegetarian? Use cubed firm or extra-firm tofu. For mango, use apple, Asian pear, cantaloupe or any fruit of your choosing.

Storage: The salad is best enjoyed immediately but can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. (It will keep better without the greens or watercress and crispy wonton chips.) Refrigerate the dressing for up to 3 days.

Where to buy: Chinese hot mustard can be found at well-stocked supermarkets, Asian markets and online. Chinese sesame paste can be found at Asian markets and online.

Nutrition per serving (3 cups salad and 3 tablespoons dressing): 591 calories, 21g carbohydrates, 99mg cholesterol, 40g fat, 3g fiber, 39g protein, 7g saturated fat, 897mg sodium, 13g sugar

— Adapted from chef Wolfgang Puck