This Thai Chicken Salad with Red Curry Butternut Squash is a hearty, yet lighter meal for fall days.
Complex Flavors in a Simple Salad
This Thai chicken salad is full of complex flavor, but it’s also really easy to put together.
Spicy butternut squash and bone-in chicken breasts are roasted with the same easy red curry marinade (just crack open a can of Thai red curry paste and mix it with some olive oil and butter), baked until perfectly golden and crisp on one pan in the oven.
From there––and the thing I love about this one pan dish––is you can serve it with a salad, per this recipe, or alongside some simple grains of your choice and sauteed greens. Buuut, I highly recommend trying this combination of mint, cilantro, red onion and greens, topped with the perfect Asian dressing.
I’m not one to lightly praise an Asian salad dressing, as there are some really subpar, cloyingly sweet, overly sesame-d versions out there. That said, I was very very pleasantly surprised after throwing together this blend of rice vinegar, fish sauce, fresh-squeezed lime juice, garlic, and honey.
The result is the perfect complement to the curried butternut squash and roast chicken, and has great depth for when you’re craving something different than the standard lemon vinaigrette or oil and vinegar.
Perfect for Meal Prep
If you’re a weekly meal prepper, this salad is a great candidate. Like I said, you can make it with rice or quinoa and sauteed veggies, or even add some other roasted veggies to the pan along with the butternut squash.
You can also make a few pre-packed salad mason jars. The dressing goes on the bottom, followed by the chicken and butternut squash, and gets topped off with the greens, herbs, and onion––everything will stay crunchy and fresh until lunch the next day.
This might just become your new favorite salad!
Thai Chicken Salad with Red Curry Butternut Squash: Recipe Instructions
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Spread the butternut squash on the sheet pan, leaving space for 2 chicken breasts in the center. (Space for chicken breasts not pictured. Oops.)
Mix 2 ounces of Thai red curry paste with 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 tablespoons of melted butter. Spoon a little less than half over the chicken breasts and spread evenly all over the chicken.
Pour the rest over the butternut squash and toss to coat.
Roast the butternut squash for 30 min. Turn the heat down to 350 degrees F. Place the marinated chicken breasts on the pan with the squash and continue to roast for 35 min (the internal temperature should read 165F on a meat thermometer).
When the cooking time is almost complete, assemble the salad. Toss some torn mint, cilantro, and your preferred salad mix into a bowl with 1 small thinly sliced red onion.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the juice of 1 lime, 1 tablespoon rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon fish sauce, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 minced garlic clove, and ⅓ cup mild-flavored oil until it’s emulsified into a salad dressing. Season with salt to taste.
Shred the chicken, and toss it with butternut squash, greens, and dressing for a warm Thai chicken salad.
You can also simply enjoy the butternut squash and chicken with some hearty sauteed fall greens like kale or collards on the side!
Thai Chicken Salad with Red Curry Butternut Squash
Ingredients
For the roasted butternut squash and chicken:
- 1 medium butternut squash (cut into ¾-inch chunks––can substitute sweet potato or any other kind of winter squash like kabocha, acorn, etc.)
- 2 chicken breasts (bone-in, skin-on)
- 2 ounces Thai red curry paste (about 55g, or about 2 tablespoons)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter (melted)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper
For the salad:
- 1 cup mint leaves leaves
- 1 cup cilantro leaves
- Baby kale and baby mesclun greens
- 1 small red onion (sliced very thinly)
- 1 lime (juiced)
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon honey or agave syrup
- 1 cloves garlic (minced)
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- Salt (to taste)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Spread the butternut squash on the pan, leaving space for 2 chicken breasts in the center.
- Mix 2 ounces of Thai red curry paste with 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 tablespoons of melted butter. Spoon a little less than half over the chicken breasts and spread evenly all over the chicken. Pour the rest over the butternut squash and toss to coat.
- Roast the butternut squash for 30 min. Turn the heat down to 350 degrees F. Place the marinated chicken breasts on the pan with the squash and continue to roast for 35 min (the internal temperature should read 165F).
- When the cooking time is almost complete, assemble the salad. Toss some torn mint, cilantro, and your preferred salad mix into a bowl with 1 small thinly sliced red onion.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the juice of 1 lime, 1 tablespoon rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon fish sauce, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 minced garlic clove, and ⅓ cup mild-flavored oil until it’s emulsified into a salad dressing. Season with salt to taste.
- Shred the chicken, and toss it with butternut squash, greens, and dressing for a warm Thai chicken salad.
- You can also simply enjoy the butternut squash and chicken with some hearty sauteed fall greens like kale or collards on the side!
nutrition facts
This looks lovely and really easy to make. Any thoughts about adjusting the cooking time for boneless/skinless chicken breasts (which is what I have in the freezer)? Or should I just keep an eye on the internal temp?
Without the bone, the chicken breasts should take about 18-25 minutes to cook at 450 degrees, depending on their size. Checking them with a meat thermometer is definitely a good idea!
I made this last night. It was just as good as I hoped it would be. You guys are the best. I have followed you for years and tried so many of your recipes, and I have to say they just never fail. I don’t think there’s anything on your website that isn’t excellent. Well done.
Thank you so much, Kim!!!! :)
This looks delicious. I love pairing winter squash and sweet potatoes with savory and spicy things.
Could I ask about the plate in the photo? It is beautiful.
Thank you, Alice! We actually bought that plate from a local rummage sale. That’s actually where we get almost all of our dishes, bowls, and silverware for blog staging! It’s a vintage ceramic plate, though I don’t have the brand name. :(
Really delicious. Nice pic.
thank you, Irene!
Made it the other day- so delicious and versatile! I happened to only have an acorn squash and spaghetti squash instead of butternut, and turned out amazing too. I also ended up macerating/softening the red onion in the lime juice and rice vinegar. Will definitely keep this recipe on my rotation!
Thanks, Jasmine! So happy to hear you liked it. And what a great idea on the onions!
Looking so tasty and yummy thank’s for the new recipe i will must try it today
Thanks, hope you enjoy it!
That sounds really good and very adaptable, so it will definitely go into rotation!
My first thought is to rub the curry paste under the chicken skin rather than on the outside, to keep the flavor next to the meat rather than getting pitched out with the skin. Or does the skin get crispy, and you added it to the salad?
Thanks!
Thanks, Alyce! That’s a great idea! I do keep the skin on and throw it into the salad. If you want the skin to get crispier (I find i have mixed results depending on what oven I’m using), you can broil the chicken for a min (but don’t walk away from it!)