Sesame Chicken Salad — One Sesame Seed, and Everything It Means

We told them. Christmas week. Twelve weeks pregnant. The phone calls, one by one. Amma first. Always Amma first. "Amma. We have news." "You're pregnant." "How — how did you know?" "Priya. You've been wearing baggy sweaters for two months. You left the room when I made rasam. You look 'soft.' I've known since October." "You've KNOWN?" "I'm your mother. I've always known." She cried. The same tears as Anaya's announcement — silent, fierce, structural failure. But this time, through a mask, on a Saturday visit in my kitchen, she reached across the island and held my hand. Contact. Touch. The first time she'd initiated physical contact in nine months. "In a pandemic," she said. "In a pandemic." "Your father will say 'good.'" "I know." "He'll mean 'I'm terrified and overjoyed.'" "I know that too." Appa said "good." He meant what Amma said he'd mean. Pushpa cried and immediately asked about baby names (Gujarati names, naturally). Arvind said, "About time Anaya got a sibling." Dina, who was with him, said congratulations with the warmth of a woman who is joining a family and learning its rhythms. Anaya was told in terms she could understand: "Amma has a baby in her tummy." "Baby?" "A baby. A little brother or sister." "Can the baby eat sambar?" "Not yet." "When?" "When it comes out." "Okay." Anaya's acceptance was immediate and practical. The baby will eat sambar. This is the relevant information. Christmas dinner: just us again, pandemic rules. But this time the table had a secret that was no longer a secret, and the biryani tasted different — not the recipe, the meaning. The biryani of a family growing, of life insisting on itself even in the middle of a catastrophe. I made Amma's biryani and Amma's payasam and my cardamom shortbread and Raj's pancakes (for breakfast, because tradition). Four recipes. Four traditions. Two parents. One toddler. One sesame seed. Merry Christmas. The family is growing. The kitchen will need to accommodate. But it will. It always does.

I called the baby “one sesame seed” that whole trimester — it was the size reference from the app, and it stuck. So when I sat down to decide which recipe to pair with this story, there was really only one answer. This sesame chicken salad has been in our rotation since long before Anaya, and it’s the kind of dish that travels well between moods: light enough for a pandemic-cautious Christmas table, satisfying enough to feel like a celebration. That Christmas, everything on the table meant something extra. This one meant the most.

Sesame Chicken Salad

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 15 min | Total Time: 35 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 6 cups shredded napa cabbage
• 2 cups shredded red cabbage
• 3 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1 cup shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted
• 3 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
• 3 tablespoons sesame oil
• 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
• Salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Cook the chicken. Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat with a drizzle of oil and cook chicken 6–7 minutes per side until cooked through. Let rest 5 minutes, then slice or shred into bite-sized pieces.
2. Make the dressing. In a small bowl or jar, whisk together sesame oil, rice vinegar, soy sauce, honey, grated ginger, minced garlic, and red pepper flakes if using. Taste and adjust seasoning.
3. Toast the almonds and sesame seeds. In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast the sliced almonds and sesame seeds together, stirring frequently, for 2–3 minutes until golden and fragrant. Remove from heat immediately.
4. Build the salad. In a large serving bowl, combine napa cabbage, red cabbage, shredded carrots, green onions, and cilantro. Toss to mix.
5. Combine and dress. Add the cooked chicken to the salad bowl. Drizzle the dressing over everything and toss well to coat. Top with toasted almonds and sesame seeds.
6. Serve. Serve immediately for maximum crunch, or refrigerate the undressed salad and chicken separately for up to 24 hours and dress just before serving.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 390 | Protein: 36g | Fat: 19g | Carbs: 17g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 510mg