Fresh, healthy, and easily customizable, Kale Salad is the perfect way to get delicious flavor and essential nutrition into your meals.
Once upon a time, kale was basically used as a decorative barrier between raw meats displayed at the butcher and in grocery stores. In other words, we weren’t really eating it. But then some pretty influential people decided kale was the new spinach (or chard or romaine, take your pick), and since then, kale has been everywhere: it’s in soups and pasta dishes and stews; we use it in stir-fries and Caesars and smoothies; we stew it and sauté it and blend it into pestos. And while all of this kale-ness is great because this green is really, really good for you, let’s get back to basics and celebrate kale in all its fresh and natural glory with this kale salad.
How did this curly, slightly bitter leaf take over the leafy green world? Well, lots of things happened. In 2007, well-known New York Times food critic Melissa Clark wrote a column about a surprisingly fabulous kale salad she ate at a restaurant in Brooklyn, and that piqued a lot of people’s interest in kale, as did Bon Appetit’s 2009 recipe for famous New York City chef Dan Barber’s kale chips. And then, in 2011, actress and lifestyle guru Gwyneth Paltrow actually baked kale chips on the Ellen DeGeneres Show. The kale trend was growing, but it blew up in 2013 when public relations powerhouse and marketing genius Oberon Sinclair launched a huge campaign to popularize kale. Why? Because she loved it, wanted to introduce its benefits to the world, and knew she could: Known as the “Queen of Kale,” Sinclair even invented something called the American Kale Association to give her efforts and her favorite veg some cred. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know kale’s popularity has just surged since then: There’s a National Kale Day (the first Wednesday of October); there are lots of cookbooks devoted to the vegetable, including one called 50 Shades of Kale; you can buy t-shirts that sport the single word KALE; and even Beyoncé wore a kale sweatshirt in one of her music videos.
So let’s jump on this bandwagon that’s been going strong for a while and make this delicious and super nutritious kale salad. The vinaigrette is a lovely, balanced blend of sweet (honey), sharp (Dijon mustard), tart (lemon juice), and tangy (balsamic vinegar) that coats the softened kale, shredded Parm, toasty sliced almonds, and fruity dried cranberries. It’s a wonderful combination of flavors and textures that takes just minutes to put together and is as versatile as it is delicious.
Sometimes, fresh is best paired with fresh, so I love to make a meal of kale salad with some good homemade bread—like Challah—and this light and flavorful Citrus Mint Fruit Salad.
Things to Know About Kale
Kale is an ancient member of the Brassica family, which also includes cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts. There are over 50 different kinds of kale, but the most common ones are curly and Tuscan kale (also known as dinosaur kale); some are green, but others are bluish-green, purple, or red—truth be told, they’re all pretty beautiful. But despite all the varieties, all kale contains many essential nutrients, such as potassium, iron, fiber, calcium, folate, vitamins A, C, and K, lots of powerful antioxidants, and more. Kale is (no surprise) a superfood. So whether you add it to a soup (Zuppa Toscana), bake it in these Egg and Kale Cups, toss it in some Kale and Ricotta Pasta, or massage it to an ideal softness for this delicious kale salad, eat your kale!
How to Make Ahead and Store
You can prep your kale leaves (dry them thoroughly), wrap them in a paper towel, and then store them in a Ziploc bag in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. The salad dressing can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 10 days. The dressed kale salad can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days before the leaves get too soggy.
What Does it Mean to “Massage” the Kale?
Great question! Kale can be tough and sometimes a little bitter, so gently rubbing and kneading it makes it softer, more tender, and easier to digest. Plus, when you massage the kale in a bit of olive oil and salt, as we suggest in our recipe, it adds to the flavor as well.
Serving Suggestions
This kale salad is wonderfully versatile. You can prepare it just as we have suggested here with Parmesan, almonds, and dried cranberries, or you can sub out some ingredients for others, or even keep the salad as it is and just add more things. Up to you. But items that we have found are super delicious subs or additions include Roasted Chickpeas, Pickled Red Onions, crumbled savory Bacon or, to pick up the sweetness of the fruit, chopped Candied Bacon. And because I love even more vinegary flavor in any salad, I’m going to recommend chopped-up Bread and Butter Pickles.
But the salad’s versatility also includes turning it into a full meal, just by adding a hearty grain like Quinoa and some chopped Juicy Baked Chicken Breast or cubed Roasted Squash and spicy flaked Blackened Salmon. You can turn kale salad into a delicious vegetarian entree by adding some Roasted Carrots and sliced Hard Boiled Eggs, or a really satisfying vegan meal by substituting dairy-free shredded mozzarella for the Parmesan, maple syrup for the honey, and adding these Vegan Meatballs on top.
Kale Salad
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 to 2 teaspoons honey
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2 bunches kale washed and stems removed
- 1/2 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1/3 cup toasted sliced almonds
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
Instructions
- In a small bowl or jar, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
- Remove the kale stems and finely chop the leaves. Place the kale in a large bowl.
- Drizzle the kale with a little olive oil and sprinkle with a pinch of kosher salt. Massage the kale with your fingers until it softens.
- Drizzle the dressing over the kale and toss well. Add the Parmesan cheese, toasted almonds, and dried cranberries. Toss again and serve.
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