Our Staple Kale Salad

Simple and so tasty, this kale salad has feta cheese, dried cranberries, and sliced almonds all tossed in a tangy lemon vinaigrette. It's our go-to recipe because of the simplicity and perfect blend of salty, sweet, soft and crunchy.

Kale is a very polarizing ingredient: you either love it, or you hate it. We are clearly on team Love It! From kale barley salad to kale caesar salad, I love how versatile and nutrient-packed kale is.

This staple kale salad is a great 'all purpose' salad that really goes with everything. It's super simple to prep, but you are rewarded with a delicious blend of flavors and textures: from salty to sweet, soft to crunchy.

Serve it up with herb crusted broiled salmon and parmesan mashed cauliflower for a deliciously elegant dinner.

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Recipe video

See exactly how to make our staple kale salad by watching the video below! You can find more of my recipe videos on my YouTube channel.

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Ingredient notes

• kale- you can use any type of kale in this salad, from curly kale and lacinato kale to baby kale. To remove the bitter taste from kale, it's important that you massage it; more details are below.
• cranberries- add a delicious sweetness to the salad; swap for dried cranberries, dried blueberries, or fresh fruit (apples, pears and blueberries are all great!)
• almonds- add crunch and a subtle nutty flavor to the salad; swap for pecans, hazelnuts, walnuts or seeds
• feta cheese- adds a bright pop of salty flavor, and a creamy texture to the salad; swap for goat cheese or shaved parmesan

Other great add-ins for kale salad:

• fresh berries
• pear slices
• apple slices
• peach slices
• bacon
• goat cheese
• smoked gouda
• parmesan crisps
• sunflower seeds
• pecans
• balsamic reduction
• raspberry basil vinaigrette

Prepping the kale

If you've had bitter, chewy kale before, it's likely that it wasn't prepared properly. Kale should have a mild and slightly sweet flavor, and should be soft, not chewy. Here are the important steps to take to avoid bad kale:

Remove it from the stem

This kale salad recipe works with pretty much any variety of kale including common curly kale, lacinato kale, and baby kale. Since kale has a tough, woody stem, it's important to remove the leaves from the stem. I do this using a paring knife, carefully cutting the leaves off working down from the thickest part of the stem. You can also simply tear it off with your hands.

Next, tear the kale up into bite sized pieces.

Wash & dry

To wash the kale, I recommend filling a large bowl with cold water. I actually do this in my salad spinner, placing the basket into the outer bowl of the salad spinner. Press the kale down into the water, moving it around to knock any dirt or debris from the kale.

Drain the kale well; if you use the salad spinner, it's as simple as removing the basket from the outer bowl. I do recommend spinning the kale dry in a salad spinner. Having wet kale leaves makes it more difficult for the vinaigrette to stick to and flavor the leaves.

Alternatively, you can arrange the kale leaves on a clean kitchen towel, then roll it up tightly to help absorb moisture from the leaves.

Massage the kale

Do not skip this part! Massaging the kale for 2-3 minutes before adding to the salad is important for two reasons:

1) it helps remove the tough texture that raw kale can tend to have

2) it helps remove the natural bitterness that kale can hold

To massage the kale, take clean, washed kale, and massage in your hands for 2-3 minutes, until kale becomes soft and bright green

Prep ahead + storage

Kale salad is best served immediately after dressing; after dressing it's *ok* for about 24 hours. With that being said, you can prepare the components ahead, and assemble just before serving-- this saves a ton of time!

• prepare you kale up to a week ahead (tear, wash, spin to dry and store in a produce saver or a large storage container; wait to massage it)
• prepare the dressing 2-3 weeks ahead and store in the fridge
• crumble feta cheese up to 7 days ahead

More great salads

• Healthy Greek Chicken Pasta Salad
• Refreshing Quinoa Black Bean Salad
• 21 Make Ahead Salads Perfect for Meal Prep
• Cobb Salad Recipe
• Apple Bacon Spinach Salad