Kale and Quinoa Salad

kale quinoa salad in wooden bowl all mixed up

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Kale & quinoa salad is hearty, veggie-packed, and bursting with nourishing ingredients! Drizzled with a white wine vinaigrette, it's full of fresh flavor and texture. Gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan-friendly!

Prep Time10

Total Time10

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegetarian

Servings: servings

Calories: 245kcal

Author: Denise Bustard

Ingredients

¾ cup quinoa uncooked; note 1
4 cups kale leaves packed; note 2
2 bell peppers diced
¼ cup red onion diced
1 pint tomatoes halved
¾ cup feta cheese crumbled

Vinaigrette

3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoons maple syrup note 3
2 teaspoon lemon
2 cloves garlic minced
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon dijon

Instructions

Cook quinoa - Cook quinoa according to package directions. Allow the quinoa to fully cool before assembling the salad.
Prepare Kale - While the quinoa is cooking, shred, wash, and dry the kale. Remove if from the stem and tear into bite-sized pieces. Soak in cold water, then drain. Dry well using a salad spinner. Take clean, washed kale, and massage in your hands for 2-3 minutes, until kale becomes soft and bright green (note 4).
Vinaigrette - Shake vinaigrette ingredients together, including olive oil, white wine, maple syrup, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and dijon.
Combine - Assemble the salad ingredients including quinoa, kale, chopped bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, red onion, and feta cheese. Drizzle with the dressing, toss, and enjoy!

Video

Notes

cook your quinoa on the stove top, in a rice cooker, or in an Instant Pot. White quinoa is pictured; swap for red or tricolor if you'd prefer!
you can use curly, lacinato or baby kale in this recipe
swap for brown sugar, honey or your favorite sweetener
massaging kale helps to soften the texture and remove bitterness from the leaves
serving size is a very rough estimate. Nutritional info is for ⅙ of the batch

To Prep Ahead:

This kale & quinoa salad is best served fresh, however, you can prep some of the components 4-5 days ahead.

Cook quinoa, let cool completely, then store in an airtight container in the fridge
Shred, wash, dry kale. Store in a container lined with a paper towel in the fridge for up to 7 -10 days
Shake up the salad dressing and store seperately in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks
Chop up the veggies incuding cucumber, bell peppers, red onion. Cherry tomatoes should be chopped when ready to serve, as they tend to go soggy. Store chopped veggies for 4-5 days.
To serve, combine the kale, quinoa, veggies, and top with feta and white wine vinagrette

Store - once the salad is assembled, it should be eaten up within 6-8 hours. After 24 hours, we find it tends to go a little soggy and isn't quite as fresh!

Nutrition