Kale quinoa salad is a combo of super foods paired with a ton of flavor from a tasty dressing and other great whole food ingredients.
Ingredients needed
- Kale
- Quinoa
- Chickpeas/ garbanzo beans
- Red onion
- Sliced almonds
- Red bell pepper
- Olive oil
- Lemon
- Garlic
- Honey
- Salt & black pepper
- Apple cider vinegar
Quick tips to avoid mistakes
- Slightly heat the lemon juice to help dissolve the honey in the dressing. About 10-15 seconds in the microwave is enough.
- Prep the kale first. You will have to “crunch” the kale with olive oil and salt. Allow it to sit while the quinoa is cooking. For 2 cups of kale you will need about 2-3 tablespoon of oil with 2 teaspoons of salt. The kale is raw but this will tenderize it, as you can see in the photos.
- This is a great salad to make ahead and use for a meal prep. There are several serving in it.
- Wash the quinoa before cooking. Some quinoa says that it has been washed already, ignore it. Wash the quinoa even if it says it’s been washed already.
How to store
This is a great meal prep salad for a few days and it can be made ahead of time. In a sealed or covered container the salad will last about 4 days. Honey is a natural preservative and it adds a nice sweet flavor to the dressing in the kale quinoa salad.
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Kale Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
Salad
- 1 cup quinoa, dry
- 2 cup kale, chopped
- 15 ounce can of chickpeas, drained & rinsed
- 1/2 medium red onion, diced
- 1 medium red bell pepper, deseeded & diced
- 1 cup sliced almond
Dressing
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 2 lemon, squeezed
- 2 tablespoon honey
- 2 clove garlic, grated
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- To start, tenderize the kale first. Chop up the kale into smaller pieces then drizzle with 1 tsp salt and 3 TB olive oil. Next, take your hand and crunch the kale and giving a light massage to it. Not so rough you tear the pieces. After, allow the kale to sit while you prepare everything else.
- Now, prepare the quinoa according to the package.
- While quinoa is cooking and kale is tenderizing prep everything else.
- For the dressing, squeeze 2 lemons into a bowl then add in honey. Microwave about 10-15 seconds then stir until the honey has dissolved.
- Next, add in oil, grate a clove of garlic and add in apple cider vinegar with salt and pepper. Give everything a mix then sat aside.
- Now, you want to dice the red bell pepper removing the stems and seeds. Also, dice the red onion.
- Once quinoa has cooked, add the kale and quinoa together in a large bowl.
- Then, add in chopped bell pepper, diced onion, drained and rinsed chickpeas, sliced almonds and pour dressing over the top.
- Give everything an even toss. The heavier ingredients will want to settle to the bottom. Make note of this before serving. Now, taste for salt and pepper then serve.
Nutrition
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.