A Fantastic Kale and Quinoa Salad Combination
If you love kale and if you also love quinoa, you’re going to love this refreshing kale and quinoa salad! This is a quick, make everything in one bowl salad packed with fresh nutritional vegetables. If you wash your vegetables and have all your ingredients ready to go, it will be ready in under 25 minutes.
Important Tips When Using Kale in Salads
Here are a few tips to try with chopping kale. I have chopped a lot of kale in my cooking journey and I want to share that with you so you can also make kale taste optimal and chew friendly.
First tip is to de-stem your kale leaves. I alternate between de-stemming kale halfway through chopping them, or just before I begin chopping the kale from the beginning. De- stemming simply means taking off the leaves from the stems of the kale. The stem is very thick and hard to chew and de-stemming it allows for a more pleasant eating experience with kale salads.
The next tip is to chop the kale as finely as possible. This also helps with a chew friendly texture, and it tastes better too, in my opinion.
My third tip is to rub the kale with apple cider vinegar after it is chopped and allow it to sit while you chop the rest of your ingredients. This helps the kale leaves become a little bit softer.
If you’re wondering if the apple cider vinegar might overpower the salad, I would say the amount we use for this salad does not overpower the salad at all. Personally, I love apple cider vinegar in salads, but I was not able to taste any overpowering flavors with this kale and quinoa salad.
These tips have really helped me create tastier salads that everyone enjoys. Another thing I like about this salad is that I do not need to make the dressing in a separate container. Sometimes I’m in a hurry and I want to make my salads as quickly as possible. With this kale and quinoa salad, I am able to do this shortcut without compensating the taste or flavor of my salad.
| Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cook Time: 20 minutes |
| Serves: 3 | Total time: 25 minutes |
| Ingredients 1/2 cup cooked quinoa + 1 cup filtered water (to cook quinoa) 4 cups finely chopped lacinto (dinasour) kale (approximately 1 1/2 bunch) 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar 1 Roma tomato 2 medium sized cucumbers 1/2 crumbled feta cheese 2-3 tbsp chopped cilantro 1 tsp lemon zest 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil Juice of 1 freshly squeezed lemon (about 3 tbsp) 1/4 tsp paprika 1/2 tsp sea salt 1/2 tsp black pepper |
| Instructions 1. First thoroughly rinse your quinoa and added it to a medium sized saucepan. 2. Now add 1 cup filtered water and a pinch of salt and bring to a boil. 3. Once quinoa starts to boil, bring down the heat to a slow simmer and stir every 4-5 minutes. 4. Keep an watchful eye on when the water in the quinoa is absorbed. This usually takes about 10-15 minutes. Turn off once water is absorbed. 5. Chop kale finely and add to a large mixing bowl. Add apple cider vinegar and massage and allow the kale to sit while you chop the remainder of your ingredients. 6. Add extra virgin olive oil to the kale and massage and set aside. 7. Chop tomatoes, cucumbers and cilantro and add to the mixing bowl. 8. Add cooked quinoa, lemon juice, lemon zest, paprika, salt, and pepper and stir until well combined. Enjoy! |
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