Carrot Kale Salad

September 23, 2012 | 4 Comments

I was walking through our McMinnville Public Market this Saturday, and spotted some beautiful carrots and ginger at Denison farms stand. I was going to a Japanese themed potluck that evening, and was still not sure what dish I would create and bring. I purchased some carrots, and a large knob of beautiful ginger, with the stalk still attached. I went home, cut up the stalk, steeped it in boiling water and sipped the delicious spicy ginger tea, and thought about my ingredients.

I am so proud of our garden this year. One of my favorite vegetables we are growing is kale. I started thinking about a salad. I wanted the salad to feature all three varieties of kale, we are currently growing, Siberian, Lacinato(Dinosaur), and Dwarf Blue Curled. I have sauteed and steamed kale, but haven’t often eaten, and enjoyed it raw in a salad.

I stroll through our garden daily, with or without Dominic and our girls, and almost always pick a kale leaf to munch on, along my journey. I pretty much always choke it down, as my taste buds have a hard time tolerating raw kale. I always pick and eat the kale leaf, because they look beautiful, and delicious, not to mention that I fully realize the health benefits. I sure do wish my taste buds would get with the program, and start liking raw kale. I decided that until they do, I would slice the kale thinly and use a hot dressing to wilt it to make it more palatable, and not quite so raw.

I used a mandolin to slice the carrots, onions, and red bell pepper, and am always amazed at how easy and quick the process is. My mandolin does not have a safety guard for my hands and fingers, so I have to be extra careful, and completely present, and aware during the slicing process.

Next time I make this salad, I will not put so much dressing on. This carrot kale salad can easily be served as an entree. It worked beautifully alongside some friend-rolled vegetarian sushi, and Japanese Ginger Cucumber Salad. The carrots and peanuts, lend a very necessary, satisfying crunch to this delicious wilted kale salad. My friends and family enjoyed it, and I hope you make and enjoy it too. This recipe was inspired by all the kale salad recipes I have read over the years.

Carrot Kale Salad

5.0 from 1 reviews

Recipe type: Side Dish,Appetizer

Author: Jillian

Serves: 10

Ingredients

1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
5 thin slices of ginger(peel if not organic)
4 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
3 large carrots, thinly sliced (peel if you do not know your source)
1/2 red pepper, thinly sliced
6 leaves nero cavello kale, thinly sliced
5 dwarf blue kale leaves, thinly sliced
5 curly kale leaves, thinly sliced
1/2 cup unsalted peanuts
DRESSING
3 Tbsp natural peanut butter
1 Tbsp tahini
1/2 cup water
3 Tbsp Bragg Aminos
4 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 Tbsp grated ginger
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
drizzle of local honey(about 1 tsp)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 grinds of fresh black pepper

Instructions

Slice all vegetables(I use a mandolin on the thinnest setting)
Soak onion and ginger slices in 4 Tbsp rice wine vinegar for 10 minutes
For Dressing, add peanut butter, tahini, water, Bragg Aminos, ginger, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, honey, garlic, and black pepper to small sauce pan
Apply low heat to ingredients, and whisk frequently to eliminate lumps, and to combine ingredients
Taste and adjust seasoning/ingredients
Add carrots, red pepper, red onion, kale, peanuts, and ginger to large bowl and toss to combine.
Pour 1/2 of hot dressing in salad bowl and toss salad to lightly coat all ingredients
Add more dressing if necessary(do not over dress)
Taste and adjust seasoning

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Tags: Bragg Liquid Aminos, carrots, dinosaur kale, dwarf blue kale, fresh ginger, fresh ground black pepper, kale, nero cavello kale, pickled ginger, Siberian Kale, toasted sesame oil

Categories: Gluten Free Recipes, Potluck Recipes, Salads, Side Dishes, Summer Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes

4 Responses so far.

Krista says:

September 24, 2012 at 5:28 pm

It was delicious. I am going to have to try and make it sometime.

Reply
- Jillian says:
  
  November 2, 2012 at 7:15 am
  
  Hi Krista, I am so happy I got to share it with you, and am so happy you enjoyed. Aren’t they addictive? Thank you for reading my blog, and taking the time to make a comment!
  
  Reply
Sophie says:

January 3, 2013 at 5:24 pm

I made this last night. DEFINITELY overdressed the salad. Next time I will use at least double the kale and NOT dump all the dessing in! Should’ve listened to you! Otherwise this is DELICIOUS. I threw in trail mix (unsalted peanuts, sunflower seeds, raisins, dried papaya and pineapple) because I didn’t have just peanuts. Cashews and almonds would’ve been nice too. This is definitely a new regular!

Reply
- Jillian says:
  
  January 4, 2013 at 8:28 am
  
  Hi Sophie, Thank you so much for reading my blog, and taking the time to post a comment. I am happy you like the Carrot Kale Salad. It is easy to overdress it, isn’t it? Sounds delicious with all the crunchy and sweet additions. I will have to try it that way, thank you for the tip. Look forward to hearing from you again.
  
  Reply