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Hearty, crunchy, and never soggy, this Simple Vegan Kale Salad features tender massaged kale, colorful veggies, fresh herbs, and slivered almonds. It stays fresh in the fridge for days and is fun to customize with your favorite add-ins! Vegan and Gluten-Free; Oil-Free and Nut-Free Options.
This Easy Kale Salad with Lemon Dressing is proof that even the simplest salads don’t have to be boring. Fresh kale, everyday vegetables, and nuts are tossed with olive oil and lemon juice, giving you a lunch or side dish that’s wholesome and hearty. Even better, it stays tender and fresh in the fridge for days! No sad, soggy salads here.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe:
Not a fan of kale? Think it’s too earthy and bitter? I get it—raw kale gets a bad rap. But my Everyday Kale Salad transforms those tough greens into a lunch or side dish you’ll want to make over and over.
The secret to perfect, crave-worthy kale (yes, it’s a thing!) is massaging the leaves with lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper. This tasty combo of fat and acidity breaks down the tough fibrous leaves until they’re soft and easy to eat. Toss in a few crunchy veggies, fresh herbs, and nuts or seeds, and your everyday salad is ready!
- The Ultimate Fridge-Friendly Salad: Kale is a sturdy leafy green that doesn’t get soggy or mushy even after being tossed with salad dressing. Combined with a few hearty vegetables, this salad is perfect for meal prep and stays fresh in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Make It How You Like: Between you and me, the add-ins and dressing in the recipe card are just a starting point. There are so. many. ways. to make this kale salad your own. Check out the Substitutions & Variations section below for inspiration!
- Budget-Friendly: Not only is this salad so dang good that you’ll want to eat it every day, but it’s budget-friendly, too. It’s made from 8 low-cost pantry staples and easy-to-find produce, keeping your wallet as happy as your taste buds.
Ingredients for Vegan Kale Salad
This everyday kale salad comes together with just 8 simple, plant-based ingredients for the perfect balance of crunch, flavor, and texture. This is what you’ll need:
- Kale: you can use lacinato kale (also called Tuscan or dinosaur kale) or classic curly kale. Lacinato has flatter, dark green leaves with a milder flavor, while curly kale is denser and crunchier.
- Dressing: high-quality extra virgin olive oil, fresh lemon juice (or apple cider vinegar), and a pinch of salt and black pepper are massaged directly onto the kale leaves to break down their toughness and infuse flavor.
- Hearty Vegetables: thinly sliced red cabbage and shredded carrot add color, nutrients, and a lasting crunch that holds up for days.
- Fresh Herbs: opt for flat-leaf parsley, cilantro, dill, or basil for a touch of garden-fresh flavor.
- Nuts or Seeds: sprinkle slivered almonds over the top for extra crunch, or use raw or roasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds) as a yummy nut-free alternative.
How to Make Kale Salad
- Add the chopped kale to a large bowl along with the olive oil, lemon juice, and salt and pepper. Use your hands to massage the kale until it’s noticeably smaller, darker, and more tender.
- Fold in the carrot, cabbage, and fresh herbs. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Divide the salad between serving plates and garnish with slivered almonds. Serve and enjoy!
Caitlin’s Cooking Tips
- How to prepare fresh kale for salads: You’re going to want to remove the thick, woody stems before chopping the greens into bite-sized ribbons. Just grip the stem at the base with one hand and slide the leaves right off. And don’t throw the stems away! Try freezing them for smoothies, stir-fries, or this Homemade Vegetable Broth.
- Use your hands to massage the kale leaves in the dressing for 30 to 60 seconds. This really helps soften up the tough fibers, cut down the bitterness, and make the kale actually taste good!
- If you want to speed things up, make this with bags of pre-washed, pre-chopped kale and pre-shredded carrots or slaw mix from the grocery store. Just pick through the pre-bagged kale to remove any remaining thick stem pieces before massaging.
Serving Suggestions
There’s never a bad time for vegan kale salad. It comes together so quickly that I find myself making it for lunch during the week. Most of the time, I’ll top it with this Crispy Baked Tempeh to boost the protein or pair it with these Crispy Lentil Wraps or these Arugula Sandwiches with Smashed Chickpea Salad for a more filling meal.
It’s great around dinnertime, too. I eat it year-round with almost everything! I like serving it on the side of this Chipotle, Sweet Potato & Pumpkin Soup on cold evenings, these Mushroom Veggie Burgers during grilling season, and this Avocado Pesto Pasta when summer finally hits.
If you’re looking for more easy vegan kale salad recipes, you’ll also love this Kale & Cranberry Salad with Tahini Dressing, this Kale Apple Salad with Cider Dressing, and this Winter Kale Salad with Pomegranate Vinaigrette!
How to Store Kale Salad
Unlike your average lettuce salad, this kale salad will stay tender and fresh for up to 3 days. I like to divide it into airtight containers and store them in the fridge so they’re ready for my lunches throughout the week.
If you want to make the kale salad ahead of time, assemble it as normal (without the nuts/seeds) and refrigerate it in the covered bowl. Garnish with the nuts/seeds and adjust the flavors to your taste, adding another drizzle of olive oil or lemon juice or a pinch of salt and pepper, right before serving.
Freezing isn’t recommended.
Substitutions and Variations
- Oil-Free Option: Swap the EVOO for 2 to 3 tablespoons of runny tahini or half of a ripe, mashed avocado. Both provide the fats needed to break down the tough kale while making the salad super creamy.
- Nut-Free Option: Ditch the almonds and sprinkle pumpkin seeds (pepitas), hemp seeds, sunflower seeds, or crispy roasted chickpeas over the salad before serving.
- More Salad Dressing Ideas: After massaging the kale in the oil, lemon, and salt, drizzle your favorite dressing on top to make an extra-saucy salad. I recommend using my Tahini Dressing, this Simple Balsamic Vinaigrette, or this Sesame Miso Dressing.
- Optional Vegetable Add-Ins: Sliced radishes, snap peas, diced bell peppers, and shredded beets will all hold up well in the salad.
- Add Dried Fruit: A burst of tangy sweetness from dried cranberries, cherries, raisins, or figs would be so delicious. In the winter, I like adding pomegranate seeds and thinly sliced apples.
- Boost the Fiber and Protein: You can make the kale salad more filling by tossing in a scoop of cooked and cooled whole grains like quinoa, farro, brown rice, bulgur, or barley, a can of drained and rinsed white beans, or 1/2 cup of cooked brown/green lentils.
Enjoy! If you make this recipe and decide to share it on Facebook or Instagram, don’t forget to tag me @FromMyBowl + #FromMyBowl! I would also love it if you could leave a comment below with a recipe rating! Thank you for the support 😊
Everyday Kale Salad
Ingredients
- 1 head lacinato or curly kale de-stemmed and chopped
- Juice of 1 lemon or 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil*
- 1 carrot grated
- 1/4 head red cabbage finely shredded
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs parsley, cilantro, basil, etc
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons slivered almonds or pumpkin seeds for garnish (or both!)
Instructions
- Massage the Kale: Add the chopped Kale to a large mixing bowl with the oil, lemon juice, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Use your hands to firmly massage the kale for 30-60 seconds, until it has noticeably reduced in size and the leaves become translucent.
- Mix: Fold the carrot, cabbage, and herbs into the salad, then season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve & Store: Transfer to serving plates, then garnish with slivered almonds and serve. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Recipe Notes
- Oil-Free Substitution: You can replace the olive oil with 2-3 tablespoons of runny tahini or ½ of a mashed avocado, if you so desire.
Nutrition
Made this salad with your cashew dressing from the Kale Waldorf salad – A-freakin-mazing!
You’re so kind! Thank you!
Hi Caitlin, I commented on September 29th at 9:45pm. I stupidly wrote my full name and it is now appearing in a basic google search. I am quite concerned about my online privacy and would really appreciate it if you could either replace my full name with ”Ellie” on the original comment, or delete it. I am happy to write the same comment again with my nickname. Thank you
Fixed that for you!
Made it tonight with the baked tempeh as seen on your video and served it with quinoa, absolutely delicious! I added spring onion to the salad, as well as a heaped tablespoon of tahini, half a teaspoon of mustard and a drizzle of maple syrup to replace the olive oil. Will make again 🙂
Sounds so good! Thanks!
This is so colorful and nutritious!
Thanks so much!
I wish I remembered how easy and delicious lemon juice + olive oil is for a quick salad dressing. Your recipes always inspire me Caitlin!
Thank you!