Kale quinoa salad is delightfully delicious and nutritious!
Hail to the kale – and quinoa! These two superfoods taste great mixed with other vegetables, nuts, and cheese and then tossed in a simple dressing!
Make it ahead of time for lunches or busy weeknight meals (this salad freezes beautifully too!).
Hearty & Healthy Salad
- Kale and quinoa salad is chock full of protein, antioxidants, and fiber, and even kids love the combination of colorful and crunchy ingredients!
- This versatile recipe lets you switch out the fruits and veggies for whatever is in season making it a year-round favorite!
- Make this ahead of time and enjoy for lunches. This salad freezes well too making it an easy make-ahead meal!
- Keep it as a vegetarian entrée salad or add chicken or fish!
Ingredients for Kale Quinoa Salad
Kale – Choose bunches of kale that are deep green and remove any torn or wilted leaves, as well as the stalks. While I most often use curly kale, try other varieties like baby, dinosaur kale/Tuscan kale. Bulk up the salad by adding chopped broccoli slaw, shredded brussels sprouts, or spinach.
Quinoa – Cooking quinoa in broth (instead of water) adds extra flavor. A powerhouse of protein, quinoa can be switched out for other grains or legumes. Try farro or even brown rice.
Vegetables – Shredded carrots and sliced red onions offer color and crunch and are available year-round. Seasonal veggies like chunks of roasted squash, corn, or beets can be added as well!
Other Flavorful Additions – Dried cranberries add sweetness and so will fresh apples or grapes. Feta is a dry cheese that adds a salty flavor while pecans add a nutty crunch.
Dressing – This sweet-tart vinaigrette has just the right amount of Dijon mustard and fresh garlic. If using a pre-made dressing, opt for something slightly sweet and tangy such as a light fruity or citrus-infused dressing. You can also try poppyseed or honey mustard dressing.
Variations
- Add other veggies, almost anything goes. If you’re not freezing this salad try cherry tomatoes, red bell pepper, or chopped cucumber.
- Swap out pecans for pumpkin seeds or pepitas, sunflower seeds, or sliced almonds.
- Cooked chicken or even chickpeas are great additions for extra protein.
How to Make Kale Quinoa Salad
- Make dressing: Place the dressing in a mason jar and shake well to combine per the recipe below.
- Cook quinoa: Cook quinoa, fluff with a fork, and cool.
- Combine ingredients: Massage chopped kale in oil and salt in a large bowl and add the remaining ingredients and drizzle the dressing overtop. Toss to combine and refrigerate before serving.
Storing Kale and Quinoa Salad
- Keep kale and quinoa salad in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Stir in fresh nuts, cheese, or dressing, if desired.
- Believe it or not, you CAN freeze this kale quinoa salad recipe if it is made with the ingredients listed below. Once thawed, it tastes just as good as the day it was made!
More Hearty Grain Salads
Did your family love this Kale Quinoa Salad? Leave us a rating and a comment below!
Kale Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup uncooked quinoa
- 1 ⅓ cups vegetable broth or water
- 3 cups kale chopped, lightly packed
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup pecans chopped
- ½ cup carrots cut into matchsticks or shredded
- ½ cup feta cheese
- ¼ cup red onion diced
- ¼ cup dried cranberries
Lemon Dressing
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 clove garlic minced
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh strainer and drain well.
- Place the quinoa in a medium saucepan with vegetable broth or water.
- Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for 15 minutes or until the liquid has been absorbed. Cover and let rest for 5 minutes. Cool completely.
- Once the quinoa has cooled completely, place it in a large bowl.
- In a jar, combine all dressing ingredients and shake well.
- Place the kale in the bottom of a medium bowl. Add olive oil and ¼ teaspoon of kosher salt to the kale. Massage the chopped kale with your hands until the leaves become tender and dark green.
- Add the cooled quinoa, pecans, carrots, feta cheese, red onion, and dried cranberries to the bowl.
- Pour the dressing over the ingredients and toss well to combine.
- Refrigerate the salad for at least 1 hour before serving.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Lunch, Salad
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
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Where is the dressing recipe?
It’s in the recipe below the salad ingredients. You can use the Jump To Recipe button at the top of the post.
This was sooooo good! The only changes I made was adding cannellini beans for more protein and substituted apple instead of cranberries since I didn’t have them available. Thanks for a great recipe!
The beans are such a great addition, I’m so glad you loved it.
Do you freeze it after being tossed with the dressing or freeze the dressing separately?
This can be frozen with the dressing on the salad.
Please make sure to wash the kale thoroughly! Very good recipe!
That’s a great tip Suzanne, so glad you enjoyed it!
Have tried many of your recipes, and this kale and quinoa salad is wonderful! The dressing is just perfect to showcase this salad!
Since subscribing to your website, I would like to thank you for the 20 extra pounds I have put on! Your recipes are just so yummy and well seasoned!
Thank you, always look forward to your next email!
P.S. Also, thank you for formatting your recipes to fit on a single page so I can print them out to put in my best recipe binder for repeated use!
I’m so glad you loved it as much as we do Elli, I agree, I think this dressing would be good on almost anything! ♥️
I am so glad to see that I am not alone with messaging the kale, it makes such a difference. Can’t wait to try this one and even try freezing it. Love getting your emails, keep up the good work. Have a great weekend.
Thank you Jacquie! I hope you love it as much as we do, come back and let us know how it goes!