Massaged Kale Salad

As part of the New Year, we are trying to eat healthier, so I have been trying to find creative ways to use different veggies. We had a lot of kale in our fridge, and I thought, why not make a kale salad. I had heard about massaged kale before, and figured I would give it a try. Yes – massaged kale!

This is a great recipe especially when you grow kale in the garden and you end up with an abundance of kale! And I personally like to beat the Cabbage White Butterfly caterpillars and other critters to the kale, before I am left with raggedy stems.

Ingredients:

~ kale
~ olive oil
~ salt
~ quinoa
~ cherry tomatoes
~ Feta cheese
~ any other ingredients you wish to mix in

Directions:

Speaking of critters, I like to give my kale a good soaking, especially if it is curly kale. That way I can get as much debris and sand/soil off the leaves as possible. For this recipe, I tear the kale into pieces off the stems, and you can further tear or cut the leaves into your desired size pieces.

After giving the kale a good washing, you can shake dry or use a salad spinner.

At this point, drizzle the kale with olive oil and dust with salt. Now you can massage the kale. I use my hands and squeeze and scrunch the kale, distributing the oil and helping to break down the leaves. I like to kind of crush the kale in my hand.

Allow the kale to sit for a while, usually 30 minutes to start.

Prepare your quinoa. There are so many varieties, and I used a tricolor organic quinoa for this recipe. I like to pan fry the quinoa before preparing according to the box.

I like to allow the quinoa to cool or chill before mixing. I actually like it around room temperature for this recipe, but it is personal preference.

Mix together with whatever else you like in your salad. For this one, I added tomatoes and Feta. I think the Feta compliments the kale well by balancing out any bitterness in the kale.

Toss with salt and seasonings as desired.

What do you think?

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29 Comments
  • Renata S
    January 15, 2020

    I love this combination and I never thought to massage kale leaves! Thank you!

    • Beth
      February 5, 2020

      I’ll have to try this salad! A lot of times kale is too harsh for me, but I think the massage and feta would help a lot.

  • melissa chapman
    February 4, 2020

    Such a nice salad and I love the massaged kale it probably tastes amazing. I eat salad almost every day so I have to try this kale version.

  • Brianne Tursi Manz
    February 4, 2020

    I have never heard of massaged kale before, but, I like the idea behind this! I want to make this salad soon.

  • Amber Myers
    February 4, 2020

    Normally I don’t like kale much, but I’d give this a try. If it’s massaged and blended with other things, I can usually handle it. This looks like a good salad!

  • Liz Mays
    February 4, 2020

    I could really go for a salad like this. The quinoa makes it a nice, filling option for lunch.

  • Sarah Bailey
    February 4, 2020

    I have to admit I absolutely love kale! It has this taste which is so different from anything else – I bet it goes so well as part of a salad!

  • Paula Schuck
    February 4, 2020

    This is brilliant. I usually just rip it up or turn it into kale chips. We love kale. I often add it to my salads and stew and soups too. I hide it all the places. But I hate it to be too coarse. So I will try this next time. Thanks!

  • Brandy
    February 5, 2020

    I have not tried Kale yet. I guess I should though! I love a good salad, this is right up my alley with what I enjoy eating during my busy work at home days.

  • Chef Dennis
    February 5, 2020

    This Salas looks really delicious and so refreshing to eat. I’m sure my wife will love to have this on her plate. Thanks for sharing

  • Ruth I
    February 5, 2020

    I love this easy and healthy recipe! It looks so delicious!

  • Melissa Dixon
    February 5, 2020

    I love the way this looks, and I can not wait to try it out. I love a good salad and this looks perfect.

  • Kathy
    February 5, 2020

    I do love a good kale salad. This one sure does look amazing too. I’m all about salads. They are so good for you, and you can easily switch them up.

  • Tasheena
    February 5, 2020

    I can not wait to try this recipe. This salad looks so yummy and refreshing. I wish I had everything on hand to make this right now.

  • Jenn @ EngineerMommy
    February 5, 2020

    I love kale. I make kale chips all the time with some olive oil and sea salt. This salad looks easy to make and sounds delicious.

  • Acupofassamtea
    February 5, 2020

    Looks so hearty and healthy. I surely need to give it a try.

  • Cathy Mini
    February 6, 2020

    What a nice salad recipe. I should add this on my recipe, it looks so good!

  • Swathi
    February 6, 2020

    This massaged kale salad looks delicious great meal with quinoa. I need to try it.

  • rika
    February 6, 2020

    I love Kale and I can eat it every day! This salad looks so good! I can’t wait to try this recipe!

  • Cristina Petrini
    February 6, 2020

    Strange but true I can’t eat salad, but I love to prepare it for my family. This recipe is very interesting indeed.

  • Chad
    February 6, 2020

    I’ve had Kale salad before and I love it!!! But i had no idea that you needed to massage the leaves, this is an awesome tip.

  • Terri Steffes
    February 6, 2020

    I am just loving the idea of “massaging the kale.” It hits my funny bone! Is this filling? What I find is that I am hungry within minutes of eating a kale salad.

  • Heather
    February 6, 2020

    I’m all about kale chips. I can’t eat them daily! I haven’t been able to find a raw version that I love. I’m going to try this one!

  • Catherine
    February 6, 2020

    Kale is probably one of my favorite salad greens and it’s so good in a variety of ways. I love the sound of this simple yet hearty salad…looks delicious!

  • Yeah Lifestyle
    February 6, 2020

    Such a refreshing salad, I personally love kale and eat it as much as I can and this recipe looks so easy to prepare as well. Will give it a go.

  • Ashley R
    February 7, 2020

    This looks delicious. I need to try this. Soaking it is such a good idea.

  • Dan "Jay" Reyes
    February 7, 2020

    I like salad and this massaged kale salad looks tempting to eat 🙂

  • Raissa
    February 7, 2020

    Yummy and healthy at the same time.

  • Krista- recoveringsuperwoman
    February 8, 2020

    I really love feta and kale together! Great recipe with elegant photos!