quinoa kale salad

At the moment there are so many different kinds of beautiful, crispy, fresh kale and a vast variety of juicy citrus fruits available. So, let’s take advantage of the seasonal winter abundance and make this fresh, crispy and nutritious quinoa kale salad.

This mouth-watering seasonal quinoa and kale salad will make you feel good, it is quick and easy to make, very nutritious and its vibrant colors also will not only feed your mood but also your eyes.

mindfully enjoy the beautiful color combination of this winter salad.

Nature is just the best painter with all the color combinations and different structures! This kale with its curly, deep green leaves has a bright purple stem fading out into fine veins. At the stem it almost looks like a thick, fat brush stroke branching out until it is ending in the finest lines.

The black quinoa becomes a deep dark maroon showing tiny, white, curly tails when cooked. Avocados have this soft creamy white color that is transitioning into a light green at the edges. And the skin of Persian cucumber slices bring in the bright, almost glowing green.

But the highlights are CaraCara oranges, brightening up the salad with the intense orange color.

As you know me by now, I arrange my food the same way I create my paintings. So, to make the greens pop, you just have to add its contrast color red! Well, that’s where the deep red arils of the pomegranate come in. But these little red seeds also provide two very contrasting sensations when you eat them. First, when you bit on those little red seeds, the juice is almost bursting in your mouth. And then, the inner actual seed gives a nice bite, providing lots of fiber and supporting digestion.

Did you know that quinoa is one of the world’s most popular health foods?

The tiny seeds from the Andes are very high in protein and one of just a few plant foods that contain all nine essential amino acids. It is high in fiber, gluten-free, rich in magnesium, B vitamins, iron, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, vitamin E and various beneficial antioxidants.

Quinoa is not a grain as you might think but a seed and is called a” pseudo-cereal”, It is available in white, red and black. Is there is a difference other than the colors? Yes there is! Just briefly: white quinoa has a delicate taste and the lightest texture. In comparison, the red or black quinoa is richer in taste, and they have a slightly chewier texture and nuttier flavor. That’s why in combination with the stronger taste of the raw kale, I chose the black quinoa.

But if you can’t decide what color to choose, just get a package of tri-color quinoa and you have them all in one pack.

Another quality to like about quinoa – it can be ready to eat in as little as 20 minutes!

Make sure you rinse the seeds thoroughly with cold water before you cook them. This eliminates the saponins, contained in the outer layer and have a bitter flavor. Some brands are pre-rinsed but just in case, always rinse them before cooking. Even though quinoa cooks fast, I recommend to make a double batch. Because you can eat quinoa as your morning cereal with fruits and yoghurt or blend 3-4 Tbsp. with your smoothie.

But it also speeds up your next lunch or dinner preparation. And in case you made a double batch and don’t use it right away, quinoa freezes really well. I freeze it in portions in re-usable freezer bags and stays fresh up to 3 months and thaws quickly.

Of all the super healthy greens, kale really kicks it!

It is among the most nutrient-dense foods and loaded with all sorts of beneficial compounds. Just to name a few of them.

• With its deep green color kale Is loaded with powerful antioxidants including beta-carotene, an antioxidant that the body can turn into vitamin A. This helps to protect your eyes and reduces the risk of macular degeneration and cataracts.
• Kale is an excellent source of Vitamin C. Did you know that one cup of raw kale contains even more Vitamin C than an orange!
• It is one of the world’s best sources of Vitamin K. An important nutrient that is involved in blood clotting. And a single cup of raw kale containing almost 7 times the recommended daily amount.
• Fresh kale contains many important minerals some of which are generally lacking in the modern diet including calcium, potassium and magnesium.

These leafy vegetables come in various shapes and colors – from green to purple from smooth and flat to “bubbly”, wrinkly or curly. The curly kale or Scots kale as it is called (on the left), is the most common. To the right is the Lacinato kale. Both you can use for the salad.

For this quinoa kale salad, I used the purple kale with its dark green leaves and the vibrant purple veins and stems. To make the salad, you only use the leafy de-stemmed greens. Wash them thoroughly, spin and cut the leaves before you start massaging them. This softens the leaves and also the taste of the kale and helps your system to digest the kale.

But do not throw away the stems!

To be mindful with the resources and the gifts of mother earth and not to waste anything that still perfectly can be used. I might have mentioned before, to keep a big bag in your freezer and collect all the veggie scraps including the stems of kale. When the bag is full, you can cook a delicious veggie broth from these scraps! I will get into this soon in another post, so stay tuned.

Let’s see what’s else we have in this quinoa kale salad.

Don’t you just love avocados?

Avocados are so versatile for sweet and savory dishes. They provide you with lots of healthy fats and a wide variety of nutrients and vitamins to your salad. Even though the avocado is one of the fattiest plant foods in existence but 77% of the calories in an avocado come from healthy from fat. The majority of the fat in avocado is oleic acid — a monounsaturated fatty acid that is also the major component of olive oil and have the same health benefits. This makes the avocados so very nutritious. This include 20 different vitamins and minerals! Avocados are high in potassium supporting a healthy blood pressure. This fruit actually has a higher content of potassium content than bananas, a mineral that most people don’t get enough of. Due to its high content of fiber avocados are considered a low-carb friendly plant food and significantly improves the cholesterol profile. Avocados also help to increase the nutrient value of other plant foods with its healthy fats.

The combination of kale and citrus fruit makes this quinoa kale salad a perfect seasonal salad!

Whatever citrus fruit you like best or have on hand will brighten up your salad, makes it juicy and adds a soft tartness. And the high content of Vitamin C is supporting your immune system during flu and cold season.

When it comes to the orange you perfectly can just peel and cut them in pieces. But here is a technique to harvest the fruit segments and avoiding the tough membrane (pith). I thought, I’ll share this technique here with you. It is pretty simple, just use a sharp knife.

here is how to cut a citrus fruit into segments

You first cut off the top and bottom ends of their fruit deep enough to see the flesh. Set the fruit flat on the cutting board and cut the peel in segments by cutting into the pith following the globe shape of the fruit until you have removed all the skin from top to bottom.

To release the segments, lay the orange sideways on the cutting board. Cut along the membranes left and right in a V-shape towards the center until the two cuts meet and release the segment.

Collect the segments in a small bowl. After you harvested all segments, squeeze the juice from the membranes with your hands and add this juice to the dressing

get your salad dressed up with an orange-yoghurt dressing

Infusing the orange and lemon juice with the orange zest makes this dressing so fruity and refreshing. The home-made coconut yoghurt tips off the tartness makes it smooth and cooling. But the soft, creamy, gentle, nutty flavor of the walnut oil collects all the various tastes in this dressing.  A hint of black and Aleppo pepper gives it a gentle kick. You might even want to drink it! It is so delicious. This dressing is quite liquid. But if you prefer a creamy texture, just add 1 teaspoon of almond or cashew butter, blend it in a high-speed blender or with an immersion blender.

quinoa kale salad is perfect for meal-prep or a lunch to go.

You can prepare this salad in advance and it keeps fresh in the fridge for at least 2-3 days for a lunch to go or to eat as a dinner. Just add all ingredients in a container or mason jar, starting with the quinoa, followed by the kale and avocado. Just sprinkle the pomegranate arils and walnuts on top. Keep the cucumber un-sliced separate in small bowl that it does not get soggy. Fill the dressing in a separate small jar to mix it in with the salad right before you go to eat it.

Print

quinoa kale salad

a nourishing, healthy winter salad with purple kale, black quinoa, orange slices and avocado with a refreshing orange dressing

Course main course, salad, starter

Cuisine gluten free, Vegan, vegetarian

Keyword black quinoa and red kale salad, quinoa and kale salad with orange dressing, quinoa kale salad, salad with quinoa and kale

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

quinoa (makes about 3 C of cooked quinoa) you can keep the leftover in the fridge up to a week or even freeze it for about 3 months

• 1 C black quinoa
• 2 C water or veggie broth If your use water, add 1 tsp. of salt to the water

salad

• 1 bunch red kale about 6-8 stems destemed washed and cut (about 3 C)
• 1 C cooked black quinoa you can also use red or white quinoa
• 1 orange peeled and sliced in segments I used CaraCara but any one is fine
• 1 Persian cucumber or 1/2 medium English cucumber
• 1 avocado peeled and sliced
• 1/4 C pomegranate arils (seeds)
• 1/4 C roasted walnuts you can dry-roast them briefly in a pan to enhance the taste

orange dressing

• zest of 1/2 organic orange
• 1/4 C orange juice (1 orange) delicious also with blood orange
• 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1/3 C walnut oil
• 1 Tbsp almond or cashew butter
• 3 Tbsp. coconut yoghurt
• 1/2 tsp sea salt more to taste
• 1/2 tsp maple syrup more or less to taste
• black pepper to taste
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes I like Aleppo pepper

Instructions

quinoa

1. in a medium size pot bring the water or broth to a boil. If you are using water add 1 tsp of salt. If using broth this adds a deeper taste to the cooked quinoa

2. in the meanwhile rinse quinoa thoroughly and add it into the to boiling water or broth and bring it back to a soft boil for about 5 minutes.

3. now turn down the heat and let it simmer for about 15 minutes

4. turn off the heat and let it sit for about 10 more minutes until all the broth/water is fully absorbed and you can see the white curly tails showing up. now fluff up the quinoa with a fork.

   

5. measure 1 C of the cooked quinoa into a bowl, set aside and let it cool a bit

orange-yoghurt dressing

1. wash the orange with hot water, pad dry and start to zest the whole orange.

   while you mindfully zest the whole orange take a deep breath and enjoy this uplifting and refreshing aroma of the orange oil released by the peel. 

2. juice the orange and use 1/2 of the zest for the dressing. The rest of the zest you can use to make citrus salt (you find on my blog).

3. in a mason jar mix the orange and lemon juice with the orange zest. Let it steep for about 10 minutes to infuse the juice with the aroma of the zest. Now add all other dressing ingredients, close the lid and shake until it is perfectly mixed. (You also can use an immersion blender)

   

salad

1. in a small pan dry-roast the walnuts for a few minutes until fragrant. But watch them not to get burned and aside to cool.

2. de-stem and wash the kale. Spin dry and cut in stripes

3. in a bigger bowl add 1 Tbsp. of walnut oil, a pinch of salt and the kale. Massage the kale with your hands for about one minute until it is soft and shiny

   

4. cut the orange segments (as shown above)

   

5. wash and slice the cucumber. I like the Persian cucumber, they are delicious, small, crunchy and have no seeds. But you can perfectly use an  English cucumber.

6. cut  the avocado in halves, remove the pit and peel and slice the halves.

serving

1. after the quinoa has cooled a bit, mix the quinoa, kale, orange segments, cucumber slices and roasted walnuts in a bowl. Top with about 2/3rd of the dressing and mix. 

   Divide the salad in 4 bowls, arrange the avocado slices on the side and sprinkle the pomegranate arils on top and add the rest of the dressing.

   

2. Guten Appetit

Recipe Notes

To add more protein

You can top the salad with baked tofu or roasted chickpeas