Asian Mandarin Kale Salad

This Asian Mandarin kale salad recipe is a crowd pleaser – bright citrus, crunchy green apple, & carrots are coated in the perfect amount of creamy ginger dressing.

Being a food blogger comes with a unique set of problems – if you can even consider them “problems.” I found a clove of garlic stowed away in the cuff of my jeans. And today, I turned around in the kitchen to find Scout with a piece of garlic peel stuck to her wet nose. 🙄 You can’t make this stuff up.

Other “problems” include:

1. A fridge full of leftovers at all times. There’s a container of lentil fail and a container of lentil success. (Turns out red lentils cook super fast.) There’s a container of roasted veggies leftover from another recipe. Two mason jars – one with sauce that we used on the veggies and one with a failed tahini sauce that still tasted really good. And because we made this kale salad big enough to feed a crowd, we have a huge bowl of that leftover, too.
2. Not being able to explain what food blogging is when someone asks: “So, what do you do?” “Cook, take pictures of, and eat food. How about you?”
3. Going to the grocery store at least once every day.
4. Constantly coming up with ideas for recipes at inopportune moments. How can I write this down when I’m in the middle of washing my hair? I’m actually considering buying  a waterproof notepad for our shower.
5. Finding garlic in your pants.

I could think of a lot bigger/worse problems to have. I’m not really complaining about them so much as I’m laughing about them. At least we don’t have to worry about making something for dinner – we’ll just gorge ourselves on kale salad. Does this count as some kind of cleanse? A detox, maybe? 🙏🙏🙏

The truth is – I don’t care. This salad tastes so good you can hardly even tell it’s healthy.

When you match kale up with crunchy, sweet, tart, and salty toppings and douse the whole mix in an irresistible dressing, healthy doesn’t even enter the thought process.

It’s more like, “Is this kale? Why does this taste so good? Why can’t I stop eating it? Am I addicted to healthy?”

I don’t have all of the answers. I only know that this kale salad is the antithesis to boring and bland. It’s tangy, crisp, and creamy  – everything you could ever want need in a salad.

If you’re making this for the whole family/a crowd, go you! Everyone is going to love it. If you want to enjoy it all to yourself, I suggest making a smaller portion.

As we made this asian mandarin kale salad, it serves 6-10 people as a side. You could certainly make the entire batch and take it for lunch all week – another option!

How to Make Asian Mandarin Kale Salad

Jordan Cord

Asian Mandarin Kale Salad

This salad is loaded with bright flavors and crunchy textures – then doused in a creamy and tangy Asian-inspired dressing.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 15 minutes mins

Servings: 10

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Asian

Calories: 180

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• Tahini Dressing1/2 cup tahini
• 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup maple syrup or honey
• 6 Tablespoons orange juice
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1 teaspoon white pepper
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• Salad1 bunch kale destemmed
• 5 to 6 mandarin oranges
• 1 1/2 cups carrot julienned or ribboned
• 1 green apple julienned
• 3 cups broccoli chopped
• 1/4 cup peanuts roughly chopped

Method

 

1. SauceAdd all ingredients to a mason jar and shake vigorously until well-combined.
2. SaladPrepare ingredients as suggested above –
3. Thoroughly wash kale and remove from the hardy stalk. Chop into manageable, bite-sized pieces.
4. Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and toss to mix well. Pour dressing over top and continue mixing until everything is coated.