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This 10-minute strawberry kale salad is summertime in a bowl! Simple fresh ingredients are combined for a delicious salad that’s the perfect combination of sweet and savory. Made with kale, strawberries, and almonds for some crunch and an easy dressing that mixes up in minutes.

completed Strawberry Kale Salad on a white plate against a white surface

Are you bored with your salad? I know I get tired of eating the same old lettuce salad all the time. 

This strawberry kale salad definitely mixes things up! Such simple ingredients really bring an interesting combination of flavors. It’s my go-to salad during the summer when berries are at their peak.

If you love fruit in savory salads, check out this black bean and mango salad and quinoa salad with grapefruit

Add this salad to any meal like pasta dishes or turn it into a main dish with a healthy plant protein such as tofu, chickpeas, or white beans. 

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Why This Recipe Works

  • Healthy ingredients: Kale, strawberries, and almonds provide you with lots of healthy nutrients to support your body. 
  • Great flavors: The perfect combination of salty, sweet, and savory.
  • Quick and easy: The homemade dressing comes together in just minutes to toss with the fresh kale, strawberries, and almonds.

What Goes Into This Recipe

Fresh produce and easy staple ingredients are all it takes to make this easy strawberry kale salad.

ingredients for Strawberry Kale Salad measured out against a light surface
  • Fresh kale: Use curly or laccinato kale (also called Tuscan kale or dinosaur kale) to make this salad. If you decide to use baby kale leaves, skip the step of massaging the greens.
  • Almond slivers: Almonds add the perfect crunch. Slices or chopped almonds work too.
  • Strawberries: Choose fresh, ripe organic strawberries to make this fruit and kale salad. Fresh strawberries are available year-round but their main season is the summer which is also when they usually have the juiciest, sweetest flavor. Organic is best if they aren’t too pricey since strawberries are usually part of the Dirty Dozen and often contain high amounts of pesticides.
  • Olive oil: Opt for extra virgin when making dressings.
  • Lemon juice: Freshly squeezed lemon juice will give the best flavor to the dressing.
  • Soy sauce: Adds umami flavor to the dressing. For gluten-free, you can use coconut aminos or miso.
  • Balsamic vinegar: The slightly sweet and acid flavor balances out the saltiness of the soy sauce.
  • Seasonings: Oregano, sage, thyme, salt, and pepper add great flavor to the simple dressing.

How To Make Kale Salad with Strawberries

  • 1) Chop the kale and add it to a large bowl. Massage the kale, by rubbing the leaves together until they soften and turn a darker green. Then add the strawberries and almonds.
process showing addition of Strawberry Kale Salad ingredients into bowl
  • 2) In a smaller bowl, whisk the rest of the ingredients, add to the salad until it’s distributed evenly and cover all the ingredients.

Tip: Not sure how to cut kale? Watch this kale cutting tutorial to find out exactly how to do it easily.

Expert Tips

  • Don’t skip the massage. I know it seems like an extra step but it’s quite tasty. It softens the greens and reduces some of the bitterness in the kale leaves. 
  • Best flavor. Use fresh, in-season, ripe strawberries.
  • Serve immediately. This strawberry kale salad is best eaten right after adding the dressing. If transporting or waiting to serve, add the dressing right before and mix everything together.

FAQS

Can you eat this kale salad raw?

Yes, kale can be eaten steamed or sauteed but also works great served up raw in salads. It’s part of the cabbage family and has a firmer texture than lettuce and sometimes is slightly bitter. It works great paired with fruits and vegetables as the sweetness in fruit helps tame the bitterness. Check out this blog post to learn more!

Why do you massage the kale for a salad?

Kale leaves often have a rather bitter taste and firm texture. Massaging the kale releases some of the water in the leaves and makes them softer and less bitter tasting. It’s not necessary but it does improve the overall flavor of kale in uncooked preparations.

completed Strawberry Kale Salad on a white plate against a white surface

Variations

Here are some different ways you can change up your kale and strawberry salad!

  • Berries: Use a mix of berries or replace the strawberries with blueberries.
  • Avocado: Chop up some fresh avocado and add it to the salad to boost the healthy fats.
  • Nuts: Walnuts or pecans work great too. I even like to sometimes replace them with these flavored nuts.
  • Seeds: Ditch the nuts and use pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds instead.
  • No kale? Use spinach, baby greens, or romaine instead and skip the massaging!
  • Main dish: Add crunchy tofu, marinated tofu, crispy chickpeas, canned black beans, or some quinoa to turn this dish into a main course meal.
completed Strawberry Kale Salad on a white plate against a white surface

More Salad Recipes

Photos by Alfonso Revilla

Strawberry Kale Salad

5 from 48 votes
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 0 minutes
Total: 10 minutes
Servings: 2 servings
This strawberry kale salad is summertime in a bowl! Simple fresh ingredients are combined for a delicious salad that’s the perfect combination of sweet and savory. Made with kale, strawberries, and almonds for some crunch and an easy dressing that mixes up in minutes.

Ingredients 

  • 8 stalks of kale destemmed and chopped
  • ¼ cup of almond slivers
  • 1 cup of sliced strawberries
  • 1 teaspoon of olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon of lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon of soy sauce
  • ¼ teaspoon of balsamic vinaigrette
  • 1 pinch of pepper
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 1 pinch of oregano
  • 1 pinch of sage
  • 1 pinch of thyme

Instructions 

  • Chop and massage the kale, and add it to a big bowl with the almonds and strawberries.
  • In a smaller bowl, whisk the rest of the ingredients, add to the salad, and toss.

Notes

  • Don’t skip the massage. I know it seems like an extra step but it’s quite tasty. It softens the greens and reduces some of the bitterness in the kale leaves. 
  • Best flavor. Use fresh, in-season, ripe strawberries.
  • Serve immediately. Strawberry kale salad is best eaten right after adding the dressing. If transporting or waiting to serve, add the dressing right before and mix everything together.

Nutrition

Calories: 126kcalCarbohydrates: 9gProtein: 4gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gSodium: 196mgPotassium: 235mgFiber: 3gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 412IUVitamin C: 47mgCalcium: 62mgIron: 1mg

Disclaimer: Although plantbasedonabudget.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, kindly note that these are only estimates. Nutritional information may be affected based on the product type, the brand that was purchased, and in other unforeseeable ways. Plantbasedonabudget.com will not be held liable for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information. If you need to follow a specific caloric regimen, please consult your doctor first.

Additional Info

Author: Jake
Course: Dinner, Lunch
Cuisine: American
Method: No Cook
Diet: Vegan
Tried this recipe?Please tag us at @PlantBasedOnABudget! 🙂
About

Jake

Jake switched to a plant based diet in 1996 and quickly realized he had no idea how to cook. All these years later and he’s still trying to figure it out…

More about Jake

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Recipe Rating




Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Kale is not my favorite green, but this salad makes even kale taste yummy! Love the combination with strawberries. Give it a try!

  2. 5 stars
    A perfect summer salad, we made this yesterday, and it was lush; it beats the boring salad we usually have during the week, with loads of flavour and a great sweetness from the strawberries 🙂

  3. 5 stars
    I have to admit, we weren’t big kale fans until we started massaging it for salads. Now we can’t get enough! I’m going to try replacing my spinach with rubbed kale in my strawberry salad from now on.