Chef John's Raw Kale Salad

We search for new ways to incorporate kale into our meal planning because of its super nutritional benefits. Thought about skipping over this recipe since we’re not big fans of most vinaigrette dressings, especially those loaded in oil. But a closer look indicated a moderate amount being used (1/3 cup olive oil). The orange flavor of this dressing really shines through, and very tasty. Next time, I will experiment using the exact same salad dressing ingredients except adding Greek low-fat yogurt and either significantly reducing the olive oil or eliminating it entirely. First try Chef John’s vinaigrette, and then subsequently make a creamy dressing if that is your pleasure. There were no persimmons available so we subbed dried apricots. We cut the kale in ‘ribbons’ as directed but don’t believe this helps to mellow it out. Much easier to eat bite size pieces than wrestle with something like long green slippery ribbons. Tried this salad right after making it, and would have rated it 4*. After letting it rest in fridge for about 4 hours, kale mellowed out a bit more and the flavors melded together nicely. If not eating this salad immediately, soak the apple matchsticks in a solution of lemon juice/water to impede browning. This is a keeper.

THANKS CHEF JOHN! A-1 SALAD. ALWAYS LOOKING FOR HEALTHY WAYS TO SNEAK FOOD IN MY FAMILY'S MOUTHS! DID NOT HAVE PERSIMMONS, HOWEVER I HAD SOME REALLY SWEET STRAWBERRIES THAT DID THE TRICK.

This is a delicious way to prepare Kale, which I normally just bake into chips. I didn't have orange juice or orange zest so I substituted grapefruit juice and lemon juice (instead of the zest). I also used almonds instead of the pistachios but next time I would used chopped pistachios, I think they would go well with the flavors. I also let the salad sit without the apples for 5 hours. The kale softened and the flavors deepened. I added the apple at the end. Would be a great dinner salad if you added some grilled chicken, preferably marinated with similar Middle Eastern or Indian flavors.

Followed recipe exactly. For the salt and pepper to taste, used 1/2 tsp salt and no pepper. Oh, and didn't slice it as thinly as Chef John specified. Served it at a potluck and every last bite was eaten up.

We generally like kale, but mostly eat it cooked. This salad had terrific flavors and I love the texture of the raw kale! We didn't have persimmons, but used dried pineapple instead, and sliced almonds instead of pistacchios. Sooo good! Even my husband and 5 year old loved it!

Wow what a great salad. I massaged the kale for 2 minutes then added the dressing. Again I massaged the kale for another 2 minutes to make sure the dressing got into everything. Added the fruit then tossed lightly. Left the nuts on the side so that we could add to salad if we wish. Will be making again. Thank you for this wonderful recipe Chef John.

We loved this! Maybe it was because we had especially fresh and delicious ingredients, but my husband said it was one of the best salads he'd ever had. I used raw walnuts instead of pistachios, left off persimmon, used 1 regular orange and one blood orange, pink lady apple. Also used less olive oil and a touch more Dijon, red pepper and vinegar in the dressing.

Doing a chiffonade with the kale is brilliant. It's an excellent way to bring this springy green under control. The dressing is delicious, and my only change was to use seasoned rice vinegar. It was light, citrusy, and perfect with the fruit. Pistachio nuts were a nice touch, too. I didn't have any persimmon, but the salad was very good without it.

Nice enough, but my family found the flavor a bit strong, so we didn't really enjoy it much.

This was so good! I used fresh mandarin oranges since it was in December . They are so easy to peel and are a great size and flavor. But I used regular oranges for the zest. I'm making it again for the family on Christmas.

I loved the twist the cumin added to this dressing. Also, perfect balance of sweet and tart, with the addition of oranges and apples in the salad (had to leave out the persimmon as I couldn't find a decent one). I did use a mild flavored avocado oil instead of the olive oil though, as I didn't think I'd care for the strong taste of the olive in this. It's true, the strong kale taste disappears, but it still retains it's pleasant texture. The video on how to cut the orange supremes was great - so glad I know how to do this now!

Followed the recipe to a T, and it's the most delicious salad I've ever made. When I tried the dressing I thought it was really sour, but once you put it over the salad, it's the perfect complement to the kale.

I just made this for my VERY VERY VERY picky salad eating husband...(he is wonderful in many other ways though:-)) He said, "I would definitely eat this again." Score! He will not eat any fruit in his salads so this was huge. I too used the Muscat Vinegar from TJ's: half of this and 1/2 rice vinegar. Toasted some almonds..yummy. Thanks for this recipe! It's difficult to find ways to use kale so this is a keeper!!

The family loved this! Didn't have oranges, so I substituted Clementines and minneola. Omitted the persimmon (out of season), but can't wait to be able to use it. In spite of the subs, still tasted great.

Mmmm, loved this! Really enjoyed finding a recipe for raw kale. This was SO good and hubby even enjoyed it. Cumin gave it a unique flavor. I reduced the oil a bit and it was plenty. Didn't have persimmon, so I left it out and subbed pecans for the pistachios since that's what I had on hand. Walnuts would've been good too. Yum!

De-lish, citrus and kale is a great combination. The persimmon and orange supreme take this from 4 to 5 stars!

This was great. Even better the next day once the dressing had marinated into the kale. Perfect for fall. We all loved the persimmons in this recipe.

Great taste, evens out the bitterness in the kale! I have been looking for new kale options for awhile now and this was a winner, even with my four yr old son!

Quick recipe, unfortunately not my type of dressing. The cumin tasted weird.

Although I generally like cumin, I didn't care for it in this salad dressing. I have made it since without cumin and liked it much better.

One of the best I've ever had!

Cut the kale into pieces not thin strips. Cut down the vinaigraite slightly because I didn't have a full bunch of kale. Because we were in FL I used red wine vinegar because it was what I had, subbed dried cranberries for persimmons, and used walnuts for the nuts. Made it ahead of time and let sit in 'frig for about 2 hrs. , added apples cut into thin slices right before serving. It was very good.

I added chocolate nuts...taste great! By the way, someone asked about the recipe. Click on the word, Recipe on the lower left side of the video, the recipe screen will pop up.

I had a persimmon that was ripe and needed to be used. With the other ingredients on hand this salad seemed perfect. I don't know that the persimmon added anything but it was a nice salad that can be altered easily to suit. The vinaigrette was wonderful.

I didn't have the orange, but had the orange juice for the vinagrette. I added crumbled bacon right before serving. At first the salad was sour, but as the flavors melded it got better and better! I had 3 servings. I loved the cumin and the persimmon.

Substituted persimmon with figs (b/c I couldn't find persimmons at the time). Worked wonderfully, I thought. One of the best kale salads I've eaten. Will make again! :)

This makes one serving. ; )

This salad ticked a lot of boxes for me: it's fresh, colorful, pretty, and a taste sensation! The dressing has bit of kick, which balances nicely with the sweetness of the fruits and the astringency of the kale. The salty crunch of pistachios is the perfect finishing touch. Especially good in the late fall, when many fresh salad ingredients are not in season.

I used grapes, because I didn't have any persimmons or apples. I also added chopped onions. I usually don't like kale, and this was a great way for me to eat it. Thanks!

I love kale and eat kale salads all the time. I used what I had on hand: strawberries, candied walnuts, and mandarin oranges. For the dressing, I didn't have orange juice so I used tart cherry juice. I was pressed for time so I tossed and ate the salad right away. It was delicious! Next time I'll make sure to use orange juice. Thank you Chef John!

My husband and two boys (ages 9 and 11) really enjoyed this recipe. I used apple cider vinegar because of what I had but plan to switch to the rice vinegar. I'm not sure if this contributed to my husband's mild mouth burning sensation after 2-3 servings (not spice but like it feels after pineapple). For the persimmon which wasn't yet in season I added dried cranberries. As another reviewer mentioned, the video on how to cut the oranges was very helpful! This recipe is a keeper!

It was delicious. I added pomegranates, persimmons, walnuts and feta cheese. The taste improved day two .

Very good! Would have again. Reduced olive oil to 1/4 cup and left out orange zest.

I absolutely LOVE this salad. I did not have a persimmon so I used dried pineapple. I also used pumpkin seeds for the nuts. I make this early in the day and let it marinate. I really love it with the pineapple. Delicious. I have made this twice now and got rave reviews each time.

Delicious! No persimmons so I just used more oranges. I even got my 6 and 4 year old boys to eat it. This is an excellent salad!

I normally don't leave too many reviews on recipes but this one deserves to be recognized! Mind you I didn't follow the dressing recipe exactly but the base was the basically the same. This salad was so delicious and fresh! I'm new to the Kale train buy am so glad I found this recipe for making it my first time!

I needed a change from our usual kale salad, so I tried this. Although it was good, it was not for me. It tasted like Pakistani fruit chaat seasoning, which I should have realized once I saw it had cumin and orange juice. I love my fruit chaat, but not quite right with kale. (I'm Pakistani!)

Salad perfection! Delicious, healthy, and, as Chef John says, loads of potential for experimentation. I added sweet mammoth peppers and substituted apple cider vinegar in the dressing. There is so much depth of flavor! I cannot express enough my delight in this recipe!!

Excellent salad. I especially like that I can make it ahead of time and dress it and it is still crispy, fresh and flavourful when guests arrive.

not normally a huge kale guy but this salad is phenomenal!

I wasn't sure about the cumin at first, but it complimented the persimmons beautifully.

Can't say it was the same recipe as I subbed strawberries for persimmons and used http://allrecipes.com/recipe/217313/orange-and-fennel-salad/ for dressing. The cumin in chef John's was just off putting, but the mandarin oranges and matchstick apple slices gave great flavours and textures.

Great salad and great way to eat kale! I was hesitant about a raw kale salad with very little else it in, but it was really good. The fruit really balanced out the kale, and it made for a very refreshing summer salad. The only thing I would omit next time is the crushed red pepper flakes. I thought the spiciness seemed a little out of place.

Won't make again. Only flavor that stands out in the dressing is the vinegar.

Excellent Recipe, as I always love everything Chef John makes. I had to alter a couple of items in this recipe, as I couldn't find persimmon. If you can get a hold of plums, they make a good substitute. My grocery store was out of plums, so I used papaya. I have to say that it added a nice flavor and the texture was right on. I didn't use pistachios, instead I substituted a fruit, seed and nut blend from my grocery store. That turned out to be the perfect combination of crunch and sweetness that Chef John recommends for balancing out the bitterness of the kale. Enjoy!

I am trying to incorporate more kale into my diet, but I wasn't a fan of this.