Lemon-Cilantro Kale Salad

This might be the most amazing kale salad ever, and it's just something I threw together before work one day. It totally made me late, but it was so worth it come lunchtime. In fact, I had it for lunch a few days in a row, and I looked forward to it each day!

The key to a great kale salad is to massage it a bit with oil, or dressing, before adding all the other ingredients. It really tenderizes the kale while simultaneously changing the flavor from bitter to sweet and nutty.

It might seem a little weird at first to really get in there with your bare hands, but seriously, it will change the way you feel about kale!

Serves 4.

Ingredients

Dressing

• 1 oz fresh lemon juice
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 2 tsp chopped cilantro
• 1/4 tsp salt

Salad

• oil for massaging kale
• 1 bunch kale, chopped (about 4 cups)
• 1/2 large yellow bell pepper, chopped
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1/4 large yellow onion, thinly sliced

Instructions

1. Chop kale, wash and spin dry. In a large bowl, massage kale with some vegetable oil (or oil of your choice) for about 3-5 minutes. 1 tsp of oil is probably enough. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together all of the dressing ingredients.
3. Add remaining salad ingredients to the large bowl with the kale.
4. Drizzle dressing over salad and toss to coat.

Looking for a new #salad? Try this lemon-cilantro kale salad from @EnjoytheCourse! #meatlessmonday

This would also be delicious with red onion instead of the yellow. Or add other veggies that you have on hand, like zucchini or carrots.

You could probably get away with using about 3/4 of the dressing, as this was a pretty wet salad. However, the kale held up really well in the dressing and didn't get too wilty - even after several days in the fridge. This salad was just as good on the last day as it was on the first.

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Do you massage your kale?

I'm linking up today with Deborah and Sarah for Meatless Mondays.