Kale + Wild Rice Salad
If you’re not a fan of raw kale salads or if you’ve never tried one, I highly recommend you give this one a try. It’s got a variety of textures, it’s hearty so you can make it ahead of time and it won’t become a soggy mess, and it utterly satisfying. I’ve been taking it with me when I travel and I plan to make it for Thanksgiving as it will go beautifully with any Thanksgiving meal and I know that if the only thing that looks good on the table is the turkey, this will add everything else I need for a completely satisfying and delicious meal.
Now to be honest, I haven’t always been a fan of kale salads. There’s nothing worse than getting a monster piece of kale in your mouth that’s tough, feels impossible to properly chew and gets stuck in your teeth. You know what I’m talking about? The way around this is to slice it thin and massage it as describe below.
Now go get your kale and start massaging (no table necessary!).
Kale + Wild Rice Salad
½ cup wild rice (see preparation instructions below)
1 bunch of kale (any type you prefer) - de stemmed and cut into chiffonade
¼ cup Italian parsley - finely chopped
10 - 20 crimini mushrooms thinly sliced and sauteed (amount depends on how much you like them and how large your mushrooms are)
1 clove garlic - finely minced
Juice of one lemon
Sea salt to taste
2-4 tablespoons olive oil
½ cup walnuts (raw or lightly roasted)
¼ cup dried cranberries or tart cherries, diced (optional) OR 1 medium roasted butternut squash, cut into 1“ cubes
Wild Rice
Soak ½ cup wild rice in warm water and a small squeeze of lemon. Let sit overnight. Rinse and drain. Place in a small pot. Cover with water, enough to cover by a couple of inches. Bring to a boil and then simmer until the rice starts to soften and split.
Mushrooms
Wash and slice thinly. Sautee in a pan with a couple teaspoons of avocado oil or ghee. Sprinkle it with salt and white pepper to taste. Sautee until lightly browned. Set aside.
Butternut squash
Heat oven to 400. Peel the butternut squash, remove the seeds, and cut into 1-inch cubes.
Toss the squash with olive oil. Place the squash on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with oil, sprinkle with sea salt, and toss to coat. Arrange the squash in a single layer. Roast for 15 minutes. Use a spatula to flip the squash. Return to the oven and roast until the squash is tender and browned all over, 20 minutes.
Salad
De-stem and wash the kale. Cut into thin small pieces, like a chiffonade. Place into a large salad bowl and sprinkle with a pinch sea salt and add the juice of ½ a lemon and toss. With your hands, massage the kale. This helps to break down the fiber so it becomes tender and helps the kale absorb flavor. You’ll know you’ve done your job as it starts to release moisture, turns bright green and starts to soften.
Add the garlic, olive oil, parsley and mushrooms. Toss and taste. Add more lemon juice, salt or olive oil if needed.
Toss with walnuts and dried fruit or butternut squash and serve.