Oh I love how EASY this Whole30 Kale Salad is! A simple side that uses ingredients you can find at most grocery stores to create a copycat Whole30 version to a store kale salad kit. The sweetness of the dressing and raisins also helps get the kid buy in. A perfect fast dinner side or to bring to any gathering!
What I Love About This Whole30 Kale Salad
My Whole30 Kale Salad is allergen-friendly! It is Whole30, Paleo, gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, and nut-free. Additionally, I love that this includes an easy dressing that is egg-free and doesn’t require an immersion blender.
The prep is easy, simply combine the salad ingredients in a bowl. Then, blend the dressing ingredients in a blender. Finally, toss it all together for a salad that tastes restaurant-good without a lot of work. The simple prep keeps it realistic to get this veggie-focused side on the table, even on a busy night! Also, this Whole30 Kale Salad is also a fantastic budget-friendly side (see cost per serving breakdown below!).
A Budget-Friendly Side
Due to the fresh ingredients in a salad, sometimes they can get pricey to make. I’m thrilled to share that for just about $6*, you can make this filling, nourishing salad. What an awesome budget-friendly way to get your veggies in! See the image below for a price breakdown. *Prices in this cost-per-serving breakdown is based on prices from my local Walmart. I can’t tell you how much this will cost in YOUR area, but hope it helps you become more aware and budget-minded!
Ingredients
Salad Ingredients
- Kale – Basic curly-leafed kale I find at my local Winco or Walmart
- Broccoli slaw – Packaged shredded broccoli, carrots, and red cabbage. I find this easily in the produce section of most grocery stores, by the bagged salads. If you can’t find it, you can leave it out (it just adds texture and nutrient variety) or shred an equal amount of broccoli stem and carrots as a homemade swap.
- Salted (shelled) sunflower seeds – I get these most affordably from the bins at Winco, but many nut aisles also have a packaged version.
- Raisins – Any basic raisin will do. If you are on a Whole30, double check there is no sugar added, but most raisins are just dried grapes without added sweeteners. The store-bought kale salad kits use dried cranberries, but compatible cranberries without sugar can be hard to find. You can use unsweetened dried cranberries instead, if you can find some.
Dressing Ingredients
This dressing will make more dressing than you will need for this salad. Use the extra to make another kale salad in a week or two, or it’s also a great sweet salad dressing for any lunch or breakfast salad.
- Dates – I get pitted dates from the bulk bins at Winco or fresh dates in bulk affordably at Sam’s Club.
- Apple – Any sweet apple will do! We usually use fuji. I wouldn’t recommend the more tart apples for this recipe, however (like granny smith or golden delicious).
- Light-tasting Olive Oil – The main ingredient in this dressing is the oil. If you use regular olive oil, the dressing will taste like olives. I didn’t enjoy that flavor. So, I use extra light-tasting olive oil, which I find easily at Walmart or Sam’s Club. Yes, you can use avocado oil if you prefer!
- Apple Juice Concentrate – This is found in the freezer section of most grocery stores. It’s a small can of concentrated juice that you add water to to reconstitute to use for juice. This makes it sweeter than just apple juice and is perfect for making this dressing sweet but not too thin. Here is the affordable one I get from Walmart. Can’t find apple juice concentrate? You can use 1/2 cup apple juice instead. The dressing will be a little thinner and less sweet, but still enjoyable.
- Vinegar – Just basic white distilled vinegar works great, though you can also substitute Apple Cider Vinegar instead.
- Dijon mustard – I usually just use the store brand of Dijon mustard. If you are on a Whole30, most mustards are compatible. Just be sure to double-check the ingredients!
Whole30 Kale Salad Kit
Ingredients
Salad
- 5 cups packed (3 oz) shredded kale, stem cut off
- 3 cups (7 oz) broccoli slaw
- ½ cup compatible salted sunflower seeds
- ½ cup raisins
- 1/2 cup+ dressing
- pinch salt
Dressing
- 5 pitted dates
- 1 medium peeled apple
- ¾ cup extra light tasting olive oil
- ¼ cup frozen apple juice concentrate, thawed
- 1/4 cup white distilled vinegar
- 1 tablespoon compatible Dijon mustard
- pinch salt
Instructions
𝗧𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴:
- Soak the dates in 1 cup hot water for 5 minutes. After 5minutes, discard the hot water and combine dates and all other ingredients in ablender or food processor. Blend on high speed for 1 minute until smooth.
𝗧𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗱:
- In a large bowl, combine salad ingredients. Just before serving, toss with dressing and sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Add more dressing as desired, to taste.
- You will have leftover dressing, store in fridge for up to two weeks (dressing will separate in the fridge - shake well to combine before using).
Notes
This salad is the perfect blend of flavors, colors, and textures. Add some leftover chicken and it makes an awesome lunch. Thanks for another great incredible recipe.
I adore this one and keep coming back for how EASY yet tasty it is. Love the chicken add-in idea. Thank you!
This took less than 10 minutes to throw together. I added chicken on top for protein and even my kale-hating husband loved it!!
I love that even the kale-hating hubby couldn’t resist this one. Hooray!
I made this for our Christmas dinner with all my family. Everyone loved it! Which is amazing as most of us really don’t like kale. My father even said he liked it, and you never get a compliment from him over a vegetable. I didn’t mix in the dressing and it kept well, and it was all eaten by the next meal. This is the first kale salad I actually enjoyed! I did use craisins as I prefer those to raisins.
Wow, I love that this won over even the non-kale recipes. It’s so exciting to have an easy nutrient-dense salad like this in your arsenal. And that dad compliment just made my day, hooray! Thank you!
I have never rated/commented on a recipe before but this one is on frequent repeat for me. Absolutely my favorite go to salad! It’s great with chicken added and I’ve even substituted spring mix for the kale when I couldn’t find decent looking kale at my local grocery store one week. Definitely try this one!
WOOT WOOT that this one demanded a rating from you – I love it! I agree, this one surprised me how much I really enjoy it and thank you for letting me know what swaps you have enjoyed!
This is super easy & tasty! I kept all of my ingredients separate and they were good over a week. I had one mixed up in the fridge at work and didn’t get to eat it for four days and it still tasted perfect! A+ salad and easy to find ingredients at the grocery store!
YES! So smart to keep the ingredients separate until ready to eat. Glad it was enjoyed and thank you!
I’ve made this recipe several times! It makes a lot so I usually share some with family and friends! Everyone loves it!! Yum! And the best part is that it is good for you! Thank you!!
Love a winning veggie recipe! Thank you!
This was AMAZING… I actually said “I never knew kale could taste like dessert!” I’m not a big kale fan, but we are already planning to have this weekly if not daily. Thank you for creating my go-to kale recipe!
YAY!! What an awesome quote – I love it! It’s so exciting to find veggie recipes we truly love and I’m thrilled this easy one is that for you. Thank you! 💛
This one is on regular repeat since I first saw it. Soooo good! I add chicken to it for the perfect lunch!
Hooray! I’m so glad you dove into and loved this one. Thank you!
I made this recipe today and it was delicious! Have you calculated the nutritional content of this salad? Thank you!
I’m so happy this one was a tasty win! I don’t have the nutritional content calculated, but thank you for letting me know that would be helpful info to add to my recipes.
This one recipe has me hooked! Next to Cilantro Lime Cauliflower Rice, this is my favorite dish/meal. After just a few days, I am a “Whole Food for 7” fan. Thank you so much!
Aw, I love that you are a fan already! So happy this one was an easy veggie win, thank you!