Kale and Sweet Potato Salad with Turmeric Chickpeas

Kale and sweet potato salad is bursting with flavorful turmeric chickpeas quickly marinated with red onions, garlic, ginger, spices, and a simple lemon tahini dressing for a unique vegan and oil-free salad you'll love. 

This recipe originated from the simple idea of marinated red onions, my current obsession with massaged kale, and the success of wheatberry sweet potato salad. Well, here it is, something a little different from the pack. 

It's presented in three easy steps, starting with a bowl of seasoned chickpeas and onions, the relaxing step of softening kale, and winds up with oil-free roasted sweet potatoes for a bowl that looks like sunshine on a crisp autumn morning and tastes like a shot of springtime.

Turmeric Chickpeas

Start with the chickpeas and they'll be ready by the time the sweet potatoes have roasted. Even better, you need only 6 ingredients - chickpeas, red onions, apple cider vinegar, garlic, ginger, and turmeric powder. Toss all that in a bowl and you'll be good to go. 

I got creative and thinly sliced the garlic, which slightly mellows the flavor. You can also press or mince it. 

You'll discover extra marinade in the bottom of the bowl. No regrets. The extra becomes part of the dressing. It's entirely safe because we are using only plant-based ingredients. 

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

• Use 2 medium or one large sweet potato. Don’t get precious about the ‘required’ amount. It's a salad, so a little overage is just fine. 
• To keep the sweet potatoes moist without using oil, I recommend tossing them in vegetable broth. 
• ​Roasted sweet potatoes are notoriously messy. Line your baking tray with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. 
• ​Line the sweet potatoes in a single layer, spaced apart if possible. 
• Check for doneness by piercing a sweet potato piece with a fork. There should only be a little resistance. Be careful not to overcook so they don't mush when mixed with the salad ingredients. 

Massaged Kale

Massage? Did someone say massage? I’m SO in! And so is your kale. The reason to massage kale is just what you think. Raw kale can be a bit abrasive and rough (sort of like me when I could do with a massage).

Take a few minutes to massage kale with 1 tablespoon of tahini and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. You can do this in the same bowl you are serving in or mix the salad and use a fancier salad bowl for the table. 

What Type of Kale Should I Use? 

There are many varieties of kale. Any will work for sweet potato kale salad. The most common type, curly kale, is pale to deep green with long stems and frilly-edged leaves. You can sometimes find this type pre-shredded at the grocery store. If not, cut the stem on both sides of the leaf, then shred or chop it. 

The other type of kale is lacinato kale, also known as Tuscan kale, dinosaur kale, or cavolo nero. It has long, dark blue-green leaves and stems. 

If you get lucky, you can grab ornamental (salad savory) kale or Russian red (ragged Jack). There are so many options!

Finishing Kale Salad

Finish this salad with a cup or so of chopped mixed herbs, such as basil, cilantro, mint, and parsley. Mint adds a particularly nice flavor that goes well with the pickled onions and chickpeas. 

If you want to make this salad early, you can serve it warm or at room temperature. You can also marinate the chickpeas and roast the sweet potatoes the day before. Just cover both and store them in the refrigerator. Take them out before massaging the kale and chopping the fresh herbs so they can warm up a bit.