This easy Chickpea Kale salad with Tahini Ranch comes together in less than 30-minutes and is the perfect main or side dish! We combine crispy chickpeas, a tangy, creamy vegan ranch, quick pickled red onions and lots of nutritional yeast on top of massaged kale for a salad that you’ll actually crave!
Friends, let’s cut right to the chase- Absolutely no one wants to eat a sucky salad. Which is why I’ve spent so much time try to rebrand The Salad to be something that you actually want to eat, rather than loathe.
In my humble opinion, the best way to do that is to make sure you have lots of different flavors and textures in the salad. For example, a creamy dressing, crunchy chickpeas, tangy pickled red onion and savory nutritional yeast!
Plus, we want to make sure that the components of the salad are filling by having sources of protein, fat and fiber! Check, check, and check in this salad!
So What Makes This Salad Actually Tasty?
Listen, I know a kale salad isn’t always top of the list when you think of tasty things, but trust me, this one is seriously tasty and I’m going to tell you why!
- We use my 15 minute Crispy Chickpeas that kind of take the place of croutons, but are higher in protein and fiber, meaning we’ll stay feeling fuller for longer!
- We use my absolutely drool-worthy Tahini Ranch Dressing that takes less than 5 minutes to throw together but adds the most creamy, tangy flavor.
- We massage the kale so that it’s nice
Main Ingredients and Their Benefits!
My top priority is always going to be good-tasting food, but obviously, this Dietitian loves a good health benefit, too!
15-Minute Crispy Chickpeas: High in protein and fiber, the crispy chickpeas make this salad more filling while also providing a delicious crunch!
Healthy Ranch Dressing: The creamy, tangy dressing uses tahini as the base, meaning it provides a great source of both calcium and healthy fats!
Quick Pickled Red Onion: These add a slightly sweet flavor to the salad while also giving a good crunch! I love making my own pickled red onion since it’s seriously so easy, but you can definitely use store bought or just regular sliced red onion, if you prefer!
Massaged Kale: The base of the salad! Kale is packed with iron and calcium, but can obviously be a bit tough to chew, which is why I love massaging it! Massaging the kale makes it way softer and more palatable and takes, like, two minutes, so it’s totally worth it!
Nutritional Yeast: For a cheesy flavor! It’s also packed with B vitamins and a little bit of extra protein, which is always a win!
If you’ve never massaged kale before, don’t worry, it’s super simple! Just drizzle a little olive oil and a pinch of salt onto the kale, then use your hands to massage the leaves until they’ve darkened in color a bit and have decreased in size. This usually takes 2-3 minutes!
What to Pair This Salad With
You can totally eat this salad on its own, since we get protein and fiber from the chickpeas and healthy fats from the salad dressing, but it also pairs well with my 10-Minute Curry Tofu Salad, Sweet Potato Lentil Soup or Easy Vegan Lasagna Soup!
How to Make This Chickpea Kale Salad
- If you’re making your own Quick Pickled Red Onion, these need to be made about two hours ahead of time, so start by doing that. If you’re not making your own, move onto step 2!
- Make a batch of the 15-Minute Crispy Chickpeas.
- While those are cooking, whip up the Vegan Ranch Dressing.
- Now it’s time to massage the kale! Start by adding the chopped kale to a large bowl, then drizzle with some olive oil and a pinch of salt. Using your hands, massage the kale for 2-3 minutes until it deepens in color and becomes wilted.
- Add the crispy chickpeas, pickled red onion, ranch dressing and nutritional yeast to the bowl. Mix well to combine and enjoy!
Storing Leftovers
Something I love most about kale salads is that because they’re heartier, they hold up so well in the fridge, and in my opinion, just get better with time!
More Chickpea Recipes
The Easiest 20-Minute Healthy Barbecue Chickpea Salad
30-Minute Spiced Chickpea Stew (High Protein Meal!)
Connect with Lauren
I hope you love this recipe as much as I do! If you try it, let me know what you think by leaving a rating and a review in the comments below. You can also find 60 other delicious, easy plant-based recipes in my cookbook, The Simple Vegan Kitchen!
Also, be sure to take a photo and tag me at @tastingtothrive_rd so I can re-share on my stories! Don’t forget to follow me on Instagram, TikTok, and Pintetrest so you never miss a new recipe or blog post.
Actually Tasty Chickpea Kale Salad with Tahini Ranch
Equipment
- Air fryer optional
Ingredients
- 1 batch Quick Pickled Red Onion Or ~1/4 small red onion, sliced
- 1 batch Crispy Chickpeas
- 1 batch Vegan Ranch Dressing
- 4 cups chopped kale
- 1 tbsp olive oil For massaging kale
- 1/4 tsp salt For massaging kale
Instructions
- If you're making your own Quick Pickled Red Onion, these need to be made about two hours ahead of time, so start by doing that. If you're not making your own, move onto step 2!
- Make a batch of the 15-Minute Crispy Chickpeas. While those are cooking, whip up the Vegan Ranch Dressing.
- Now it's time to massage the kale! Start by adding the chopped kale to a large bowl, then drizzle with some olive oil and a pinch of salt. Using your hands, massage the kale for 2-3 minutes until it deepens in color and becomes wilted.
- Add the batch of crispy chickpeas, about 1/4 cup of the pickled red onion, the ranch dressing and nutritional yeast to the bowl. You may want to adjust the quantities based on your desired taste preferences of dressing, onion, chickpeas and nutritional yeast. Mix well to combine and enjoy!
Did you try this recipe? Make sure to leave a review, take a photo and tag me on Instagram at @tastingtothrive_rd so I can see!
How much kale do you use in the crispy chickpea salad?
Hi Ron, I used about 4 cups of chopped kale! You may want to adjust the portions of chickpeas, salad dressing, and red onion to suit your tastebuds!