Tender sweet potato, crispy chickpeas, roasted garlic, fresh herbs, and chopped pistachios come together with a sweet and tangy Maple Dijon Dressing in this Sweet Potato and Kale Salad. Hearty and filling, the perfect Vegan fall salad or Thanksgiving side dish.
Why You'll Love This
Remember the days when people hated on kale? You may still know someone who dislikes it. I always took disgust for kale as a challenge to turn people into kale-loving fanatics! After all, I'm not a wimpy salad kind of girl. I love big, hearty, filling salads. And if I liked kale, then I couldn't imagine how someone wouldn't! Since I began cooking many, many years ago, I prepared kale salads for friends and family whenever I could. The feedback was always the same: I can't believe how good this is! While I've made many iterations of kale salad over the years, this Sweet Potato and Kale Salad recipe is by far my best! Here's why...
- Maple Dijon Dressing: This rich, creamy, tangy dressing is thick enough that is doesn't seep into or wilt the kale. It sits on top accompanying the other flavors in the salad beautifully. Its velvety texture coats the crunchy ingredients, resulting in a melt-in-your-mouth experience.
- Large sweet potato rounds: When making kale salad, you don't want your main ingredients to get lost in what I call "the kale forest". That's why I like to prep the sweet potatoes into large rounds so they are the star of the salad. Turning them into matchsticks also works!
- Crunchy toppings: Crispy chickpeas, chopped pistachios, sesame seeds, sliced radish, and sliced cucumber add a delightful crunch factor.
- Easy to make: Only 10 minutes of hands-on time.
- Simple, healthy ingredients: This plant-based kale salad is unbelievably delicious, but it's even more nourishing and enjoyable to eat when you know it's packed with powerful antioxidants and vitamins. This colorful salad is made with whole foods for a highly nutritious meal.
Ingredients
- Sweet potatoes: Cut them into circles or matchsticks, leaving the skin on. The skin is packed with vitamins! You could always sub any type of winter squash for this salad too.
- Chickpeas: Add protein, making this salad even more filling. Plus they add crispy texture!
- Garlic cloves: Leave the peel on and toss them on the baking sheet for caramelized, roasted garlic.
- Olive oil: For roasting the sweet potatoes and massaging the kale. It is also the base for the dressing.
- Sesame seeds: Though small, they add an extra bit of crunchy texture! Toast them for even more flavor.
- Spices: Season the sweet potatoes and chickpeas with chili powder, smoked paprika, garlic powder, cumin, salt, and black pepper.
- Kale: I use curly kale, but lacinato would work too! You could also make this with chard or any dark, leafy green.
- Fresh parsley: Herbs add a lovely, fresh feel to the salad. Feel free to use what you have on hand!
- Pistachios: Subtly sweet and delightfully crunchy!
- Sliced radish and cucumber: These are optional additions that add even more color and crunch.
- Dijon mustard: Gives the dressing its tangy taste.
- Maple syrup: Adds sweetness to the dressing.
- Tahini: Makes the dressing nutty and rich.
- Lemon juice and apple cider vinegar: Add acidic components to the dressing to enhance the flavors.
- Toasted sesame oil: For rich, umami, toasty flavor in the dressing.
How to Make Sweet Potato and Kale Salad
Preheat the oven to 425F.
1. Make the roasted sweet potatoes and chickpeas. Slice into rounds or matchsticks, leaving the skin on. Add to a baking sheet, along with the drained, rinsed, and dried chickpeas. Scatter the garlic cloves (with their skin on) over top. Toss the contents of the pan with olive oil, sesame seeds, chili powder, smoked paprika, garlic powder, cumin, salt, and pepper. If the pan is crowded, use two. Bake 25 minutes.
2. Prep the kale. Tear the kale from its stems and chop. Toss in a large bowl with a little olive oil, using clean hands to massage it.
3. Chop the parsley and pistachios. And if you're using the radish and cucumber, slice them very thinly.
4. Make the dressing. Whisk together the dressing ingredients in a medium bowl or measuring cup.
5. Assemble. Spread the kale across a serving platter, top with roasted sweet potatoes and chickpeas, and remove the skins from the roasted garlic and add to the salad. Sprinkle the parsley and pistachios over top, adding sliced radish and cucumber if desired. Drizzle with dressing, leaving the remaining dressing in a dish on the side. You can also assemble and serve the salads on individual plates or simply mix everything together in a very large bowl!
Recipe Variations
- Use winter squash: Instead of sweet potatoes, use butternut squash, pumpkin, acorn squash, or delicata squash.
- Add more protein: My Baked Tofu would pair wonderfully with this salad, making it an even heartier main!
- Use in-season veggies that you have on hand: I added radish and cucumber to this salad because I had it, and I love their crisp and crunchy nature. Feel free to dress this salad up even more with whatever veggies you have!
- Add fruit: Pears or apples would make a great addition, or pomegranate arils.
- Use other types of nuts: Anything goes here! Toasted nuts add even rich flavor.
- Try the air fryer instead of roasting: Swap the roasted sweet potatoes for my Air Fryer Sweet Potato Wedges.
Serving Suggestions
- Make it a feast with my Caramelized Onion Mushroom Toast or Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese.
- Serve it with soup, like Roasted Sweet Potato Carrot Lentil Soup, Thai Butternut Squash Soup, White Bean Cauliflower Soup, or Tuscan White Bean Soup.
- Serve with a side of Sourdough Garlic Bread.
- If making this for Thanksgiving or Christmas, check out my Vegan Thanksgiving Menu Ideas or Vegan Christmas Dinner Menu Ideas!
Recipe Tips
- Keep the sweet potato large: Don't slice or chop the sweet potato too small. Yes, this may mean it takes longer to roast, but you don't want the sweet potato sinking down into the kale.
- Serve most of the dressing on the side: Because this is a large salad, you may have leftovers! If so, you want to keep the dressing on the side and only use what you need. Otherwise the leaves will soak up the dressing.
- Use two pans if needed: Don't overcrowd your baking sheet! In order for everything to cook evenly and more quickly, give the sweet potatoes and chickpeas enough space.
- Be careful not to drench your kale: When massaging the kale, only use a teaspoon of oil at most. You want the leaves to maintain their crisp texture, only softening them a little to achieve that dark green color.
Make Ahead & Storage
Meal prep: The best way to prep this salad in advance is to prepare the roasted sweet potatoes, chickpeas, and garlic ahead of time. Let cool then store in the refrigerator a day or two before serving. You can either bring them to room temp before assembling the salad, or warm them slightly in the oven. Feel free to chop the rest of your ingredients ahead of time too! Just make sure you wait to massage the kale until just before serving.
Storage: If storing leftovers, keep the dressing on the side and store it separately. If you do this, the salad will keep for a day or two in the fridge in an airtight container.
FAQs
Yes, this Sweet Potato and Kale salad is gluten-free and vegan, making it perfect for serving a large group with dietary restrictions. If you need to, you can also swap the pistachios for pumpkin seeds to make it nut-free!
Kale is particularly known for being antioxidant-rich and for its high source of vitamins A, C, and K. It is also full of minerals like iron and calcium.
Yes! Sweet potato skin is highly nutritious, loaded with fiber and other nutrients at a higher concentration than the actual potato.
If you love this, then you must try my Kale Pomegranate Salad!
Let me know what you think of this simple Sweet Potato and Kale Salad recipe in the comments! And don't forget to rate the recipe. 🙂
📖 Recipe
Sweet Potato and Kale Salad
Ingredients
- 3 medium sweet potatoes
- 14.5 ounces chickpeas canned
- 8 garlic cloves peel left on
- 2 tablespoons olive oil plus extra for massaging kale
- 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
- 1 bunch kale
- ¼ cup fresh parsley
- ¼ cup pistachios
- Sliced radish optional
- Sliced cucumber optional
Maple Dijon Dressing
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon tahini
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ½ tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F.
- Prep the sweet potatoes. I like to slice mine into rounds, but you could also make them matchsticks or cubed. Leave the skin on, as it is highly nutritious! Toss the potatoes onto a large baking sheet.
- Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Pat dry, rubbing them with a clean dish towel to remove any skins. Add to the pan with the sweet potatoes.
- Add the garlic cloves (skin on) to the pan. If the baking sheet feels too crowded, divide everything between two.
- Drizzle 2 tablespoons of olive oil over top of the baking sheet(s). Add sesame seeds, chili powder, smoked paprika, garlic powder, cumin, salt, and pepper over top. Use a spatula or spoon to mix the contents of the pan around to make sure everything is coated evenly.
- Bake 25 minutes.
- Tear the kale from the stems and chop. Toss in a large mixing bowl with about a teaspoon of olive oil. Use clean hands to massage the kale until dark green.
- Roughly chop the parsley and pistachios. If using radish and cucumber, thinly slice them.
- In a medium bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the dressing ingredients.
- To assemble, spread the kale across a serving platter and top with the roasted sweet potatoes and chickpeas. Remove the skins from the roasted garlic and scatter over top. Sprinkle the parsley and pistachios on top, adding the sliced radish and cucumber if desired. Drizzle with dressing, then serve the remaining dressing on the side. Alternatively, you can simply mix everything together in a (very!) large bowl. Or assemble and serve on individual plates.
