Crispy Kale Salad with Roasted Beets
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Even if you’re not that into kale, you’ll still love this crispy kale salad. It’s both raw kale and crispy kale chips, sweet roasted beets, crunchy candied pecans, and cheese all tossed in an irresistible balsamic vinaigrette. It’s a beautiful salad full of texture and flavor, and it’s ready in just 45 minutes!
Just when I think I’ve tried kale every which way, this crispy kale salad finds its way back onto my table. It’s hearty, satisfying, and especially perfect once the weather turns cooler. The baked kale adds a crunchy twist that makes this salad feel a little extra and a lot more fun to eat.
I make this one when I’m entertaining or when I want to shake up my usual weeknight vegetables. It’s a dressed-up salad that still feels approachable and pairs beautifully with a simple main like lemon butter roasted chicken.
Ingredients needed
There are a few delicious components to this recipe that contribute to its deliciousness!
- Beets: baby beets are what we use but you can also use regular red beets, golden beets, or candy cane beets. They bake up to be wonderfully tender and sweet!
- Kale: we use both raw kale and crispy kale chips in this salad. Curly kale is ideal for making the kale chips, but pre-washed baby kale is a convenient option that works well if you’re short on time.
- Pecans: candied pecans are classic, but walnuts make a great substitute. You can pick up some store-bought candied nuts, if you’d like.
- Maple syrup: pure maple syrup gives the candied pecans a distinct caramel flavor, but you can also use runny honey.
Other ingredients you need are olive oil, sea salt, parmesan cheese, goat cheese, ground black pepper, and butter.
What goes into the dressing?
The balsamic dressing is quick and easy to make with ingredients you likely have in your pantry. It will yield more than you need for this salad. We drizzle on about half of it then save the rest for another salad later in the week.
All you need is apple cider vinegar, honey, balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, garlic, sea salt, and extra virgin olive oil.
What to serve with crispy kale salad
This crispy kale salad is one of those versatile fall side dishes that pairs wonderfully with protein mains like roasted parmesan crusted chicken, paprika salmon, or pork chops with caramel apples.
For a vegetarian meal, serve it alongside our chickpea pumpkin fritters, or toss in some cooked chickpeas or French lentils.
Recipe FAQs
Can I make this salad ahead of time?
You can make many of the components of this salad in advance. Candy the pecans, make the dressing, roast the beets, and even wash the kale a day or two ahead of time. The crispy kale begins to lose its texture when tossed with the dressing so it’s best enjoyed right away.
How long does the leftover dressing keep?
Store any leftover salad dressing in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
Crispy Kale Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lb beets (chopped)
- 8 cups kale leaves or baby kale (divided)
- 2 teaspoons olive oil (divided)
- ½ teaspoon sea salt (divided)
- ¼ cup shaved parmesan cheese (use your vegetable peeler for nice big pieces)
- ¼ cup goat cheese
Black Pepper Candied Pecans
- ½ cup pecans (roughly chopped)
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon butter
The Dressing
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 ½ tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1 small garlic clove (very finely minced)
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
Instructions
- Turn your oven on to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Toss the beets in half the oil and salt and place them on one of the baking sheets. Put them in the oven and let them roast for 20 minutes. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.1 lb beets, 2 teaspoons olive oil, ½ teaspoon sea salt
- Toss half the kale with the remaining oil and salt and spread them out on the remaining baking sheet. Put them in the oven with the beets and cook the kale chips for 15-20 minutes. Watch them closely after 15 minutes as they burn easily near the end.8 cups kale leaves or baby kale
- While the beets are in the oven, make the candied pecans and the dressing. Place the pecans, maple syrup, and black pepper in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and continue to boil, stirring often, until the pecans are coated in a thick syrup, about 2 minutes. Add the butter and stir to coat the pecans. Transfer the pecans to a piece of parchment paper and make sure they are not touching each other.½ cup pecans, 1 tablespoon maple syrup, 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, 1 teaspoon butter
- To make the dressing, add the apple cider vinegar, honey, balsamic vinegar, mustard, garlic, and salt to a bowl and whisk. Slowly whisk in the olive oil until the dressing is nice and creamy.2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 1 ½ tablespoons balsamic vinegar, 1 teaspoon dijon mustard, 1 small garlic clove, 1 pinch sea salt, 4 tablespoons olive oil, 2 tablespoons honey
- When the kale chips and roasted beets are ready, add both to a large salad bowl with the candied pecans, raw kale, parmesan cheese, and goat cheese. Pour the dressing over the top and toss.¼ cup shaved parmesan cheese, ¼ cup goat cheese
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
For more inspiration, check out all of our salad recipes!
Generally a very popular recipe with my guests. I did notice people removing the crispy kale and not eating it. I used mainly whole leaves to make the kale crisps and dried them off as well as possible but there may still have been too much moisture on them. Many ended up with a brown color by the time they were crispy. I’d probably leave them out next time and either use store bought kale chips or another kind of greens, so it’s not all kale.
Things that my husband and I said while eating this salad.. “don’t forget this recipe”, “don’t tell anyone about this recipe” “HOLY F**k”, “my mouth is so happy”, “the lamb and the potatoes were great but this salad is amazing”, “I’m sorry I’m not finishing anything may I please eat the rest of the salad”
Another SPECTACULAR salad!!! 10000 stars, can’t believe I didn’t make this sooner. Weeknight rotation for sure. I paired it with hasselback baby Yukon potatoes and a big leg of lamb & some Syrah, so amazing. Thank you so much!
I accidentally got walnuts instead of pecans. Can I still follow the recipe — hoping it won’t make any of the difference! Any suggestions?
Walnuts will work well, too!
Its absolutely amazing, Thank You
I’m so happy to hear you liked it!
Fantastic!!! I used curly kale since I just moved to Vermont, and there is a farm that sells it de-ribbed and
bagged…how lucky! Also used walnuts and goat cheese since they are my favorite. The whole family devoured it, even the non-kale eaters. All of your recipes look spectacular!
That makes me so happy to hear! Hooray!!
So happy you like the recipe! Store bought would totally work, too. 🙂
Hi Kristen, made this salad tonight for supper. Very delicious — loved the textures and all the flavours. I made a few substitutions due to what I had on hand. I only used one beet as my husband isn’t a huge fan so I added purple yams and white yams, feta instead of goat cheese and I used your dressing from your Winter Kale salad recipe as I had some leftover (that salad as well is very Yummy) the rest was as written. Keep these kinds of salads coming I just love them. Thanks for all your hard work putting your recipes together.
I’m so happy you liked it! I’ve got a few more salad recipes coming up so make sure to stay tuned!!
This looks great. one question — you say to roast the kale leaves and then at the end you say to put everything together with the fresh kale. How much of the 8 cups of kale are you roasting?
Thanks
Sandra
I’m sorry for the confusion! It was meant to say to roast half the kale. I’ve updated the recipe so it should be more clear now!