Kale Sauerkraut Salad

Sauerkraut and tahini work so well together. File it under, “Really?”, but yes, it’s true. After enjoying many a bowl with them incorporated together, I decided it was time to make a winter salad that would leverage this delicious pairing. So, this is a vegan kale sauerkraut salad recipe with a tahini dressing, carrots, dried cranberries and crushed roasted almonds. Simple, tangy and absolutely tasty.

This recipe makes ~8 servings.

Two things…

• How do you prep the lacinato kale for this sauerkraut salad? Clean it. Remove the inner stems. Slice or tear it into bite size pieces. And then, massage it until it’s fairly soft and a brighter shade of green. It will be much more pleasant to eat this way.

• There’s a lot of kraut to choose from out there, but I’d like to make a strong case for a raw, fermented one, like Wildbrine. I selected their Organic Green Kraut for this recipe and had zero disappointment. If you choose a shelf stable sauerkraut in a can or jar, it might taste a little less fresh or have a slightly different flavor profile due to preservatives and/or vinegar.

• Are the hemp hearts absolutely essential to the dressing? They aren’t, but they add some nice omega-3’s and some zinc. You could swap them out for some raw cashews and see how it goes.

Please enjoy this delightful kale sauerkraut salad recipe! And make sure to check out other UVK recipes, like White Beans and Sauerkraut, Slow Cooker Tempeh Sauerkraut Stew, Beet Potato Salad with Sauerkraut, Vegan Sauerkraut, White Bean and Barley Soup, Thai Style Tofu Tacos and more.

Kale Sauerkraut Salad

3 Tbsp unsalted tahini

3 Tbsp water

2 Tbsp lemon juice

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp raw hemp hearts

1 large garlic clove

¼ tsp salt

4 cups packed, massaged bite-size pieces of lacinato kale (stems removed)

1½ cups shredded carrots

1 cup raw, fermented sauerkraut, drained (see notes above)

¼ cup (+ more to top) crushed roasted almonds

2 Tbsp finely chopped dried cranberries

1. First, you’ll make the tahini dressing for the kale sauerkraut salad. In a high speed blender, like a Vitamix, add the tahini, water, lemon juice, olive oil, hemp hearts, garlic and salt. Blend until completely smooth. Spoon out into a large mixing bowl.

2. Add the massaged lacinato kale to the dressing and stir it around until it’s well coated. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Taste and adjust seasonings, if needed (more salt? some kraut brine? more cranberries?). Serve the kale sauerkraut salad with some additional crushed roasted almonds on top.