kale salad with lil roasty potatoes
Adding soft ‘n crunchy potatoes to your salad really escalates the situation beyond “just a kale salad.” It’s satisfying, texturally diverse and really straddles the line between rich and virtuous. This salad is technically vegetarian if you skip the fish sauce, though you are welcome to cook your potatoes in schmaltz or rendered bacon fat or toss some rotisserie chicken in with the kale! Everything in here is leftover-friendly, so keep that in mind as you start riffing.
yield 4 servings
riffing
substitute or add any types of radishes you can get your hands on!
add thinly shaved parsley root
replace hazelnuts with whatever nuts or seeds you have on hand!
shredded rotisserie chicken would be nice mixed in
salad
1 lb tiny potatoes (any kind as long as they’re babies!)
2-3 T olive oil, butter, schmaltz or bacon fat
2 small-ish bunches lacinato kale, center ribs/stalks removed
1 medium watermelon radish, trimmed and peeled
1 small fennel bulb, cored and thinly sliced (optional)
1 celery stalk, thinly sliced on a bias (optional)
1 cup flat parsley leaves and tender stems
1/3 cup roasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup grated pecorino romano, plus more for serving
dressing
zest of 1 lemon
3 T lemon juice, plus more as needed
1 T whole grain or dijon mustard
1 T honey or maple syrup
1 ts fish sauce
1 egg yolk or 1 T mayo (optional)
3-4 T extra virgin olive oil
1 small shallot, finely chopped
recipe prep
Preheat oven to 450F. Place potatoes in a pot and cover with water by like, 2 inches. Very, very generously salt the water and bring it a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until potatoes are just cooked through and easily pierced, about 15-20 minutes depending on the type/size of your potatoes. Drain potatoes and let cool just enough to handle.
Halve the potatoes and toss them on a sheet tray with 2 tablespoons olive oil, pepper and a light sprinkle of kosher salt until everything is evenly coated (add another tablespoon oil if needed). Arrange all of the potatoes cut-side-down. Place sheet tray on the bottom rack of the oven and cook for 20 minutes or until deeply golden brown on bottom. Remove tray from oven and allow potatoes to cool on the sheet tray.
While potatoes are cooking, cut or tear kale into inch-thick strips. Quarter the radish lengthwise and thinly slice it (into little pizza slices).
Combine all dressing ingredients, including 3 tablespoons of olive oil, to a jar or sealable container. Shake the crap out of the jar until everything is creamy and emulsified. Taste, season with kosher salt and add another tablespoon of oil if it’s a little too bracing. Shake it up again.
Combine kale, radishes, fennel and celery (if using) in a large bowl. Drizzle dressing over and toss to evenly coat. Let it sit until potatoes are ready.
Once potatoes are cooled enough (somewhere between room temperature and slightly warm), add them to the bowl with kale along with parsley leaves, celery leaves (if using), hazelnuts and pecorino. Toss to evenly combine. Top with additional cheese, black pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice if it feels right to you!
