Kale Salad with Pomegranate Recipe (2024)

Perfect for a delicious, festive salad for the holidays, this kale salad with pomegranate is studded with citrus, Brussels, pecans and topped with a bright, tangy and creamy Greek yogurt dressing. Ready in less than 20 minutes!

I love bright, bold, colorful holiday salads. Don’t you?!

I feel like for a salad to be dubbed a holiday salad, it needs to boast some seasonal produce, like citrus, pomegranate, Brussels, kale…and it needs to be colorful and bright to add some flair to the table.

Bonus points for a variety of textures and that crunch factor, which makes salads so much more satisfying, IMO.

You will love this kale salad as a go-to winter salad that would be perfect for lunches or as a delicious and fresh starter for your holiday meal.

It’s ready in less than 20 minutes especially with time savers like buying precut kale, shredded Brussels, and pomegranate seeds – in fact if you do all three you’ll probably be able to shave off even more time!

This salad is sweet, tangy, has some satisfying crunch, and is packed with a ton of nutrition. I can’t wait to hear what you think and see this on your holiday table!

Ingredients You’ll Need

Notes on Ingredients

Kale: I prefer Tuscan kale (also called lacinato, dinosaur, or Italian kale) for this recipe, which has longer leaves than curly kale and a darker green color. Flavor wise, it’s less bitter than curly kale with almost an earthy, nutty flavor to it, which is why I like it for salads.

Brussels sprouts: I bought pre-shredded Brussels sprouts for this recipe because I’m all about saving time in the kitchen but you could easily shred your own Brussels sprouts using a food processor.

Pomegranate seeds: I bought pomegranate seeds instead of an actual pomegranate, again to save time. But if you use a whole pomegranate and seed it yourself, you probably will end up with about 1 cup of seeds so you can save the leftovers for another holiday dish!

Satsumas: If you’ve never heard of this citrus variety before, listen up, because it’s one of my favorites, and for good reason. Part of the same family as tangerines and clementines, satsumas are the sweetest citrus variety and their thick skin makes it super easy to peel, making them perfect for salads or just as a snack on their own! If you can’t find satsumas at the grocery store, you can use clementines or tangerines instead.

Pecans: I love using pecans this time of year but you can use whatever nut variety you have on hand. I’ve also made this with toasted hazelnuts, which was delicious too.

How to Make Kale Salad with Pomegranate

This salad is super easy to make in less than 20 minutes and maybe even less time if you use all my shortcuts!

First you start by making the salad dressing. I put all the ingredients into a mason jar, screw the lid on, and shake until ingredients are combined and dressing is smooth and creamy.

Next, you’ll want to massage the kale. Don’t skip this step or you’ll end up with a fibrous, chewy, hard to eat, kale salad! Massaging the kale means adding the dressing (as much or as little as you want) and using clean hands, massaging the dressing into the kale. You’ll do this for about two minutes, or until the kale has wilted and reduced in volume.

Then add your toppings! Brussels, pomegranate, satsumas, pecans, and pumpkin seeds. Toss together to combine and you’re ready to serve! Feel free to add more dressing/salt/pepper, to taste, at this point.

Expert Tip

If you’re making this salad on a budget this year, buy the whole ingredients and do the prep yourself because you’ll save money this way. Just know that this salad may take you a little longer than 20 minutes to make if you go that route but should still take no more than 30 minutes. If your goal is to save as much time as possible, purchase pre cut kale, pre shredded Brussels, and pomegranate seeds (vs. the whole pomegranate).

Kale Salad FAQs

What if I can’t find satsumas at the grocery store?

You can use clementines or tangerines as a substitute! Any orange or grapefruit citrus variety will work here!

I’m vegan – is there a substitute for Greek yogurt in the dressing that I can use?

Yes! You can make it with plain soy yogurt instead.

How do you massage kale?

With clean hands, pour dressing (amount to your liking) over kale and massage the dressing into the kale leaves until kale is wilted and reduces in volume by about half. This should take a couple minutes.

Is there another leafy green I can use in place of kale?

Sure, you can use any lettuce or salad greens variety in this recipe!

What kind of kale do you use?

I used Tuscan kale (also called lacinato, dinosaur, or Italian kale) for this recipe, which has longer leaves than curly kale and a darker green color. Flavor wise, it’s less bitter than curly kale.

Can I make this salad ahead of time?

I wouldn’t make it ahead of time since you’d have to add the dressing ahead of time. You can, however, prep all the ingredients and make the dressing ahead of time so that all you have to do once you’re ready to sit down and eat is massage the kale and add the toppings!

How do you seed a pomegranate?

Check out this tutorial for the easy way to seed a pomegranate from the Kitchn!

How many people does this salad serve?

It depends how you are serving it! If you’re serving this as an entree salad, it should serve about 3. If you’re serving this on salad plates, it should serve about 5, and if you’re serving this at a party buffet style, it will probably serve 8.

For more salad inspiration, check out my recipes below!

• Creamy Broccoli Salad
• Caprese Pasta Salad with Pesto
• Charred Asparagus Salad with Egg
• Thai Chicken Salad with Thai Peanut Dressing

If you like this recipe,please be sure to give it a 5 star rating below. If you make it, share it on instagram andtag me @karalydonrdand I’ll re-share it with my followers! If you want to save this recipe for later, be sure topin it on Pinterest!

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