Massaging the kale and a bit of tahini and honey in the dressing are the secrets to this healthy asian kale salad. A big handful of cilantro lends a nice bright note.
Other than massaging the kale it’s easy enough. Grate some carrot, chop some red pepper, slice some shallot and chop some cilantro. Mix up a simple vinaigrette and you have an easy asian kale salad. It’s even healthy I suppose. You can play with this recipe to match whatever looks good to you. Green onion, edamame, mint, green chilies, sunflower seeds. Whatever you want.
asian kale salad
Ingredients
Asian Kale Salad
- 1 small head kale
- 1/2 red pepper diced
- 1 carrot grated
- 1 shallot thinly sliced into rings
Dressing
- 1 tsp tahini
- 2 tsp rice wine vinegar
- 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice - from half a lime
- 2 Tbsp neutral oil canola or vegetable
- 1 tsp honey
- A few grinds of black pepper
Instructions
Prep the kale
- Use a sharp knife to remove the tough stems from the kale and discard. Chop the kale into small pieces. Add a bit of salt, mix and grab a handful of salted kale. Rub between your hands until the colour turns noticeably darker. Put the rubbed kale into a different bowl (or back onto the cutting board). Grab the next handful and repeat until all the kale has been massaged. Return kale to the bowl if it’s on the cutting board.
Make the dressing
- Spoon the tahini into a small bowl, add the rice wine vinegar and stir to combine. Add the soy and sesame oil and stir again. Incorporate the remaining dressing ingredients.
Make the salad
- Mix the kale with the rest of the salad ingredients, toss with vinaigrette and serve. This asian kale salad is quite sturdy and will keep for a few hours if needed.
asian kale salad
Ingredients
Asian Kale Salad
- 1 small head kale
- 1/2 red pepper diced
- 1 carrot grated
- 1 shallot thinly sliced into rings
Dressing
- 1 tsp tahini
- 2 tsp rice wine vinegar
- 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice - from half a lime
- 2 Tbsp neutral oil canola or vegetable
- 1 tsp honey
- A few grinds of black pepper
Instructions
Prep the kale
- Use a sharp knife to remove the tough stems from the kale and discard. Chop the kale into small pieces. Add a bit of salt, mix and grab a handful of salted kale. Rub between your hands until the colour turns noticeably darker. Put the rubbed kale into a different bowl (or back onto the cutting board). Grab the next handful and repeat until all the kale has been massaged. Return kale to the bowl if it’s on the cutting board.
Make the dressing
- Spoon the tahini into a small bowl, add the rice wine vinegar and stir to combine. Add the soy and sesame oil and stir again. Incorporate the remaining dressing ingredients.
Make the salad
- Mix the kale with the rest of the salad ingredients, toss with vinaigrette and serve. This asian kale salad is quite sturdy and will keep for a few hours if needed.
Roast duck with parsnip puree drizzled with a rich port reduction is an elegant meal you can serve at any fine dinner party. It’s flashy enough for New Year’s Eve. And it’s not that hard to make. Do it ahead of time. Make the sauce during the afternoon. Reheat the parsnip puree over low heat.
Prep the duck legs ahead of time using sous vide technique. All you have to do is brown them in a pan or under the broiler just before you serve dinner. Restaurants prep everything ahead of time. So can you.
Every recipe on the Internet pushes duck confit. I love duck confit. But change is good. Variety. There’s no need to salt duck legs. No rule that says they have to be cooked in their fat. That’s just the way they were done before sous vide. Try it this way. Less salt and more pure duck flavour. Mix it up.
Restaurants have been using sous vide techniques for years. The food is vac-packed (sous vide means vac-pack in French), then cooked in a temperature controlled water bath. Low cost sous vide machines like the Anova have brought this restaurant technique into the home. If you haven’t looked into sous vide I encourage you to do so. It’s a game changer. It provides consistent repeatable results every time. Restaurants use it for a reason.
You get the best results using the broiler to brown the duck. You also get the biggest mess. If you can’t have your kitchen full of smoke then a frying pan is a much safer approach. Brown them in a pan and finish them in the oven. No smoke.
