Seed Oil Free Cilantro-Lime Kale and Avocado Salad
Bright, zesty, and loaded with texture, this salad is the kind of bowl that makes you genuinely excited to eat your greens. Massaging the kale with a pinch of salt before dressing it is the move that transforms tough, bitter leaves into something tender and almost silky — a small step that makes a huge difference. The dressing is built entirely on extra-virgin olive oil and fresh lime juice, so there's no canola, soybean, or sunflower oil hiding in the mix, which is exactly the kind of clean simplicity that makes this recipe such a reliable go-to. Creamy diced avocado, cool cucumber, sweet cherry tomatoes, and sharp red onion all pile in to create layers of flavor and crunch in every forkful. The toasted pepitas add a nutty, golden finish that takes the whole thing over the top. Everything here is whole, recognizable, and exactly what it looks like — no label-reading required.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
For the salad
- 1 large bunch curly or lacinato kale (about 8 oz), stems removed, leaves torn into bite-sized pieces
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- 2 ripe avocados, pitted, peeled, and diced
- 1 english cucumber, halved lengthwise and sliced into half-moons
- ½ cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- ¼ cup red onion, thinly sliced
- ⅓ cup raw pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
For the dressing
- 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tbsp fresh lime juice (from about 2 limes)
- ½ cup fresh cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced
- 1 tsp honey
- ¼ tsp ground cumin
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ¼ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Place the torn kale leaves in a large mixing bowl and sprinkle with 1/4 tsp salt. Using clean hands, massage the kale firmly for 2–3 minutes until the leaves darken, soften noticeably, and reduce in volume by about half.
- 2
In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, cilantro, garlic, honey, cumin, salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes, if using, until the dressing is well combined and slightly emulsified.
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