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This buckwheat salad with kale and sweet potato is delicious, vibrant, healthy, and so easy to make. It is a complete hearty meal with a ton of flavour.
This stunning salad has all elements of a winner. My family loves it because:
- it has the perfect balance of carbs, healthy vegetables, mouth-watering dressing and the crunch from roasted pecans
- it’s vegan, gluten-free and dairy-free, so everyone at our table can eat it!
- it can be served cold or warm. Also great in your lunchbox
- buckwheat, sweet potatoes, kale, parsley, mint, lime, pecans and the BEST garlicky red pepper sauce JUST WORK TOGETHER.
Components of this salad
Making this salad is simple, and it requires only six key components:
- Roasted sweet potatoes – Preheat the oven to 220 C (425 F). Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Wash, peel and roughly chop the sweet potatoes into one-inch cubes. Transfer all cubes to the baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil, salt, jaggery powder and curry powder for flavour. Bake for 30 minutes and let it cool.
- Cooked buckwheat – Wash and drain the buckwheat groats. Transfer to a medium-sized saucepan and toast the buckwheat until nutty on a medium flame. Add salt, oil and water (two times the amount of buckwheat). Bring this to boil and simmer on a low flame for 15 minutes, covered with a lid. Once done, let it cool on a plate till it comes to room temperature.
- Parsley and mint relish – Quick and easy to make, this relish is packed with a ton of flavour. To a food processor or small blender, add fresh loosely packed parsley, fresh basil leaves, fresh mint leaves, lime zest, lime juice, salt, olive oil and a garlic and blend/mix on high until a loose paste forms.
- Blanched kale – I like to use kale with stems for this recipe. But you can also cut the stems off if you prefer. To a bowl of chopped kale, add boiling water until all leaves are fully submerged. Let it sit for about 2 minutes and then drain the water. If using kale without stems, soaking in boiling water for a minute should be sufficient. Then wash with cold water to stop the cooking process.
- Roasted pecans – Preheat the oven to 200 C (400 F) and line an oven tray with parchment paper. Lay the pecans on the baking tray and bake for 5 minutes. Once done, let them cool to room temperature.
- Garlicky red pepper sauce – to take it to the next level.
How to make this salad
Add the cooked buckwheat, blanched kale and the parsley and mint relish to a large salad bowl and mix/massage well. To this, add the roasted sweet potato and roasted pecans. Combine everything well and drizzle with the garlicky red pepper sauce. Enjoy!
This is not your average salad bowl. It’s:
Hearty
Bright
Flavourful
Gluten-free
Vegan
Dairy-free
Comforting
Nutrient-packed
& SO delicious!
Storage instructions
This salad tastes best when fresh. Leftovers will keep in the refrigerator for up to 1-2 days, preferably with the components stored separately. Not freezer friendly.
If you try this recipe, please let me know in the comments and don’t forget to leave a rating. I love hearing from you!
Buckwheat salad with kale and sweet potatoes
Ingredients
Buckwheat
- 125 gm buckwheat raw
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 250 ml water
- 1 tablespoon sunflower oil
Roasted sweet potato
- 2 sweet potatoes medium sized
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon jaggery powder
- 1 tsp curry powder
Parsley mint relish
- 1 cup mint leaves with stems removed
- 1 cup fresh parsley
- 1 lime
- ½ cup fresh basil leaves
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 garlic clove
Blanched kale
- 2 cups roughly chopped kale with stems
- 6 cups boiling water
Roasted pecans
- ½ cup pecans
Dressing
Instructions
Roast the sweet potatoes
- Preheat the oven to 220 C (425 F).
- Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Wash, peel and roughly chop the sweet potatoes into one-inch cubes.
- Transfer all cubes to the baking tray and drizzle with olive oil, salt, jaggery powder and curry powder for flavour.
- Bake for 30 minutes and let it cool.
Cook the buckwheat
- Wash and drain the buckwheat groats.
- Transfer to a medium-sized saucepan and toast the buckwheat until nutty on a medium flame.
- Add salt and water (two times the amount of buckwheat).
- Bring this to boil and simmer on a low flame for 15 minutes, covered with a lid.
- Once done, let it cool on a plate till it comes to room temperature.
Parsley and mint relish
- To a food processor or small blender, add fresh loosely packed parsley, fresh basil leaves, fresh mint leaves, lime zest, lime juice, salt, olive oil and a garlic and blend/mix on high until a loose paste forms.
Blanch the kale
- To a large bowl, add chopped kale and boiling water until all leaves are fully submerged.
- Let it sit for about 2 minutes and then drain the water. If using kale without stems, soaking in boiling water for a minute should be sufficient. Then wash with cold water to stop the cooking process.
Roast the pecans
- Preheat the oven to 200 C (400 F) and line an oven tray with parchment paper. Lay the pecans on the baking tray and bake for 5 minutes. Once done, let them cool to room temperature.
Assemble the salad
- Add the cooked buckwheat, blanched kale and the parsley and mint relish to a large salad bowl and mix/massage well. To this, add the roasted sweet potato and roasted pecans. Combine everything well and drizzle with the garlicky red pepper sauce. Enjoy!
Notes
- Nutrition values are a rough estimate for guidance.
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This recipe is highly customisable. Don’t have kale or sweet potato? Don’t worry! You can use what’s available in your kitchen.
In place of kale, I sometimes use:
- blanched spinach
- lettuce
- mixed leaves
- or fresh cucumber slices
- roasted broccoli
- oven-roasted peppers
- roasted cauliflower
- pan-roasted tofu
- roasted zucchini
- or, roasted beets
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