Kale Chickpea Salad with Chicken

Kale citrus salad with blood orange dressing in a bowl with fork and blood oranges cut open nearby.

5 from 3 votes

Kale Chickpea Salad with Chicken

This kale chickpea salad is a super flavorful way to celebrate some seasonal ingredients - served with crispy sesame crusted chickpeas and a zingy blood orange dressing.

Prep Time45

Cook Time15

Total Time1

Course: Dinner, Lunch, Main Course, Salad

Cuisine: Asian

Servings:

Calories: 608kcal

Author: Sasha Hooper

Equipment

Ingredients

For the crispy miso sesame chickpeas

1 can chickpeas 14 ounce can, drained, rinsed and dried
1 medium egg US large
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon white miso paste
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ cup all purpose flour
1 cup sesame seeds
cooking oil spray

For the dressing

2 tablespoons white miso paste
1 blood orange, juiced approx ½ cup, 120ml
½ lime, juiced
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
2 teaspoons maple syrup
½ teaspoon gochugaru
½ teaspoon garlic powder

For the salad

4 cups cavolo nero (lacinato kale) 150g, chopped into 1 inch pieces
2 cups brussels sprouts 180g, shredded finely
1 cup julienne carrots 120g
½ medium red onion thinly sliced into half moons
2 cups shredded chicken ½ pound, 225g
2 blood oranges see notes on preparation

Instructions

For the crispy miso sesame chickpeas

Preheat the oven at 220°C/425°F. Drain the chickpeas and dry them thoroughly on a paper towel without breaking them up.
1 can chickpeas
Whisk together the egg, miso, sesame oil and salt to create a uniform mixture. Place the flour, sesame seeds and egg mixture into three separate bowls.Dredge the chickpeas in the flour, coating them evenly and then removing the excess with a sieve if necessary.
1 medium egg, 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil, 1 tablespoon white miso paste, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ¼ cup all purpose flour, 1 cup sesame seeds
Dip the floured chickpeas into the miso egg mixture and remove them with a fork and allow the excess egg mixture to drip off. Drop them in small batches into the sesame seeds and coat evenly. Do this in batches, ensuring you don’t leave excess egg on the chickpeas otherwise you will have a big clumping bowl of sesame seeds.
Place them evenly on a baking sheet and spray with oil. Bake for 12-15 minutes at 220°C/425°F until golden brown. Toss them gently half way through. Remove from the oven and allow to cool before adding to your citrus salad.
cooking oil spray

For the dressing

Add all of the miso blood orange dressing ingredients into a small bowl and whisk or blend together with a stick blender until smooth. Set aside.
2 tablespoons white miso paste, 1 blood orange, juiced, ½ lime, juiced, 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, 2 teaspoons maple syrup, ½ teaspoon gochugaru, ½ teaspoon garlic powder

Assembling the salad

Add the chopped kale and shredded brussels sprouts to a large bowl, pour 2-3 tablespoons of the dressing over the top and massage it into the greens until they start to wilt.
4 cups cavolo nero (lacinato kale), 2 cups brussels sprouts
Add the julienned carrots, red onion, shredded chicken and chunks of blood orange. Pour over the rest of the dressing and toss everything together.
1 cup julienne carrots, ½ medium red onion, 2 cups shredded chicken, 2 blood oranges
Serve the salad with the crispy chickpeas on top and enjoy immediately.

Notes

Blood orange preparation - place the blood orange on the chopping board and slice and remove the top and bottom off the orange. Slice the knife around the sides of the orange removing the skin but leaving the flesh intact. Cut the orange into slices and then quarters. Here is a video representation of how to do it, you can also follow the video to segment the blood orange if you prefer.

Dressing - the dressing can be made up to a week in advance and stored in the fridge in an air tight container.

Chickpeas - we would recommend making them on the day you wish to make the kale citrus salad as they tend to go softer in storage, they will still be tasty but just not as crispy as when first baked. The method for these crispy chickpeas is heavily adapted from The Clever Carrot.

Nutrition