Introducing our Pineapple Kale Salad with Citrus Dressing! It's perfect for picnics, BBQ's and gatherings because it's served right in the pineapple boat and takes only 15 minutes to assemble.
Pineapple salad is vegetarian, light, healthy, and gluten-free, catering to a range of dietary preferences. Enjoy the taste of freshness without the fuss!
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Ingredients and Substitutions
Salad
- Kale's firm green texture and slightly bitter taste is the perfect accompaniment to this salad. You may substitute kale with any green you like such as rocket (arugula), spinach or romaine but these greens due tend to wilt faster.
- Pineapple - fresh is best but you can substitute with canned pineapple.
- Strawberries - or other in season fresh fruits of choice.
- Olive oil - to massage the kale
Dressing
- Fresh lemons, lime and oranges juice - make this salad dressing light and bright or try our white balsamic vinaigrette. If you do not have all 3 citrus fruits for the vinaigrette - no worries!
- Honey - or maple syrup to sweeten as needed. Feel free to use a sugar substitute of choice.
How to Make a Pineapple Boat
- Cut the pineapple in half lengthwise.
- Using a sharp knife cut around the inside edge of the pineapple - all the way around the pineapple half.
- Make one slice down the middle of the pineapple longitudinally and about 6 to 8 slices vertically.
- Use a spoon to scoop out the slices. Extra pineapple can be used on top of our pineapple salmon.
Alternatively, You can also just serve this tropical salad in an extra large bowl for larger gatherings. Try our quick and easy method for how to cut a fresh pineapple.
How to Prep Kale for Salad
Kale can be tough. There is one important step you must do to make this salad perfectly tender and well seasoned - Massage the Kale!
- Remove the tough veins/stems in the kale leaves and chop or tear into bite sized pieces just like we did with our autumn kale salad.
- Next, drizzle your chopped kale with a drizzle of olive oil and then sprinkle with sea salt.
- With your bare hands, massage your kale like you would a new-born baby with baby oil. Get in there and massage it good. Spoons, forks and spatulas are worthless for this job.
- Kale will go from a light green to a bright "kelly" green as the oils penetrate into the leaves. You are also seasoning the kale during this process. If you have any extra kale, be sure to give our kale pesto pasta a try.
Did you know that the bitter green, kale is good for your liver? Read more about this on our Love Your Liver; Self Care and Meal Plan post.
Prep in Advance
Did you know that Fresh Pineapple Juice contains an enzyme bromelain? It's a natural meat tenderizer for recipes like our BBQ Kalbi Beef but it can wilt the salad.
If you want to make in advance, prepare your kale, chop fruit and prepare your dressing separately. Then toss everything together before your guests arrive or you transport to a gathering. You can do this up to 2 hours in advance.
Citrus Dressing
We will let you in on a little secret. Our pineapple was so sweet and delicious that we did not even end up adding any honey to our salad dressing. Please adjust the sweetness and tartness to your desired effect.
If you do not have all 3 fresh citrus fruits (lemon, lime and oranges) - no worries! Fresh is best but in a pinch feel free to use lemon concentrate, lime concentrate or premade orange juice. However, you will need to adjust the sweetener to your preferred taste profile.
Fruit Substitutes
You can put in any fruit you like in pineapple kale salad with citrus dressing such as grapes, kiwi, papaya, mangoes all would go great in here.
You could also add fruits such as apples, pears and other fruits that oxidize as you will be using a citrus dressing that will help stop the oxidizing process. With all the fresh fruits of the spring and summer season, you may also enjoy our Quinoa Fruit Salad.
Low Carb Options
If you want to make this kale crunch salad lower carb or diabetic friendly, exchange the pineapple with other berries like blueberries, raspberries or blackberries. Exchange the honey with a sugar substitute and do not add the juice of the orange but instead add a little of the orange zest.
More Delicious Salad Recipes and Dressings
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Pineapple Kale Salad with Citrus Dressing
Ingredients
- 4-5 cups kale 1 large bunch chopped and stalk and vein removed (about 4-5 cups chopped)
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 cup strawberries (washed and sliced)
- 1 cup pineapple
(peeled and diced) If diabetic exchange with a berry or just increase the amount of kale to berry ratio.
Citrus Honey Dressing
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- ⅛ cup orange juice
- 2 teaspoon honey (or to taste)- if diabetic use sugar substitute
Instructions
How to Make a Pineapple Boat (Optional)
- Cut the pineapple in half lengthwise. Using a sharp knife cut around the inside edge of the pineapple - all the way around the pineapple half. Make one slice down the middle of the pineapple longitudinally and about 6 to 8 slices vertically. Use a spoon to scoop out the slices.
Prep Salad
- Add your washed and chopped kale to a large bowl. Make sure to remove the stems and the stiff veins as well. Add the olive oil and salt to taste and massage your kale leaves for about 2- 3 minutes or until the leaves change from a light green to a bright kelly green in colour.
- Add your sliced strawberries and pineapple or fruit of choice.
Citrus Dressing
- Add the juice of half of a lemon, half of a lime and half of orange juices and honey to the salad. Toss well. Taste and adjust seasoning. If you like it more salty add more salt. If you like it sweeter add more honey.
Serving
- Serve pineapple kale salad with citrus dressing inside the pineapple boat or in a large bowl.
- If you want to make in advance, prepare your kale and chop your fruit and prepare your dressing separately and then toss everything together before your guests arrive.
Eha says
Must admit I do not oft add fruits to my salads but this one of yours is interesting already for its oil-less dressing ~ I do not mind kale but our supermarkets sell such beautifully mixed bags of rocket and spinach I think I shall go that way first . . .
HWC Magazine says
Hi there Eha, you can certainly do the mix bags of greens. That would be lovely. However, this dressing is not completely oil free as we use the oil to massage the kale before adding the citrus dressing. Maybe, if you try this recipe with mixed greens, you can skip the massage step but add a dash of olive oil to the dressing before serving. Stay well and take care
Chefmimi says
Well this looks fun! and delicious!
HWC Magazine says
Thanks so much Mimi. Hope you give this tutti fruitti salad a try soon. Take Care
Bernice says
What a healthy looking salad. The honey is a nice touch!
Thalia @ butter and brioche says
what an awesome recipe and interesting flavour combination. love the idea of using strawberries! thanks for the great ideas!
saffronandhoney says
Delicious! Always love new ways to get creative with kale:)
Nami | Just One Cookbook says
I love kale and always in the fridge to use for my smoothies and salad. I need to grab some nice citrus fruits today and make this for dinner! My mouth water thinking of this delicious dressing~~~ Looking forward to eating a huge bowl of salad tonight!
lapetitecasserole says
I'm sorry for my belated comment my dear Bam... your salad looks really tasty! I'll try it for sure, not only because the summer is coming but even because I'm sure it's amazing!
Geni - Sweet and Crumby says
Wow, this salad literally jumps off the screen and demands to be eaten soon! It's gorgeous, bright, and so spring-y. Love the honey vinaigrette. Yum!
Krissie - Pearls of Style says
This sounds like a delicious combo and such a great way to use kale. Thank you for sharing.
Krissie x - http://pearlsofstyle.blogspot.com.au
Charles says
What a great combination Bam - looks beautiful. I love kale... I'm still rejoicing about the fact that it's easy to get here compared to France. I never would have thought of mixing it up with pineapple and strawberries... I'll give it a try for sure!
Donalyn@The Creekside Cook says
This does look SO good, Bam. I agree 100% about massaging the kale - it makes such an enormous difference in the texture and flavor of raw kale. I also wanted to comment on the spring roll post, but it looks like comments are turned off for that one, so let me say here they look fantastic!
Healthy World Cuisine says
Hello Donalyn, thanks for stopping by. I am sorry you were not able to comment on my Rainbow Veggie Spring Rolls. I am working with my hosting company. We are having a bit of server issues so hopefully we will have this sorted soon. Have a super Easter Holiday. BAM
Beth says
This looks great. And if one of my daughters is eating healthier or exercising more … I say nothing and just hope it continues!
Daniela says
A wonderful spring salad with just the right touch of fruitiness to balance the flavors.
The colors are an eye candy.