Side Dish Sundays: Cool Ranch Kale Salad. Yes We’re Really Doing It.

Seriously making a cool ranch kale salad happen today.

I’m putting chips on your salad. I am.

I realize I’ve trashed up many things and possible even put chips on a salad before, but not like this. THIS ENTIRE SALAD TASTES LIKE A CHIP!

And then it’s covered in crushed chips. Crushed chip croutons, if you will.

A brief history of Doritos and me: I never liked them.

I’m old enough to remember when regular Doritos (nacho cheese) were the only ones to exist. And my brothers just loved them. The smell, the orange-tinted fingers and the constant sound of brothers chewing chips in my ears was enough for me to never ever want one.

But then! Cool ranch Doritos appeared, and even though my mom never had a bottle of ranch dressing in the fridge, I liked them.

I actually liked them!

Chips have never been my kryptonite, but those cool ranch ones were crazy; you just couldn’t stop eating them once you started!

Last year, I made this cool ranch kale dip for you here on the blog. We LOVE that stuff. And there is kale in it, so, naturally… health food. The flavor is out of this world and it’s one of those dips that makes you forget that you’re really crunching on raw vegetables.

I figured we could take that combo and turn it into salad. Like, a side dish salad that ALWAYS works. A kale salad that you could always make because it will go with most dinners. See, I don’t have many kale salads like that because I do tend to trash things up.

YES.

And while I make us a kale caesar salad approximately four times a month (at least?!), there are certain meals we have where that flavor combo just doesn’t jive. I always want a signature kale salad that will work on the side of my summer (but also winter) dinners. Sort of like sautéed greens. You know how they go with everything?

While this is definitely trending towards the ranch side of the things, the lack of other salad add-ons (I’m looking at you, tomatoes and carrots) make this the perfect salad to serve with almost anything. There is still texture and crunch because the kale is a little crunchy, and well, because I throw crushed chips on top.

Speaking of the crushed chips on top: they are NOT Doritos. I know! Ironic, right?

Adding actual Doritos on top would turn this into cool ranch overkill, so I like to use my favorite tortilla chips. Just plain old tortilla chips!

Right now, we are loving tortiyahs and if you get that version that has a hint of seasoning, the flavor is perfect. Crunch crunch crunch!

Some weeknight meal inspo to make with this cool ranch kale salad:

Hummus havarti veggie sandwiches

Sheet pan gnocchi and vegetables

Cheesy zucchini roll ups

Hot honey pretzel chicken fingers

Cheesy chicken baked avocados

Smoky sloppy joes

Hot honey pretzel chicken fingers

30 minute cajun salmon

Crab cake sliders with pineapple salsa

Pulled pork with cherry chipotle BBQ sauce

Cool Ranch Kale Salad

Yield: 4 people

Prep Time: 25 minutes mins

Total Time: 25 minutes mins

This cool ranch kale salad is loaded with all the flavor of our favorite chips. Simple enough to serve with almost everything, it's ridiculously flavorful!

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5 from 4 votes

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Ingredients

• 8 cups torn curly green kale
• 1/3 cup  plain greek yogurt  (I like 2% or full-fat)
• 3  tablespoons  olive oil
• 1 1/2  tablespoons  nutritional yeast
• 1  tablespoon  fresh chopped chives
• 1  teaspoon  dried dill
• 1/2  teaspoons  garlic powder
• 1/2  teaspoon  smoked paprika
• 1/2  teaspoon  onion powder
• 1/4  teaspoon  smoked sea salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  fresh cracked black pepper
• 1/3 cup crushed tortilla chips, for topping

Instructions 

• Place the kale in a large bowl.
• In another bowl, whisk together the greek yogurt and olive oil. Add in the nutritional yeast, chives, dill, garlic powder, smoked paprika, onion powder, sea salt and black pepper. Mix and stir until combined.
• Add a few tablespoons to the kale. Toss well and use your hands to massage the dressing into the kale. Let it sit for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, add another tablespoon or so of dressing on the kale and toss. Sprinkle on the crushed tortilla chips and serve immediately.
• Note: this will make more dressing than you need. Store it in the fridge in a sealed container for 3 to 5 days. Use it as a dip for veggie or a spread for sandwiches.

Course: Salad

Cuisine: American

Author: How Sweet Eats

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