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For your healthy winter salad cravings, look no further than this allergen-free Sprouts and Kale Salad! Picture a bed of kale, topped with mung bean sprouts, seared carrots, and a zesty spicy Chili Lime Dressing. Crunch and munch.
Why I love cooking with sprouted beans:
Sprouting beans and legumes is a great way to add some more raw, living food to your diet. The sprouting process unlocks nutrients that are difficult to obtain from dried legumes. You can sprinkle sprouts over soups and salads or add to sandwiches.
Most legumes can be sprouted, but mung beans, lentils, and peas are commonly used. No fancy device needed – a bowl and a damp towel are all you need. It is essential to source legumes that haven’t been heat-treated as those that have may not sprout.
We sprout different types of beans every few days, to saute and serve them for breakfast or snack or as a side and usually alternate between green Mung/Moong Beans, Moth Bean/Turkish gram and Black-eyed Peas. Make sure to try my bean hash made with sprouted beans, onions, tomatoes and spices. SO GOOD!
How to sprout mung beans:
To Sprout mung beans at home, wash and soak the dry Mung Beans for 4-6 hours. Drain, rinse and keep the bowl covered by a damp towel. Rinse every 6-8 hours until preferred sprout length. The pictured sprouts are 2 day old.
This Kale Salad Recipe features Sprouted Mung Beans, Seared Carrots and a Sweet & Zesty Chili Lime Dressing
I decided to find ways to add more sprouted beans to my healthy vegan meals. This is where this kale salad recipe comes in. The mung bean sprouts are lightly cooked, then tossed with kale or your favorite leafy greens, and topped with sweet seared carrots, carrot greens and a good load of the Chili Lime Sesame Dressing. Toss it well and serve.
The pictured salad is not tossed with the dressing for photography purposes. Just trust me that the dressing distributes really well on the kale and sprouts and tastes absolutely delicious.
Ingredients needed for making Vegan Kale Salad with Mung Beans Sprouts:
- The dressing is a delightfully sweet and spicy mixture of olive oil, maple syrup, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, lime juice, and zest and both chili flakes and powder for a bit of oomph.
- Kale forms the base of our salad. Make sure it is destemmed and chopped. Then either massage or blanche it. (See tips)
- Mung bean sprouts are high in vitamins, minerals, protein, and fiber. Sprouted mung beans contain fewer calories but have more antioxidants and amino acids than un-sprouted beans.While you could eat them raw, I sauteed them.
- Seared carrots add some natural sweetness to this kale salad recipe. I also added some of the carrot greens to my skillet as I really enjoy their earthy sweetness which reminds me of parsley. Yes, you heard me: Not only are carrot greens edible, but they are super delicious and loaded with nutrients!
Tips and Substitutions:
- Kale stems are tough and fibrous. Make sure you remove them. You can slice them out or rip them out.
- A great way to make kale more tender without having to cook it is to massage it. Season those leaves with a pinch of salt and a squeeze of lemon juice, olive oil or white vinegar. Start massaging it with your hands. Don’t overdo it. Over-massaged kale loses that texture and gets mushy. Simply rub the kale leaves together between your fingers until the leaves just start to wilt. Done.
- Alternatively, blanch the kale for 2 minutes in hot water.
- Leftover sprouted mung bean salad makes for a great vegan wrap filling the next day. Add some Daiya pepper jack and cilantro warmed it up to melt the cheese and yum.
- If you are allergic to sesame, use any other oil you enjoy and leave out the sesame seeds for decoration.
- Leave out the chili if you are sharing this meal with little ones.
- Not a fan of kale? Or use other greens of choice.
How to make this Vegan Kale Salad recipe:
Have all the ingredients ready. Mix all ingredients listed under dressing. Taste and adjust salt, sweet and spice. Let sit for 15 minutes if possible or so for the flavors to fully blend and develop.
Cook the Mung bean sprouts in a little oil, covered until slightly less crunchy. To do so, add the sprouts when the oil is just hot, and mix. Season with a little salt and pepper, cover and cook on medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Or you can serve the sprouts raw (see below).
Sear the carrots on high heat in a little oil until the edges are slightly charred. I also cooked up some of the carrot greens with the carrots to serve in the salad. They are healthy and delicious.
Massage the kale or blanch it (see tips).
Top with the seared Mung bean sprouts.
Add seared carrots and a good load of chili lime dressing. Toss the salad with the dressing and serve.
Can mung bean sprouts be eaten raw?
Mung bean sprouts can carry bacteria, so raw sprouts should best be avoided by children, pregnant women, the elderly and anyone with a weakened immune system. By sauteing the sprouts, as we do for this kale salad recipe, you’ll lose some of the nutrients, but you’ll kill any potential bacteria.
More mung bean recipes from the blog you will love:
- Mung Bean Sprout and Spinach Pizza crust.
- Spiced Mung Bean Sprouts Breakfast.
- Sweet Potato Canapes with BBQ Mung Bean Sprouts.
- Mung Bean Sprouts and Wheat Bread Loaf.
Kale Salad Recipe with Mung Bean Sprouts, Seared Carrots & Chili Lime Sesame Dressing
Ingredients
Chili Lime Sesame Dressing:
- 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon Maple syrup, more for sweeter
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons lime juice
- 1 teaspoon chili flakes
- a generous dash of cayenne pepper or red chili powder
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- salt + pepper
- a generous dash of lime zest
Salad:
- Kale, destemmed, chopped
- 1.5 cups Mung bean sprouts
- Sliced Carrots
- Chili Lime Sesame dressing to taste
- Sesame seeds for garnish
Instructions
Dressing:
- Mix everything listed under dressing. Taste and adjust salt, sweet and spice. Let sit for 15 minutes if possible or so for the flavors to all gel together.
To Sprout Mung Beans at home:
- Wash and soak the dry Mung Beans for 4-6 hours. Drain, rinse and keep the bowl covered by a damp towel. Rinse every 6-8 hours until preferred sprout length. The pictured sprouts are 2 day old.
Salad:
- Cook the Mung bean sprouts. In a large pan, add a teaspoon of oil and heat on medium. Add the sprouts when the oil is hot, and mix well. Season with a little salt and pepper, cover and cook on medium heat for 3-4 minutes.
- Or you can serve the sprouts raw.
- Massage the kale in a little olive oil for a few minutes.
- Or blanch for 2 minutes in hot water. I usually blanch mine. Or use other greens of choice.
Sear the sliced carrots:
- In a large pan, add 2 teaspoons of oil and heat on high. Add sliced carrots when hot. Cook until some edges are browned. I also cooked up some of the carrot greens with the carrots to serve in the salad.
- In a bowl, add Kale, Sprouts, seared carrots(and optional carrot greens).
- Add the dressing and toss well.
- Top with sesame seeds or crushed peanuts.
Notes
- Kale stems are tough and fibrous. Make sure you remove them. You can slice them out or rip them out.
- A great way to make kale more tender without having to cook it is to massage it. Season those leaves with a pinch of salt and a squeeze of lemon juice, olive oil or white vinegar. Start massaging it with your hands. Don't overdo it. Over-massaged kale loses that texture and gets mushy. Simply rub the kale leaves together between your fingers until the leaves just start to wilt. Done.
- Alternatively, blanch the kale for 2 minutes in hot water.
- Leftover sprouted mung bean salad makes for a great vegan wrap filling the next day. Add some Daiya pepper jack and cilantro warmed it up to melt the cheese and yum.
- If you are allergic to sesame, use any other oil you enjoy and leave out the sesame seeds for decoration.
- Leave out the chili if you are sharing this meal with little ones.
- Not a fan of kale? Or use other greens of choice.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in September 2013 and has been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness in February 2020.
Richa, Have you ever tried eating fresh raw okra? Slice it thinly into circles and sprinkle on a green salad. Or just eat it raw on the pod (hold it by the stem). I hated okra until I tried it raw. No slime and crunchy mild taste. Not bad.
i havent, i doubt i’ll like it, becuase it gets slimy while slicing 🙂
Please try brushing with 1 T. coconut oil mixed with 1 t. turmeric powder. Place a dot of toothpaste on your brush, if desired, then dip brush in oil and turmeric mixture. Brush. This will brighten your teeth as well.