This Sweet Potato Salad has all the best flavors and textures of Fall wrapped in one delicious salad. It’s loaded with roasted sweet potatoes, kale, crisp apple, and crunchy pecans with the best maple vinaigrette dressing. Watch the video tutorial, and you’ll be craving it.
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During the cooler months, I can’t get enough of sweet potatoes, especially for Sweet Potato Soup (my husband’s favorite soup!), and we couldn’t close out the year without making classic Sweet Potato Casserole. We also have Sweet Potatoes and Bacon on repeat this time of year.
Sweet Potato Salad Video Tutorial
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A platter of Kale Sweet Potato Salad looks stunning on the Thanksgiving table, but it’s also a satisfying dinner salad, and you can roast the sweet potatoes ahead for easy meal prep. The best part? Since kale doesn’t get soggy like other leafy greens, this leftover kale salad keeps really well in the refrigerator.
Why You’ll Love Kale Sweet Potato Salad
- Feel-good recipe – this salad is packed with many healthy greens and veggies. It’s a hearty and satisfying salad and feels like a meal in itself.
- Make-Ahead – you can roast the sweet potatoes a day ahead and pre-chop your kale (see make-ahead tips below).
- Leftovers keep well – don’t throw away any leftover salad! Unlike most leafy green salads, a kale salad doesn’t get soggy after adding the dressing. Refrigerated leftovers taste great the next day (see storage tips below).
- The best dressing – you’ll love the combination of flavors in this maple vinaigrette with just the right amount of sweetness. It’s simple to make; just whisk or shake it up in a mason jar.
Ingredients for Sweet Potato Salad
- Sweet Potatoes – You’ll need 1 1/2 lbs (about 2 medium or 3 smaller sized), tossed with oil, maple syrup, salt and pepper. You can leave the skin on or peel it with a potato peeler.
- Kale – 1 bunch should yield 10 cups chopped. Be sure to strip the leaves and discard the tough stem.
- Apple – preferably a crisp and sweet-tart apple such as Honeycrisp, Jonagold, or Golden Delicious, but any variety will do.
- Pecans – lightly toasted (you can sub with walnuts, pine nuts, shaved almonds or even pumpkin seeds).
- Dried cranberries – add a sweet tanginess. We love to use pomegranate seeds when they are in season.
- Goat cheese – our favorite for sweet and savory salads like Berry Arugula Salad and Beet Salad.
Substitutions
- To Substitute Kale – try arugula, baby spinach, or mixed greens, and add the dressing to taste just before serving.
- Cheese – if you don’t love goat cheese, we can still be friends. Try crumbled feta cheese or shaved parmesan.
How to Strip and Prepare Kale for Salad
Kale leaves have a tough fibrous stem that needs to be removed before chopping the leaves for salad, but the process is quick and easy:
- Strip the leaves – hold the stem with one hand and pull the leaves right off.
- Rinse & spin dry – transfer kale leaves to a salad spinner (in 2 batches) to rinse and spin dry. A good salad spinner saves a ton of time and effort in making a kale salad!
- Chop – bunch or stack leaves together and slice into thin strips.
How to Make Sweet Potato Salad
- Roast Sweet potatoes – peel and chop sweet potatoes into 1/2″ thick pieces. Toss with olive oil, maple syrup, salt and pepper. Arrange on a lined baking sheet (I love my nonstick silpat) and bake until tender.
- Make Dressing – whisk together all of the dressing ingredients and set aside.
- Chop kale – strip kale leaves, then rinse, dry, and chop per the instructions above.
- Massage kale – place kale in a large salad bowl, drizzle with 3/4 of the dressing and toss with 2 forks until the kale volume has shrunk down by 1/4.
- Add toppings – add cooled sweet potatoes to the salad bowl then sprinkle in chopped apples, toasted pecans, dried cranberries and crumbled goat cheese. To serve, drizzle with remaining 1/4 dressing or add it to taste and enjoy.
Make-Ahead & Storage
Whether you are prepping ahead for a dinner party or want to repurpose leftover sweet potato salad, here’s how to store it:
- Undressed Salad: you can store the salad separately from the dressing for up to 3 days. To avoid discoloration, it’s best to slice and add the apple and crumble in the cheese just before serving.
- Dressed Salad: Cover and refrigerate leftover salad for up to 24 hours
Are you craving Sweet Potato Salad yet? It really is as good as it looks, from the roasted sweet potatoes to the tasty vinaigrette. My whole family gets excited when I bring this to Fall gatherings at my parents’ house on Sunday afternoons. P.S. It’s also gluten-free and grain-free!
Complete your Thanksgiving Menu
We’ve made this salad a tradition for Thanksgiving, and based on your Instagram posts, many of you have adopted this salad for your holiday traditions as well, which makes me so happy.
If you need more recipes and ideas for the biggest cooking day of the year, check out our Thanksgiving Recipes, and don’t forget these holiday staples:
Roasted Sweet Potato Salad Recipe
Ingredients
For the Roasted Sweet Potatoes:
For the Salad:
- 1 bunch kale, (10 cups chopped)
- 1 apple, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup pecans, lightly toasted if desired
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries, or pomegranate seeds
- 2 oz goat cheese, (1/2 cup crumbled)
Dressing Ingredients:
- 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 Tbsp maple syrup
- 1 Tbsp dijon
- 1 garlic clove, finely minced or pressed
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- 1/8 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
Instructions
Prep:
- Preheat oven to 425˚F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone liner. Toast pecans on a dry skillet over medium heat, tossing frequently for a few minutes until golden and fragrant then transfer to a plate to cool.
How to Make Sweet Potato Salad:
- Roast Sweet Potatoes: Peel and dice sweet potatoes into 1/2” thick pieces and transfer them to a mixing bowl. Drizzle with 1 Tbsp olive oil, 1/2 Tbsp maple syrup, 1/2 tsp sea salt, and 1/4 tsp black pepper and toss to combine. Spread sweet potatoes out onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake at 425˚F for 30 minutes, flipping the sweet potatoes after 20 minutes to promote even roasting. Remove from the oven and let cool while preparing the salad.
- Make Salad Dressing: In a small bowl or mason jar, combine all of the ingredients for the salad dressing in the order they are listed and thoroughly whisk together until well combined. You may need to re-whisk before dressing the salad since the dressing can separate as it sits.
- Strip the kale leaves and discard the stems. Rinse and spin dry leaves then finely chop them into thin strips and transfer to a large mixing bowl.
- Massage kale with dressing: Drizzle with 3/4 of the dressing. Toss for a few minutes with two forks until kale is slightly softened, evenly coated in dressing, and reduced by about 1/4 in volume. Let the salad rest for 15 minutes while you add the remaining ingredients.
- Add Toppings: Scatter roasted and cooled sweet potatoes over the kale then sprinkle on remaining toppings: sliced apple, toasted and cooled pecans, dried cranberries, and crumbled goat cheese. Drizzle the top with the remaining 1/4 of the dressing or add to taste then enjoy.
Nutrition Per Serving
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Made this salad last year and what a great hit it was! Thank You for sharing such a holiday dish, Natasha.
I’ve made this salad a handful of times and recommended it to friends and family- it’s absolutely delicious, especially the dressing! I substitute the kale for spinach and it’s just as delicious as the original recipe. Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
I am going to make the salad but unfortunately I am not a fan of goat cheese. Can I substitute it for blue cheese?
Hi Donna. Sure, that would be fine,
Looks marvelous! Can’t wait to try! I may use a few variations of greens, not all Kale! And Feta cheese, Yum — Happy Thanksgiving
HI Helen, happy Thanksgiving! This would also work with mixed greens. I hope you love it!
I don’t like Kale, what can I use instead?
If you prefer not to use, kale, you can substitute with arugula, but add the dressing to taste just before serving. Baby spinach would be the next best option.
Great recipe and will become a Thanksgiving favorite. Yum!
Can you use roasted butternut squash instead of sweet potato? I have a few my friend gave me from her garden I need to use for something.
Hi Glenda! I’m sure that could work too.
Hi Natasha,
This looks so good. What real maple syrup do you use?
Hi Chris. I’ve tried a few different brands I often buy Kirkland brand from Costco and the Private Selections brand. As long as it says, “pure maple syrup” grade A- it should be a good quality.
Ok I’m reviewing photos on my cell phone! I made this salad last Christmas!! It was a hit. I only swapped out the blue cheese for feta cheese. I’m almost a year late to say, Thank you, Natasha.
Sounds great. There are so many Kale varieties…which is your favorite?
Hi Cynthia. See the images referenced above for the type that I used. I believe it was the curly type.
This is a fantastic recipe! I’ve served it twice now for family celebrations and it’s been a big hit, especially for the vegetarians among us. Didn’t have pecans last time so used blanched/ sliced almonds. Highly recommend? Thanks Natasha!
hi Natasha, I have been making this salad for many years because my loves it and it’s even better the second day because it refrigerates very well. I was wondering how soon would you add your dressing to your kale before you eat it? It is 1:30 PM now and my dinner is at 6 PM. Come on down I’m only a few hours away in northern Utah. 😊
Hi Marie! In my experience, the dressing on the kale only softens the kale after several hours but never does it get soggy so I imagine it would be just fine.
Hi! Looking forward to making this! Can I substitute the sweet potatoes with butternut?
Hi! That may work. Here’s what one of my readers wrote: “This was an amazing salad!! I swapped out sweet potato for butternut squash added red onion and chicken apple sausage!!!”
I want to try this salad but do not like kale. Is there a substitute?
Hey Russ, if you prefer not to use, kale, you can substitute with arugula, but add the dressing to taste just before serving. Baby spinach would be the next best option.
I made this last night for dinner. Oh my goodness, it was so good! I had some leftovers for lunch today. Wow, just wow! This salad is truly a winner. I will make it often, easy peasy and super delicious. Thank you!
I’m so glad you loved this! Thank you for sharing.
I doubled the recipe for my Christmas crowd and it was the hit of the meal. Even people who don’t like kale loved it. I wouldn’t change a thing. I used pomegranate seeds and I’ll try dried cranberries next time to compare. It will be on regular rotation in the future.
That’s wonderful, Lin! So glad you found a new one for the rotation.
Hi – First, I LOVE your new cookbook!!! Second, I am highly sensitive to dried fruit because of the sulphur dioxide used in processing. Can you suggest another ingredient to replace the cranberries? Obviously I have to leave them out. Maybe add more maple syrup? Thank you…
Hi Beth! This recipe is great without the cranberries too. They can be optional. I haven’t tried using fresh cranberries but here is what one of my readers said, “I used real fresh cranberries, and I even added crushed pineapple to the topping. this is a total bomb!”
Looks amazing! I love anything with sweet potatoes. Love all your recipes.
P.S. There any way to get rid of the ads on the page? …makes it so hard to read.
Hi! I’m so glad you’re loving the recipes. Unfortunately, we need to have ads to continue to provide free recipes. There is a option to exit the ad (in the corner).
Hi Natasha
What other type of lettuce would work as well for this salad? I have a thyroid problem and I’m not allowed to have kale!
Thank you!
If you prefer not to use, kale, you can substitute with arugula, but add the dressing to taste just before serving. Baby spinach would be the next best option.
Delicious and creative salad. Perfect for after thanksgiving. I added leftover turkey and ham to increase protein and made a meal out of it. Also, used feta cheese because that’s what I had!
Sounds delish, Angie! Thank you for the feedback.
This salad is so delicious. I have made it multiple times and it is always a hit. No need to add or substitute anything. Perfectly balanced and goat cheese is a must.
I’m so glad you love it!