Bold, flavorful, and refreshingly light, this Mexican Chopped Kale Salad has everything you’re looking for in a quick, macro-friendly meal. It starts with finely chopped kale and cabbage, then gets a fresh crunch from radishes and corn, a salty kick from crumbly cotija cheese, and a creamy finish with my jalapeño-avocado dressing that brings it all together.

About This Recipe

Okay, I’m really having a moment with chopped kale salads. The secret? Using the food processor to chop up everything SUPER fine so you get a ton of flavor and deliciousness in every bite.

This Mexican Chopped Kale Salad has been on repeat in our house lately and it’s all because of the creamy jalapeño-avocado dressing.

This dressing isn’t new and if you’ve been around for a while you know we love adding this dressing to any kind of salad, tacos, bowls, you name it! I originally came up with this macro-friendly dressing for my Farro and Sweet Potato Salad and it’s been a game changer ever since!

Of course, you know we never do a salad around here without adding some protein so if you’re looking to make this a main meal, I highly recommend adding my Stacked Mexican Chicken Thighs for the perfect pairing!

Ingredients and Substitutions

For the Salad:

Kale: I love using lacinato kale because it’s a bit sweeter and chewier than regular kale. However, regular kale works or you can sub for your favorite green like spring mix or spinach. I highly recommend putting the kale through your food pr ocessor to help dice it up into tiny bites.
Green cabbage: You can also sub for any crunchy lettuce like romaine or green leaf. I recommend running the green cabbage through the food processor just like the kale!
Radishes: I love to use my mandolin to get the radishes sliced super thin!
Green onion: The mildness of the green onions adds the perfect amount of sweetness and more crunch.
Cilantro: If you hate cilantro, sub for parsley or any other fresh herb you have on hand.
Corn: You can use fresh, canned or frozen corn (thawed). We love to throw a few ears of corn on the grill when we prep protein on Sunday to get that extra yummy char!
Cotija cheese: Kind of like the Mexican version of feta. Cotija is a crumbly, salty cheese that’s perfect for any Mexican dish. You’ll also need cotija cheese for the Jalapeño-Avocado dressing.

For the Jalapeño-Avocado Dressing:

Nonfat greek yogurt: If you need to make this dressing dairy-free, you can sub for plant-based sour cream.
Reduced-fat buttermilk: The buttermilk gives this dressing the perfect tangy bite. If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, you can add a fresh squeeze of lemon juice to regular milk and let it sit for 5-10 minutes before adding to your dressing.
Avocado: Adds the perfect amount of creaminess to this dressing!
Seasonings: Onion powder, garlic (fresh or frozen cubes), salt, and black pepper
Lemon juice: Fresh lemon juice is always best!
Fresh jalapeno: If you’re sensitive to heat, make sure to remove all the seeds and membrane from the jalapeno before adding.
Parsley and cilantro: Again, if you aren’t a fan of cilantro feel free to use all parsley or another herb you love!

Dietary Adaptations

GF/DF: This is naturally gluten free but not dairy free. To keep it dairy-free, I recommend swapping in Forager Plant Based Sour cream for the yogurt AND the buttermilk, and nutritional yeast or dairy-free parmesan for the cotija.

How To Make

Remove woody stems from kale by ripping the leaves off. Chop kale and cabbage super fine using a knife OR give it a quick whirl in your food processor. Be careful not to over-process. We want it small but not a paste! Add all salad ingredients to a large bowl.
Blend or food-process all of the dressing ingredients until smooth. Pour the whole batch of dressing over the salad and combine well. Enjoy immediately with your favorite grilled protein or as a side to your tacos etc! We love this topped with avocado and maybe some crushed tortilla chips as well! But I’ll let you decide on those.
You might want to double the dressing to save some for later. We love this dressing on any tacos or rice bowls as well as all the salads!

Helpful Tips

Chop small: I’m telling you the trick to any good salad, but especially kale salads, is to chop everything SUPER small. This helps all the flavors and textures get distributed more in every bite. I think it’s easiest to run everything through the food processor but if you don’t have a food processor you can chop everything with a knife and cutting board.
Fresh herbs: My other favorite hack for a good salad? FRESH HERBS! They just had so much flavor and freshness, especially when we’re trying to keep things light.
Extra carbs: If this salad is falling a little low in carbs for you or you just want to make it a more filling meal, you can also toss in some brown rice or quinoa to help bulk up the carbs to help meet your macro goals wherever they are.
Add protein: You can serve this kale salad as a side to your favorite Mexican dish or top it with a protein like chicken, salmon or shrimp to make it a complete meal.

Protein Pairings

Pair this mexican kale salad with some protein to make it a meal! Some of my favorites include:

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