The popularity of fast food has grown tremendously since it first appeared on restaurant menus back in 1937.
Nowadays, there’s no shortage of places to get your daily fix of fried chicken or burgers made from ground beef.
One such place that serves up delicious meals at an affordable price is Chick-fil-A.
While most people know this chain for its tasty chicken sandwiches, they may not realize how versatile their menu items can be.
Some of them even include salads!
What Is The Recipe For A ChickFilA Kale Salad?
Here are the ingredients you need to make a kale salad with chickpeas as the base.
- 1 cup cooked chickpeas (canned)
- ½ cup red onion, diced
- ¼ cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
- ⅓ cup crumbled goat cheese
- 3 cups arugula leaves
- ¾ cup dried cranberries
- Dressing Ingredients:
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
- ⅛ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup water
If you want to spice things up, feel free to add some hot sauce or cayenne pepper to taste.
How Do You Make A ChickFilA Kale Salad?
Chick-fil-A offers many different types of salads, including one with kale as its main ingredient.
The recipe consists of chopped kale leaves mixed with a dressing containing vinegar, oil, and spices.
In addition, chick-fil-A adds some other ingredients like dried cranberries, sunflower seeds, almonds, and more.
Ingredients for a Chick Fil A kale Salad
- 1 bunch of baby kale (or regular kale)
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ⅓ cup white wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ½ cup roasted peanuts
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup sliced almonds
- 4 slices bacon, cooked until crispy and crumbled
- 2 cups arugula
Step 1: Wash and thoroughly dry the kale leaves before chopping them into bite-sized pieces.
You should also remove any thick stems from the leaves so they are easier to chop.
Step 2: Combine the chopped kale leaves with all the remaining ingredients except the arugula in a large bowl. Mix well by hand.
Add the arugula just before serving to keep it fresh and crisp.
What Ingredients Do You Need For A ChickFilA Kale Salad?
Chick-fil-A offers several different types of salads, but the one we’re going to focus on today is called Kale Salad with Cranberries, Nuts & Vinaigrette Dressing.
This particular type of salad includes shredded kale leaves, raisins (or other dried fruit), pecans, almonds, sunflower seeds, diced tomatoes, red onion, chickpeas, crumbled feta cheese, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and a creamy vinaigrette dressing.
If you don’t want to make all these ingredients yourself, you should definitely consider ordering this dish at your local Chick-fil-A location.
However, if you’d like to create your own version of this salad at home, here’s what you’ll need:
- 1 bunch of kale
- 8 ounces of dried cranberries
- 4 tablespoons of olive oil
- 3/4 cup of pecans
- 3/4 cup of walnuts
- 6 cloves of minced garlic
- 3 teaspoons of kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon of black pepper
- 1 tablespoon of white vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon of dry mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon of paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon of turmeric
- 1/4 teaspoon of celery seed
- 1/2 teaspoon of chili flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon of granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup of vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 cups of water
- 11/2 cups of cooked chick peas or 2 cans of beans
- 1 head of lettuce
- 1 tomato
- 1/2 cup of crumbled feta cheese
- chopped scallions
- red onion
- garlic powder
- kosher salt
- black pepper
- vinegar
- dry mustard
- ground ginger
- turmeric
- celery seed
- paprika
- granulated sugar
- apple cider vinegar
- vegetable oil
- water
- white wine vinegar
Now that you have everything needed to make the best kale salad ever, let’s go over some tips about how to prepare this healthy meal.
How Many Calories Are In A ChickFilA Kale Salad?
Chick-fil-A offers several different types of salads, including some with greens like lettuce, spinach, and arugula.
Others come topped with fresh vegetables like tomatoes, red onion, cucumber, and bell pepper while still others have a variety of toppings like croutons, cheese, bacon bits, and more.
While all these options sound great, one of the best salads on the menu is probably the Kale Salad.
This dish comes complete with chopped kale leaves, which contain high levels of antioxidants.
It also includes crunchy walnuts, dried cherries, raisins, and feta cheese along with a creamy yet tangy dressing.
As far as calorie counts go, the chick-fil-A kale salad contains around 300 calories per serving.
That means if you order two servings, you will consume roughly 600 calories.
If you want to lose weight, then you should stick to three servings instead.
To make sure you don’t exceed the recommended daily caloric intake, always check the nutritional information panel before ordering any meal at Chick-fil-A.
Is The Chick Fil A Kale Salad Healthy?
If you’re looking for a quick meal that won’t break the bank, then a chick-fil-a salad might just fit the bill.
The main ingredients in one of these salads are usually lettuce leaves, shredded carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, celery, and other vegetables mixed with either croutons, cheese, or both.
In addition to those basic components, some of the recipes also include sweet potatoes, bacon bits, onions, peppers, and more.
Chick-fil-A claims that their salads contain “no artificial colors or flavors.”
It also contains less than 1% trans fats (which means that if you’ve been avoiding all foods containing hydrogenated oils because of concerns about heart disease, then you should feel good about eating this salad).
In terms of nutrients, the amount of protein found in one serving of this salad varies depending on what kind of salad it is.
For instance, the original Kale Salad includes 3 grams of fiber, 5 grams of protein, and only 6 total grams of carbohydrates.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Chicken Caesar Salad contains 8 grams of carbohydrate, but only 2 grams of protein.
While these salads aren’t exactly balanced when compared to whole fruits and veggies, they provide enough nutrition to keep you full until dinner time without weighing down your wallet.
For example, a single cup of chopped romaine lettuce provides over 15 percent of your recommended daily intake of vitamin A, which helps fight cancer and boosts immune system health.
Meanwhile, a cup of sliced cherry tomatoes offers nearly half of your daily iron requirement.
And as long as you don’t go overboard on the toppings, you’ll still have plenty of room left for the rest of your favorite condiments like ranch sauce or blue cheese dressing.
So while this isn’t the best way to eat to stay healthy, it does deliver some nutritional value.
How Much Fat Is In A Chick Fil A Kale Salad?
Chick-fil-A’s Kale Salad contains about 3 grams of saturated fat per serving.
That’s way less than what you would find in other low-fat salad dressings (which tend to have around 7-9 grams per tablespoon).
As long as you don’t go overboard with adding extra toppings like cheese, bacon bits, etc., then you should feel good knowing you aren’t eating too much fat when ordering one of these salads at Chick-fil-A.
You will also notice that the ingredients list doesn’t contain any artificial sweeteners or colors.
This means that instead of using those additives, Chick-fil-A uses natural sugars found in fruits, vegetables, legumes, and grain products.
How Many Carbs Are In A ChickFilA Kale Salad?
Chick-fil-A offers several different types of salads, including the Kale Salad.
Although there isn’t any nutritional information available for this particular item, we can still find out how much carbohydrate content there is by simply looking at the ingredients list provided by the company itself.
According to the nutrition label on the product page, the Kale Salad contains 0 grams of carbohydrates per serving (0g).
However, if you read through the ingredient list, you will notice that some of those ingredients contain more than one type of carbohydrate.
The following shows all of the carb sources found within the ingredients list:
- Tossed Green Leafy Vegetables – Contains both fructose and glucose, which make up 50% of the total carbohydrate content.
- Diced Cabbage – This vegetable contains a mixture of sucrose, starch, and dietary fiber. It also contains fructans, which have been linked to increased inflammation.
- Celery Stalks – Contains about 13% of the total carbohydrate content.
- Bacon Bits – Is a form of sugar called lactose, which breaks down into two simple sugars during digestion. There are 12 grams of lactose per slice, meaning each piece has 6 grams of carbohydrates.
- Toasted Peanuts – These peanuts are high in complex carbohydrates, as well as being rich in protein and monounsaturated fats.
- Grapeseed Oil – This oil is made primarily with polyunsatuarated fatty acids, which means it doesn’t raise cholesterol levels like other oils do.
As you can see, the Kale Salad does indeed contain a lot of carbohydrate, but there aren’t any specific numbers listed anywhere on the packaging.
Instead, the only way to determine exactly how much of these various carbs are present would be to calculate them yourself using the data above.
How Much Protein Is In A ChickFilA Kale Salad?
Chick-fil-A offers several different types of salads.
One of them is called “Kale Salad with Roasted Nuts & Cranberry Vinaigrette.”
It contains 1 cup (160 grams) of chopped kale leaves, ½ cup (56 grams) of walnuts, ¾ cup (100 grams) of sliced almonds, ⅓ cup (50 grams) of raisins, 2 tablespoons (28 grams) of red onion, 2 teaspoons (11 grams) of honey mustard, and 3/4 teaspoon (5 grams) of salt.
This makes the total amount of calories in the salad come out to 542 per serving.
But what about the amounts of macronutrients contained in this dish?
Each of these nutrients provides essential building blocks needed by our bodies to function properly.
The macronutrient breakdown for a single portion of chick-fil-a’s Kale Salad with Roasted Nuts & Cranberry Vinaigrette includes:
- Protein – 23%
- Carbs – 42%
- Fat – 35%
- Calories – 542
This means that every single day you should eat approximately two servings of this salad if you want to meet your recommended daily intake of each nutrient.
What Is The Nutritional Value
When you order a Chick-fil-A salad, you’re getting more than just a side dish.
These are complete meals packed with nutrients like fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.
The ingredients used to make these dishes are all healthy and low in fat and calories.
For example, chick-fil-a’s Kale Salad includes kale leaves, raisins, almonds, pecans, sunflower seeds, blue cheese crumbles, and red wine vinegar as well as a light ranch dressing.
This salad also contains 2 grams of protein per serving. It’s important to note that because the salad doesn’t contain any added sugar, it’s considered “healthy” by American Heart Association standards.
You can find out more about what constitutes healthy eating here.
Another great option is the Chicken & Waffle bowl which comes with two waffles topped with shredded chicken, cheddar cheese, bacon bits, honey mustard sauce, lettuce, tomato slices, and crispy onion strings.
All in all, this meal packs 1,000 calories and 28 grams of protein into one single portion.
If you want to learn more about the nutrition facts behind other salads sold at restaurants, check out our article titled How many calories does Chick-fil-A have in each item.
Equipment
- 1 small mixing bowl
- 1 whisk/fork
- cutting board
- knife
- Serving bowl
Ingredients
Salad
- 2 stalks kale
- ½ cup chopped broccoli
- 1 tbsp dried cheries
- 1 tbsp salted cashews
Dressing
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
- Pinch of salt
- Ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Remove the kale leaves from two to three stalks after washing.To remove leaves, position one hand at the bottom of the stalk and the other hand on top of that hand to form a ring.Slide leaves off the stalk by running your hand up the stem.
- Gather all the leaves and gently massage them between your hands. Make bite-sized cuts in the meat.Add to a serving bowl or another bowl large enough to accommodate a salad.
- To make ½ cup, chop the broccoli into bite-sized pieces.Add to kale.
- In a small mixing bowl, add ½ teaspoon of lemon zest to make the dressing.From that lemon, add 1 ½ teaspoons of lemon juice to the zest.Add 1 tablespoon each of maple syrup, olive oil, apple cider vinegar,Dijon mustard, and salt & pepper to taste after that.Blend well.
- About 10-15 minutes before serving, drizzle dressing over the salad's components.Toss.Add 1-2 Tablespoons of chopped salted cashews and 1-2 Tablespoons of dried cherries just before serving.
Video
Nutrition
My blog is all about creating delicious meals with ingredients that are easy to find in your local grocery store. I’m passionate about making yummy meals that I can share with my friends and family.