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Raw Kale Salad with Creamy Tahini Dressing

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Why it works: Tahini and miso work together. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and 19 recipes mention both. Both carry 2,3-butanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓

The recipe

Prep15 min

Ingredients

Contains: soy, sesame (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)

Directions

Method written by CompKitchen from the ingredient list. Not the original author's method, not kitchen-tested.

  1. Remove the tough stems from the kale and tear the leaves into bite-sized pieces. Put them in a large bowl with a generous pinch of sea salt and massage for 1 to 2 minutes until softened and slightly darkened.

  2. Peel the carrots and shred them with a box grater or julienne peeler. Halve the avocado, remove the pit, and cut the flesh into thin slices.

  3. To make the dressing, whisk the tahini, white miso, brown rice vinegar, toasted sesame oil and 1/3 cup water in a small bowl until smooth and creamy. Add tamari or soy sauce a dash at a time, if using, to taste.

  4. Add the shredded carrots and chopped cilantro to the kale and toss to combine.

  5. Pour about two-thirds of the dressing over the salad and toss well so every piece is coated.

  6. Arrange the salad on plates or a platter and top with the avocado slices.

  7. Sprinkle with the sesame seeds and red pepper flakes, then drizzle with the remaining dressing and serve right away.

By cookieandkate. Recipe from Open Recipes.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.

  1. Tahini + misotop 7% of all pairs
    Aroma overlaplow
    Mentioned together19 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).

  2. Sesame + misotop 2% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together121 recipes

    Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).

  3. Sesame + tahinitop 2% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together142 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol (clove, smoky).

  4. Carrot + orangetop 3% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together736 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).

  5. Sesame + ricetop 3% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together643 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol (clove, smoky).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

Flavor stand-ins for the orange

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (kale, avocado, carrot, sesame, tahini, miso, rice):

  1. Limebetter flavor fit
  2. Coconutbetter flavor fit
  3. Lemonbetter flavor fit
  4. Orangethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against kale, avocado, carrot, sesame, tahini, miso, rice. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).