Sweet Potato Kale Salad With Tahini Lemon Dressing

Pickle the onions. Peel half of a medium-large red onion, cut into halves and slice thinly (quarter slices). Add to a bowl along with sugar, salt, white wine vinegar and water. Toss through, transfer to a jar with all the liquid, close the lid, and shake the jar. Set aside for 15-30 minutes while you prepare the rest of the salad.

Roast or air fry the potatoes: Peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into cubes. Toss in a bowl with a drizzle of olive oil. Transfer to an air fryer preheated to 200 C / 400 F and cook for 15 minutes, flipping halfway. If using the oven, roast in a 200 C/400F oven for 25 minutes.

Toast the almonds: If using raw almonds, I recommend toasting them for extra flavour. You can toast the almonds by roasting them in the oven (180 C / 356 F) for about 5-7 minutes or until have browned slightly; they should start to smell like they are toasted, if you know what I mean. Remove from the oven, cool down and chop into small pieces, roughly.

Make tahini dressing: Add all ingredients to a jug or a bowl following by a few tablespoons of water. Whisk with a fork until well combined. Set aside.

Prepare kale for a salad: While we’re using raw kale, it does require a little prep work to make it more palatable. Cut the leaves away from the stems. Wash the leaves and dry in them in a salad spinner or in between two kitchen towels. Chop the kale leaves roughly and sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Using your hands, massage the kale by squeezing it from different angles. This helps to break down the fibres in the leaves, making them softer and moist. You only have to do this for 15-20 seconds.

Assemble the salad: Transfer the massaged kale to a large salad bowl. Add most of the cooked sweet potatoes, most of the almonds and a generous handful of pickled onions. Pour in 2/3 of the dressing and mix through. Taste and add extra dressing if you like. I like to add in two stages as it’s easy to overdress a salad, yet you can always add more if needed.