Edamame Quinoa Salad with Kale, Carrots and Miso Ginger Dressing
A make-ahead edamame quinoa salad with massaged kale, shredded carrots and roasted peanuts, tossed in a creamy miso, ginger and tahini dressing.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 5 min
- Serves
- 4

Edamame Quinoa Salad with Kale, Carrots and Miso Ginger Dressing is a vegan lunch recipe made with white (shiro) miso, tahini, unseasoned rice vinegar. It takes 25 minutes of hands-on time, serves 4, and each serving has 503 calories, 24 g of protein and 13 g of fiber.
Edamame and quinoa together supply plant protein, and kale is sturdy enough to stay crisp in the dressing for days. Massaging the kale with part of the dressing first softens it and takes away some of its bitterness, so the finished salad tastes balanced. Tahini gives the miso-ginger dressing enough body to coat every grain, and the peanuts go on at the end so they stay crunchy.
Ingredients
Dressing
- 2 tbsp34 gwhite (shiro) miso
- 3 tbsp45 gtahini, well stirred
- 3 tbsp45 gunseasoned rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp6 gfresh ginger, finely grated
- 1 clove3 ggarlic, finely grated
- 1 tbsp20 gmaple syrup
- 1 tbsp15 gfresh lime juice
- 1 tsp4.5 gtoasted sesame oil
- 3 tbsp45 gwarm water, to thin
Salad
- 2 cups310 gfrozen shelled edamame
- 3 cups555 gcooked quinoa, cooled
- 5 cups105 glacinato kale, stems removed, thinly sliced
- 2 medium122 gcarrots, peeled and coarsely grated
- 3 45 ggreen onions, thinly sliced
- ½ cup73 groasted unsalted peanuts, roughly chopped
- ¼ cup4 gfresh cilantro, chopped (optional)
- 1 tbsp9 gtoasted sesame seeds, for serving (optional)
- 1 67 glime wedges, for serving (optional)
Kit: medium pot, colander, large mixing bowl, box grater or microplane, whisk
Tips
- Make sure the quinoa is completely cool before tossing it in. Warm quinoa wilts the kale too much and makes the salad soggy.
- Lacinato (Tuscan) kale is the most tender, but curly kale works too. Massage curly kale a little longer.
- If you're cooking quinoa from scratch, 1 cup dry quinoa simmered in 1 3/4 cups water makes about 3 cups cooked. Spread it on a tray so it cools faster.
Swap ideas
- Peanut butter instead of tahini
- Makes a richer, sweeter, more satay-style dressing that suits the peanuts on top.
- Cashews or almonds instead of peanuts
- Keeps the crunch and works if you're cooking for someone with a peanut allergy (check the other ingredients too).
- Shredded red cabbage instead of half the kale
- Adds more color and crunch and holds up just as well over several days.
- Add 1 tsp sriracha to the dressing
- Gives the dressing gentle heat without covering up the miso and ginger.
The numbers
Nutrition per serving
503kcal per serving
Everything else · 4 servings per recipe
- Saturated fat
- 3.4 g 17%
- Sugars
- 9.5 g
- Sodium
- 384 mg 17%
- Potassium
- 1001 mg 21%
- Calcium
- 228 mg 18%
- Iron
- 6 mg 33%
- Vitamin C
- 35 mg 38%
- Vitamin B12
- 0.01 µg 0%
% Daily Value on a 2,000 calorie diet. Calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for each ingredient; optional ingredients are excluded. Estimates vary with brands and portions.
Sources: Miso, Seeds, sesame butter, tahini, from roasted and toasted kernels (most common type), RICE VINEGAR (Branded, Mizkan America, Inc.) - unseasoned; 0 kcal, 0 g protein, carbs, sugar, fat and 0 mg sodium per 15 ml serving, Ginger root, raw, Garlic, raw, Syrups, maple, Lime juice, raw, Oil, sesame, salad or cooking, Beverages, water, tap, drinking, Edamame, frozen, prepared, Quinoa, cooked, Kale, raw, Carrots, raw, Onions, spring or scallions (includes tops and bulb), raw, Peanuts, all types, dry-roasted, without salt
Method
Make the dressing: in a bowl or jar, whisk the miso and tahini into a paste, then whisk in the rice vinegar, ginger, garlic, maple syrup, lime juice and sesame oil. Add the warm water a tablespoon at a time until the dressing is pourable but still coats a spoon. Taste and add more lime or maple if needed.
Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add the frozen edamame and cook until bright green and tender with a little bite, 3–4 minutes.
Drain the edamame and rinse under cold water until cool, then shake off as much water as you can so it doesn't thin the dressing.
Put the sliced kale in a large bowl with about 2 tablespoons of the dressing. Massage it with your hands for 1–2 minutes, until the leaves darken, shrink by about a third and feel soft rather than stiff.
Add the cooled quinoa, edamame, grated carrots and green onions to the kale. Pour in the rest of the dressing and toss until everything is evenly coated.
Taste and add a pinch of salt only if needed (the miso is already salty). Just before serving, top with the peanuts, plus cilantro, sesame seeds and lime wedges if using.
Storage: Refrigerate the dressed salad in airtight containers for up to 4 days. The kale softens a little but holds its texture. Store the peanuts separately and add them when serving so they stay crunchy.
Questions
- How much protein is in edamame quinoa salad with kale, carrots and miso ginger dressing?
- Each of the 4 servings has 24 g of protein, 13 g of fiber and 503 calories, calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for every ingredient.
- Is edamame quinoa salad with kale, carrots and miso ginger dressing vegan?
- Yes. It contains no dairy, eggs, honey or other animal products.
- How long does edamame quinoa salad with kale, carrots and miso ginger dressing take to make?
- 20 minutes of prep and 5 minutes of cooking, so 25 minutes of hands-on time.
- Can you make edamame quinoa salad with kale, carrots and miso ginger dressing ahead?
- Refrigerate the dressed salad in airtight containers for up to 4 days. The kale softens a little but holds its texture. Store the peanuts separately and add them when serving so they stay crunchy.
- What can I substitute in edamame quinoa salad with kale, carrots and miso ginger dressing?
- Peanut butter instead of tahini — makes a richer, sweeter, more satay-style dressing that suits the peanuts on top.. Cashews or almonds instead of peanuts — keeps the crunch and works if you're cooking for someone with a peanut allergy (check the other ingredients too).. Shredded red cabbage instead of half the kale — adds more color and crunch and holds up just as well over several days.. Add 1 tsp sriracha to the dressing — gives the dressing gentle heat without covering up the miso and ginger..
- Does edamame quinoa salad with kale, carrots and miso ginger dressing contain gluten or peanuts?
- Yes — the ingredient list includes gluten and peanuts, in some cases as an optional ingredient you can leave out. Check the labels on the products you buy if you're cooking for an allergy.
Nutrition is calculated from USDA data for every ingredient — how we work it out.
Published October 4, 2026 ·Asian-inspired