Kickin’ Cajun Ranch Steak Salad
with Kale, Grape Tomatoes & Pickled Shallot
- Eggs
- Milk
This hearty, speedy kale and mixed greens salad is packed with juicy grape tomatoes, cucumber, and pickled shallot for an impressively colorful bowl. Toss it all together with tangy, Cajun-spiced ranch dressing, then top with juicy slices of sizzled steak for a bold, satisfying spin on a classic (in just 20 minutes!).
Ingredients
10 ounce
Ranch Steak
1 unit
Lemon
1 unit
Shallot
1 unit
Mini Cucumber
4 ounce
Kale
3 ounce
Buttermilk Ranch Dressing
(Contains: Eggs, Milk)
1.5 tablespoon
Sour Cream
(Contains: Milk)
1 tablespoon
Cajun Spice Blend
1 teaspoon
Hot Sauce
2 ounce
Mixed Greens
4 ounce
Grape Tomatoes
Not included in your delivery
Olive Oil
Cooking Oil
Sugar
Salt
Pepper
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
• Wash and dry produce. • Pat steak dry with paper towels; season with salt and pepper. • Heat a drizzle of oil in a medium pan over medium-high heat. Add steak and cook to desired doneness, 3-6 minutes per side. TIP: While steak cooks, move on to Step 2!
• Trim, peel, and thinly slice shallot. Halve lemon. Remove and discard any large stems from kale; chop into bite-size pieces. Trim and thinly slice cucumber into rounds. • In a small microwave-safe bowl, combine shallot, 1 tsp sugar, juice from half the lemon, salt, and pepper (2 tsp sugar and juice from whole lemon for 4 servings). Cover tightly with plastic wrap; microwave for 1 minute. • Set aside to pickle, stirring occasionally.
• Place kale in a large bowl; using your hands, massage kale (similar to how you would knead dough) with a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt until leaves are tender, 1 minute. • In a second small bowl, whisk together dressing, sour cream, 1 tsp Cajun Spice Blend (2 tsp for 4 servings), and as much hot sauce as you like.
• Transfer Cajun ranch dressing to bowl with kale. Add mixed greens, cucumber, tomatoes, and half the pickled shallot (draining first); toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper. • Thinly slice steak against the grain. • Divide salad between bowls; top with steak and remaining pickled shallot. Serve.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Dec 2025- Flavor: Many loved the salad's flavors, especially the tangy Cajun ranch dressing and pickled shallots. Some found the kale bitter.
- Ease of prep: Quick and simple to make, with pre-chopped kale saving time. Cooking steak evenly was challenging for some.
- Suggestions: Consider adding spinach or romaine to balance the kale. Try including radishes or garlic bread for extra flavor and texture.
- Portions: Some felt the steak portion was small; others wanted less kale and more mixed greens.
- Steak quality: Several noted tough or fatty cuts; cooking to medium-rare helped, but consistency varied between steaks.
Reviews from our home cooks
Can't say enough about this salad. My husband will now eat kale! He always wrinkled his nose when I offered kale. So much flavor and filling.
This was an excellent, hearty mix of greens. Thank you! Maybe add radishes next time? I don't eat red meat often, but this was a treat. I appreciated the salad dressing vs. just plain olive oil.
Great recipe, but hate that the ranch steaks vary in thickness so much that each piece of meat takes a differing time to get to medium, would love more consistency in cuts
Easy to make, it was nice to have the kale already chopped
A constant repeat for us - love the flavors, served this when we had company for dinner
There's a simplicity yet elevated-ness to this recipe! Can't go wrong with a great salad and steak!!
Delicious! The steak was nice and tender. Seasoning was perfect.
Great flavor and texture we added spinach as well and it made it perfect ❤️
Solid, easy to prep, and supremely portioned. Definitely one of the best Hello Fresh meals.
This salad was delicious. Kale can sometimes be bitter tasting this was not. Vegetables were fresh and tasty. Salad dressing was very tasteful. The steak was very tough and had membranes throughout which made it both hard to eat and cut. A better cut of steak would have made it perfect.
