Does the name of the recipe not say enough? This was from a recent issue of Bon Appetit. Kale, love it, cukes, well, I will say I don’t absolutely love them solo (not as much as tomatoes), but when with other stuff, bring them on, and I love ginger. And, I’d never roasted it.

Ingredients

Dressing
8 ounces fresh ginger
1 green or red Thai chile (I used a couple dashes of tabasco b.c of my low heat tolerance)
1 garlic clove
3 tablespoons fish sauce
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons vegetable oil (I used olive oil)

Salad
1 bunch small Red Russian kale, ribs and stems removed, leaves torn into bite-size pieces (ended up using baby kale)
1 English hothouse cucumber, very thinly sliced
3 Persian cucumbers, very thinly sliced
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons sugar
Kosher salt
1 bunch cilantro, coarsely chopped (love cilantro)
¼ cup store-bought fried onions (nixed these)

Preparation

-Heat broiler. Broil ginger in its skin, turning once, until very dark brown and beginning to scorch in places and a paring knife passes through the center with relative ease, 40–50 minutes (if skin is getting too dark before flesh is tender, turn down the heat or move to the oven). Let cool; slice (leave on the skin).

*This really does take this long, and I had a smaller piece. I would highly recommend putting it on foil on your baking sheet as it can ‘scar’ the thing — make major black marks. I’m not saying cookie sheets are all about looks, but it does leave evidence of what was there. Come the end, the skin of the ginger is very crackly and also bulbous, is the best way to say it. Quite cool! Forgot to take a picture.

-Pulse ginger, chile, garlic, fish sauce, sugar, oil, and 2 Tbsp. water in a food processor, adding additional water by tablespoonfuls if needed, until a smooth paste forms.

Do Ahead: Dressing can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and chill.

Assembly

-Toss kale and ¼ cup dressing in a large bowl to coat; massage with your fingers until kale is slightly softened.

-Toss English and Persian cucumbers, onion, lime juice, and sugar in a medium bowl to combine; season generously with salt. Let sit 10 minutes to allow cucumbers and onion to soften slightly.

-Add cucumber mixture to bowl with kale and toss to combine, adding additional dressing if desired. Serve topped with cilantro and fried onions.

This was a very nice salad — very fresh! Can definitely be paired with a variety of food. It’s fairly light and has a great flavor. And fun to make since the roasted ginger isn’t your everyday affair. And a side note, it was enjoyed with the wild boar burgers highlighted in another post.