Hawaiian-Style Kale Salad with Shoyu Mushrooms

You may think that there are enough kale salads out there but I love them more when there's an Asian twist. Kale has a minerally, earthiness and it needs acidity and salty flavors to buddy up to. Heavy dressings full of oil and cheese weigh kale down. For my Asian twists, I've tossed kale with a tangy nuoc cham vinaigrette. It's a popular recipe in my book, Ever-Green Vietnamese. Now I'm adding this Hawaiian-style kale salad topped with shoyu roasted mushrooms to my Asian-y kale salad repertoire.

It's by Alana Kysar and published in her just released book, Aloha Veggies: Veg-Forward Recipes Celebrating the Flavors of Hawai'i. Alana has a good palate and her writing is solidly geared toward home cooks. Her doable recipes succeed in presenting the flavors and culture of her native Hawaii without dumbing things down. Scattered throughout the Aloha Veggies are stories about farmers and agricultural initiatives in Hawaii to preserve the local savors.

Let hardworking recipes work for you!

Healthy, handsome, and tasty, this easygoing Hawaiian-style kale salad uses two workhorses in Alana's cookbook: (1) crispy, chewy salty-sweet roasted mushroom and (2) a sesame soy dressing. The mushrooms are delicious out of the oven while they've got some edgy crispness. However, they'll hang out well in the fridge for days, begging to be added to more kale salads, tacos, banh mi, noodle bowls, or rice plates.

The shoyu sesame dressing relies on basic staples and the salad is pretty versatile. When making this salad, I used what I had in my garden and fridge. That's why my rendition had a mushroom medley, plus cucumber and cherry tomato. Alana features oyster mushroom and cucumber (above, left). Oyster mushroom become meaty when roasted and the cucumber provides a refreshing contrast to the kale. Like other Aloha Veggies recipes, this salad is pretty elastic so use what you have, so long as you have kale and mushrooms!

What makes this kale salad Hawaiian?

Hawaii is the most Asian state in the nation. Given that, the mushrooms and dressing have a wonderful savory tang, zestiness and pungency, due to Asian staples like soy sauce (shoyu), rice vinegar, ginger, mirin, and sesame (oil and seeds). This is no Kale Caesar, for sure! The salad's flavors are clean and bright, but deeply umami. Green onion adds pungency and and a slight sweetness. You could replace the green onion with shaved Maui sweet onion or red onion, if you like! And if you wonder, kale does grow in Hawaii.

Kale salad with shoyu mushrooms pointers

Before you dive in, here are some tips I gleaned while making this recipe.

Hands-on cooking: You'll need to do little knife work for this salad, which means you can make it with young cooks. They can tear up the mushrooms, grate the garlic and ginger (use a Microplane rasp), and make the dressing. Let the kids massage the kale too! Someone will have to use a knife or scissors cut the kale and other veggies. To minimize dishwashing, toss the salad in the same bowl you tossed the mushroom in with its seasonings!

Vary the 'shrooms: I made this salad the day after I returned home from vacationing in Hawaii. I didn't have oyster mushrooms but I did have a mixed medley of lingering shiitake, portobello and trumpet mushrooms in the fridge. They worked well for the roasted mushrooms and offered varied textures. So, use what you've got but remember to hand tear (or cut) them into large-ish bite size pieces. They will shrink to about one-fourth of their original volume!

Roast countertop: If you don't want to heat up the oven for the mushrooms, use a toaster oven or air-fryer. I used the Ninja Combi oven, one of my favorite small appliances; its baking tray is not perforated so it functions as a super hot, small convection oven. An air-fryer with a basket-like tray will not work.

You'll make three recipes for this salad but they are all extremely short and easy. Start by making the roasted shoyu mushrooms. While they cook, whisk together the dressing and ready the salad components. Then just assemble and serve. We enjoyed the salad with whole grain bread for a restorative, tasty lunch. I've bookmarked a bunch of other fun, promising recipes in Aloha Veggies. Get the book to enjoy more vegetables Hawaiian style!

Print Recipe

Shoyu Mushrooms

This recipe was slightly adapted from Alana Kysar's book, Aloha Veggies (2026, Ten Speed Press).

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Asian American

Keyword: roasted mushroom

Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons neutral oil
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce (shoyu), such as Kikkoman
• 1 ½ tablespoons maple syrup
• 2 garlic cloves, finely grated
• ⅛- inch piece fresh ginger, finely grated
• 12 ounces fresh mushrooms (oyster, shiitake, trumpet or portobello), torn into large bite-size pieces

Instructions

• Ready the oven: Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a half-sheet pan with parchment paper.
• Season and roast: In a medium bowl, whisk together the oil, soy sauce, maple syrup, garlic, and ginger. Toss in the mushrooms and mix well to evenly coat. Pour onto the lined sheet pan and arrange in an even layer, aiming to have no mushrooms touch if possible.
• Roast until crispy and richly browned, stirring once or twice, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool on the sheet pan for 5 minutes.

Notes

In a Ninja Combi multicooker oven, air-fry the mushrooms in the middle rack position at 400F for about 20 minutes, turning and stirring two or three times. I didn't line the bake tray with parchment but you can. After using, soak the tray in warm water and gently scrub with a sponge to remove the residue.

Print Recipe

Shoyu Sesame Dressing

One batch makes about ½ cup. This dressing should keep well in the fridge for 2 weeks. The recipe was slightly adapted from Alana Kysar's Aloha Veggies (2026, Ten Speed Press).

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons soy sauce (shoyu), such as Kikkoman
• 2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
• ¾ teaspoon honey
• 1 ½ teaspoons sugar
• ⅛- inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
• ½ garlic clove finely grated
• ⅛ teaspoon white miso optional
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds, ground or pounded
• 3 tablespoons neutral oil
• 1 ½ teaspoons toasted sesame oil

Instructions

• In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, vinegar, honey, sugar, ginger, garlic, and miso (if using) until the sugar has dissolved. Whisk in the sesame seeds. Stream in the neutral oil and sesame oil and whisk to emulsify.

Notes

Instead of the honey and sugar, you can use 2 teaspoons agave syrup.

Use a mortar and pestle to ground or pound the sesame seeds. I have a rotary grinder but it is painfully slow! 

Print Recipe

Kale and Shoyu Mushroom Salad

All the components can be prepped in advance and refrigerated until you're ready to assemble. Pack this salad for lunch or a picnic. This recipe was slightly adapted from Alana Kysar's book, Aloha Veggies (2026, Ten Speed Press).

Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 batch Shoyu Mushrooms (recipe above)
• 2 to 3 tablespoons Shoyu Sesame Dressing (recipe above)
• Two 8-ounce bunches lacinato dino kale, midribs removed and cut crosswise as narrow ribbons (10 ounces total)
• Unseasoned rice vinegar optional
• 2 Persian cucumbers thinly sliced on a bias, 2 or 3 handfuls cherry tomatoes, halved, or a combo
• 2 green onions whites and greens, thinly sliced

Instructions

• Ready the components: Make the shoyu mushrooms as directed. While the mushrooms are roasting, make the dressing.
• Assemble and serve: In a large mixing bowl, combine the kale with 1 to 2 tablespoons of the dressing. Massage the leaves with the dressing for a minute. Taste and if needed, massage in 1 to 2 tablespoons of vinegar for bright flavor. Add the cucumbers (and/or tomato) and nearly all of green onions and toss with half the dressing. Add more dressing to taste. Transfer to a platter, top with the shoyu mushrooms. Garnish with the remaining green onion then serve immediately.

Notes

The mushroom, dressing and salad recipes are reprinted with permission from Aloha Veggies: Veg-Forward Recipes Celebrating the Flavors of Hawai'I by Alana Kysar. Copyright © 2026 by Alana Kysar. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York.