This Costco salad kit is versatile, convenient and delicious!
Today I’m reviewing a Costco food that’s a staple in our house. The Eat Smart Sweet Kale Salad kit. I’ve been buying this salad kit for the last seven years weekly. I make big, nutritious, filling salads with this as a base.
Other salads from Costco I’ve reviewed are the Costco Azuma Seaweed Salad, Costco Taylor Farms Dill Pickle Salad, Costco Paisley Farm Four Bean Salad, Costco Kirkland Signature Caesar Salad and the Costco Taylor Farms Thai Style Chili Mango Salad.
Location in Store
You can find the sweet kale salad kit in the produce room at Costco. The item number is 1570675.
Taste
The sweet kale salad kits comes a mix of broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts, kale, chicory and included in a separate package in the salad bag there is dried cranberries, roasted pumpkin seeds and creamy poppy seed dressing. I love the taste of this salad, it’s crunchy, flavorful and full of lots of hearty vegetables.
I know some people don’t use the cranberries, pumpkin seeds and dressing to reduce calories and fat but in my opinion that’s the best part. The poppyseed dressing is very versatile and goes well with chicken, citrus fruits, apples, pears, almonds and feta.
Sometimes I will find the cranberries a bit hard and stale but most of the time they’re soft and sweet. The dressing and cranberries add a necessary sweetness to some of the more bitter tasting greens.
Cost
Originally when I wrote this post the Costco sweet kale salad kit was being sold in a two pack. Each bag is 396 grams and I paid $6.79 Canadian for the two bags of salad.
Then the last time I went to Costco they’re back to selling it in a big 794 gram bag for $6.99,
Convenience
This salad is so convenient! You can throw it together in under a minute as it’s pre-washed. I have shopping tip for you, if you prefer more kale than cabbage than brussel sprouts try to find a bag that feels lighter, and if you prefer more cabbage and brussel sprouts search for a heavier bag.
These salads are great as a side or can be made into a meal by adding extras like protein, fruit and nuts. I have never opened a bag that has gone bad before the best before date so it’s a safe bet for me to purchase up to a week before as long as the best before date is also long enough.
The best before date on the salad kit I purchased is eight days from the date it was purchased. Also make sure to refrigerate the salad kit until you consume it.
Nutrition
Calories
This salad kit is full of healthy greens which provide a ton of vitamins, in a one cup serving with dressing it is 160 calories, nine grams of fat, 17 grams of carbohydrates, three grams of fibre, 13 grams of sugar, three grams of protein and 140 mg of sodium.
Ingredients
The dressing, cranberry, sunflower seed combination make this salad slightly less healthy than just eating plain lettuce. You can make it healthier by opting to add less of the cranberry sunflower seed mixture and not using as much dressing. This is gluten-free as well as dairy-free! It’s not easy to find dairy-free salad dressing so I love that this is!
Scoring
Taste: 9/10
Cost: 8/10
Convenience: 10/10
Nutrition: 8/10
Overall
Must buy!
This is one of my favorite salad kits from Costco and I never get tired of it. I add extra ingredients to make it a nutritious, filling dinner. You can see my recipes using this salad kit here, here and here.
What’s your favorite salad to buy from Costco?
Please note that this review was not paid for or sponsored by any third party. This product was purchased by Costcuisine for the purpose of producing this review. The opinions in this review are strictly those of Costcuisine. Costcuisine is not affiliated with Costco or any of its suppliers. In the event that Costcuisine receives compensation for a post from the manufacturer of a product or some other third party, the arrangement will be clearly disclosed (including where the manufacturer of a product provides Costcuisine with a free sample of the product).
Quality has gone way down, bigger chunks of stems etc. I will stop buying this product
Totally agree.
I like to mix the salad ingredients with the dressing and leave it in the fridge for about 2 hours before eating it. It softens the vegetables a bit and this gives the salad time to meld with the flavors.
I also make it a few hours to a day before because there isn’t enough dressing to eat it right away. OR if I am going to need it sooner I add some other kind of dressing to it.
Is Costco still carrying Sweet Kale? It wasn’t at the store when I last checked.
Thanks!
Wendy
http://www.theInspiredEater.com
I love the Sweet Kale salad, I add everything together..Also, add green granny Smith apples🍏 & manderine🍊 oranges yum..
Also strawberries 🍓.
Sweet kale salad is not fit to eat raw. Steamed it for stir fry only
I have purchased the salad weekly for the last five years. I add rotisserie chicken and strawberries. The quality has gone way down. And they put big chunks of the core from stalks that are not even edible to fill space in the bag. I am so disappointed since this is a salad I eat every night. They also do not give enough dressing in the salad. I hope Costco will notice how bad the quality is and either stop selling it or make them improve the quality.
I am really happy to say that it was a very interesting tips post. I learned new information from your post, you are doing great.
Thank you!
In winter, this Sweet Kale salad can be heated for two or three minutes in the microwave to have a warm meal. Just leave the dressing until you are ready to eat.
Great idea!
Love your Thatsa Bowl and also Love this Kale Salad
We throw away the dressing, seeds and cranberries and sauté the greens in olive oil, salt and pepper for a hearty side dish. We have been very disappointed in the quality ever since they switched to the 2 smaller bags. Not only is there less greens ( double the fixings to throw away), but it’s not nearly as fresh as it used to be. The greens start to turn grey well before the due date. This didn’t happen in the larger bag. In fact, it lasted several days beyond the due date. It has gone from a family favorite to a big disappointment very quickly.
I’ve noticed that recently when I hope a bag well before it’s best before date it often doesn’t smell the freshest either.
Yes..totally..since.2.bags..and.kudos.to.the.person.saying.that
hard.branch.like.pieces.are.in.there..I.broke.part.of.my.molar.
3.wks.ago.due.to.my.not.seeing.that.huge.hard.stem..these
2.baggers.are.just.not.the.same.not.fresh..and.the.dressing.is
not.as.good.as.the.big.Taylor.bag.was…I.guess.shipping.fast.is
getting.to.be.a.big.issue..since.Oct.when.EBT.cards.were.increased
by.the.government.25%.immediately.every.store/warehouse.jacked
up.the.prices.to.gobble.up.the.new.found.money.It.is.so.difficult
on.those.of.us.on.small.pensions.and.savings.No.one.cares.abt.this.group.
I love your tip about heavy and light bags and more kale or cabbage.
Thanks! I was at Costco last night using this strategy after I posted the review haha.
I have been buying Eat Smart’s “Sweet Kale Salad” at least once/week for years. Recently I found that the product contains Less Kale, which is the name of the product! The last time I purchased a bag, there was NO POPPY DRESSING. When I contacted the sales dept., they did NOTHING! Now I discover there was a recall for Listeria which I never knew about. There was an obvious weight difference when I compared the bag with dressing in it. So much for QUALITY CONTROL, or lack of in this company!
Take the open bag back to Costco and get a new one .
No hassles.
I love this salad. I throw mine in the oven or air fryer and it is AMAZING!
Oh wow! What happens when you throw it in the oven or air fryer? Does it get crispy?