How to Cook Kale

We can teach you how to cook kale and help you enjoy this healthy green cruciferous vegetable. This delicious green is crunchy and full of flavor. It's also good for you. We love using it in recipes ranging from fresh kale salads to comforting kale soups, creamy kale pesto, and more.

How to Choose Kale for Your Recipe

We love all the different varieties of Kale! In many recipes, the types of kale are interchangeable. However, certain types of kale lend themselves to a specific recipe. We break it all down for you. Here are the details.

What are the different types of kale?

• Curly Kale.
• Dinosaur Kale. Also known as Tuscan Kale or Lacinato Kale,
• Russian Kale. Also Known as Purple Kale.
• Baby Kale.

What is Curly Kale?

This is the most common type of kale and is easily found in most supermarkets.  It has curly, frilly, dark green leaves. Make sure you remove the ribs and massage them with olive oil, salt, and lemon before adding them to your salad. Try it in our Kale Salad with Chickpeas Tempeh Bacon Bits.

What is Dinosaur Kale, Tuscan Kale, or Lacinato Kale?

These are all three names for the same kind of kale, which has dark bumpy green leaves that resemble a dinosaur's skin. Or at least what we think a dinosaur's skin would look like. It is a little less tough than curly kale and the two can be used interchangeably. Try it in our Cannellini Bean Quinoa and Kale Soup.

What is Russian Kale or Purple Kale?

Two names for the same kind of kale; this one is very similar to the curly kale but with a stunning purple hue, which might be how I got a particular child to enjoy vegetables one day. Try it in our Purple Kale and Farro Salad Bowl.

What is Baby Kale?

These are the tender small leaves of young kale. They are mild and delicate and are usually sold in plastic clamshells like spring mix or baby spinach.  Use it raw in salads or sauteed in olive oil and garlic.  You can try it instead of baby spinach in our Salt and Vinegar Spinach Chips or instead or Arugula in this salad.

How to Prepare Kale

Even though kale stems are edible, they're tough and fibrous and take a long time to soften. We prefer to cut and discard the stems below the leaves for recipes other than kale soup. The stem part, where the leaves are attached, is usually thinner and less tough.  You can keep the kale ribs or discard them by running a knife along the sides; see the images below. That would depend on how thick the stems are and how you're preparing the kale. Here is a breakdown of how to prepare kale for your recipe.

• Wash the kale thoroughly in cold water.
• Separate the kale from the bunch.
• Remove and discard stems.
• Cut along the length of the center rib.
• Separate ribs from leaves.
• Chop the kale leaves and use them in your recipe.
• Discard ribs and stems or save them to flavor a veggie broth.

How to Sauté Kale

The ingredients are simply kale, oil, and seasoning. First, heat a large skillet and add oil. We prefer olive oil because it adds so much flavor. Next, add freshly minced garlic if you want that flavor. Then, add the washed and chopped kale to your skillet and stir it frequently with the setting on medium-high heat. Add salt, pepper, and any other seasonings you enjoy when it is ready to serve. Red pepper flakes add a little heat. This can be served as a side dish with so many different meals. A dash of lemon juice on each serving will help brighten it up. For seasoning, we like to use coarse Kosher salt or sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper.

How to Blanch Kale

If you want to freeze kale and use it in future soups and stews, you should prepare it by blanching it. This is simply boiling kale in a saucepan of water for three minutes. It should not be added until the pot is boiling. Remove the kale and dry it thoroughly before freezing.

How to Make Kale Chips

Preheat your oven to 300ºF. Rinse and thoroughly dry your kale. Chop it up into chip-size pieces and spread them out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spritz with cooking spray and add the seasonings of your choice. You can also toss the kale with seasonings and oil in a mixing bowl. Bake until the kale is crisp and starting to brown on the edges. This may take up to thirty minutes. Start checking your kale at fifteen minutes. When the kale is nearly finished, you can turn off the oven and let it finish baking with indirect heat to avoid burnt kale. These taste as satisfying as potato chips but without the carbs.

What to Cook with Kale

Here are some ideas on how to cook kale. From kale soups to salads and pesto, there are many ways to make it part of your healthy diet.

Kale Soup

You can add kale to any vegetable, bean, or lentil soup. A tough vegetable like kale works great in soups because it softens while the soup cooks. Adding kale to your soups is a great way to get your daily serving of healthy green leafy vegetables. Check out our Veggie Sausage and Kale Soup

Kale Salad

For a more tender raw kale salad, we recommend that you remove the kale leaves from the stems and massage them with olive oil, salt, and lemon to break down some of the kale fibers for a softer, easier-to-digest salad. If you don’t mind a little extra chewiness in your salad and don't want to take the time to separate the kale leaves from the stems, you can blanch the kale first, as we did in our Kale Salad with Chickpeas Tempeh Bacon Bits, and our Vegan Kale Caesar Salad with Mushroom Bacon Bits. 

Sautéed Kale or Braised Kale

You always have the option to buy the pre-cut and pre-washed kale (we always give it an additional wash or three) and either braise it as we did in our Braised Curried Kale with Spiced Chickpeas recipe or use it as a filling in our Vegan Garlicky Kale Pizza Empanadas.

Kale Pesto

Use kale instead of basil or equal parts of each. This softens the intensity of the flavor. To make a pesto, check out our Penne Pasta with Vegan Cauliflower & Walnut Kale Pesto. 

Green Smoothies

Some people add kale to their green or fruit smoothies to increase their nutritional value. You could add kale to our green smoothie recipe.

Health Benefits of Kale

• It's a green leafy cruciferous vegetable member of the cabbage family.
• It is loaded with vitamins and antioxidants.
• Kale is rich in Vitamins A, K, B, and C.
• It also contains Manganese, Calcium, Copper, Potassium, and Magnesium.
• It is low-calorie, with only 33 calories, 2 grams of fiber, and 3 grams of protein per cup.

Fabulous Kale Recipes You Must Try

• Cannellini Bean, Quinoa & Kale Soup
• Purple Kale Farro Bowl
• Vegan Kale Caesar Salad with Mushroom Bacon bits
• Meatless sausage and kale soup
• Braised Kale with Spiced Chickpeas
• Penne Pasta with Cauliflower and Kale Pesto
• Kale Salad with Chickpeas and Tempeh Bacon Bits
• Vegan Garlicky Kale Pizza Hand Pies