How to Cook Kale
Like other dark leafy greens, kale is a powerhouse of nutrition. It's loaded with vitamins A, C and K, and is even a good source of calcium and iron. Kale makes a popular dinnertime dish in many regions of the world. If you're not sure how to cook kale, try this simple sauteed version that delivers a deluxe combination of flavors, including subtle hints of garlic and red pepper juxtaposed with a blast of sherry vinegar.Transcript
-Hi. I'm Miranda with Recipe.com, and today, I'm gonna show
you how to make basic sauteed kale. This simply sauteed
kale recipe is seasoned with a nice big punch with
sherry vinegar and makes it really something special. So let's
get started. I have all of our ingredients laid out
here. We have 1 pound of clean and chopped kale.
Then we have a ¼ teaspoon each of crushed red
pepper and salt,
2 cloves of garlic which should be minced, then we
have both a teaspoon and tablespoon of extra virgin olive
oil, then we have 2 to 3 teaspoons here of
sherry vinegar. I really like, you know the big punch
it gives us I mentioned earlier, so I'm actually going
with 3, and then we also have ½ cup of
water. So over here you'll notice I have this nice
big pot so we're gonna use a large pot with
a lid or on a Dutch oven. So let's turn
it on medium heat right now, and we are going
to start by putting our 1 tablespoon
of extra virgin olive oil right in there and let's
add in our kale, and we're just gonna pop this
all in. So what we're gonna do is just sort
of toss this and cook until the kale becomes bright
green about a minute. So if in the beginning you
feel you have pop corn happening here with kale, no
worries. It's just cooking down. It will welt. It get
get?? it will pack in nicely. As you can see
that's happening already.
So just a few more and now look how beautiful,
like see how bright green this is getting, just like
super bright gorgeous. That's what we're looking for here, and
it smells fantastic. You're gonna start to smell that like
yummy, yummy kale goodness. Okay, now, we are ready to
add in our water. So we're gonna reduce the heat
to like a medium, medium-low. Add in our ½ cup
of water. Hear the sizzle, and then we're going to
put the lid on. So we are going to cover
and cook now, stirring occasionally for about 12 to 15
minutes until the kale is nice and tender, and we'll
come back then. Okay, so it's been 12 minutes, check
out how beautifully welted and green our kale is. Look
at that. Gorgeous darker green, like a lot of leafy
greens, it's packed with vitamins and fiber, but kale has
an unusually high amount of fiber, making it like an
excellent, excellent leafy green choice. If you're trying to watch
your diet, and really pack it with vitamins, which we
all are today, okay. So the next stuff to do
now that we are all beautifully welted, we are going
to push the kale to one side of the pot
so you have one side kind of like open and
free. Let's turn down the heat a little bit because
we're about to introduce the remainder of the olive oil
so pop that right in on the side where you
don't have the kale, then let's put in our garlic.
We're also gonna pop in the red pepper and just
give this a little stir. We're just gonna let this
hang out for like 30 seconds to a minute until
it becomes bright red.
That's already starting to happen. Okay, we are good to
go. Let's turn our heat off and we're just going
to toss this now so just toss, toss, toss, and
you know, just make sure that the garlic and the
red pepper is getting, you know, all throughout the pieces
of kale. Now, with that yummy sherry vinegar that we
talked about, let's pop that on. Do another little toss,
so a lot of tossing happening with our kale. It's
gonna be just the happiest
kale in the world and now, and now our salt,
our very last ingredient. Look how gorgeous that is, so
healthy. Now, let's put it on a plate and get
ready to enjoy. So, so super healthy, so delicious, vitamin
and fiber-packed. That's how you make basic sauteed kale. Thanks
for watching, and for more great recipes and savings, visit
us at recipe.com.
What You'll Need
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 1-1 1/2 pounds kale, ribs removed, coarsely chopped (see Tip)
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 2-3 teaspoons sherry vinegar, or red-wine vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Step By Step
1
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add kale and cook, tossing with two large spoons, until bright green, about 1 minute. Add water, reduce heat to medium-low, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the kale is tender, 12 to 15 minutes. Push kale to one side, add the remaining 1 teaspoon oil to the empty side and cook garlic and crushed red pepper in it until fragrant, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Remove from the heat. Stir in vinegar to taste and salt.
2
Tip: A 1- to 1 1/2-pound bunch of kale yields 16 to 24 cups of chopped leaves. When preparing kale for these recipes, remove the tough ribs, chop or tear the kale as directed, then wash it--allowing some water to cling to the leaves. The moisture helps steam the kale during the first stages of cooking.
Being adventurous about trying new vegetable dishes is a great way to expand your culinary skills--and boost your health. Once you master the basics of how to cook kale, perhaps you'll be inspired to explore other unfamiliar choices at your local farmer's market or produce section.
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