Kale is among the healthiest foods you can eat, and it’s featured in a wide assortment of vegan recipes. Few foods offer comparable amounts of vitamins, calcium, antioxidants and minerals. It’s certainly among the top foods worth eating regularly, and luckily that’s easy to do since you can prepare it in all sorts of delicious ways.
Types of Kale
As a close relative of broccoli, the nutritional profiles of these two foods are remarkably similar. Kale comes in three varieties:
- Curly. The most common variety, available in either green or purple. The thick and fibrous stems of curly kale require more cooking time than do the leaves, so you may wish to tear the stems from the leaves’ centers, chop them up, and give them some extra cooking.
- Russian. This variety has flat leaves and a much less fibrous stem. You can find it in green or reddish varieties. You’ll save time in the kitchen because it’s easier to clean and there’s no need to strip out the stem.
- Dinosaur. Also called Lacinato or black kale. This stuff lives up to the dinosaur name and looks positively prehistoric. It’s the most imposing variety of the bunch and has super thick and forbiddingly dark green leaves with an almost waxy texture.
The thick, coarse texture of kale, coupled with its bright green color, may make it seem more like goat food than people food, but you’ll be amazed by the numerous delicious ways that kale can be prepared. Any standard preparation method will make even dinosaur kale delicious!
Delicious Recipes that Feature Kale
Kale is a perfect addition to some of the most popular foods. You can include kale in:
Steaming will soften the leaves to a delicate texture. Just add your favorite spices and it’ll make for a delicious side dish.
Dehydrated Kale
Dehydrated kale is as delicious as potato chips, yet it’s one of the healthiest foods imaginable. Food dehydrators are excellent and inexpensive nowadays, so they’re the perfect appliance if you want to increase your kale intake. Just wash your kale, chop it into large pieces, and dry it in a salad spinner. Then use a mixing bowl to combine it with lemon juice, spices, tamari, and nutritional yeast. Next, just put it in a dehydrator until crispy and you’ll have some of the most delicious chips you’ve ever eaten.
Massaged Kale
If you’ve never tried a massaged kale salad, you’re in for a treat! Chop your kale coarsely—stems and all—and put it in a large mixing bowl. Add the dressing of your choice and then get in there and grab and squeeze entire handfuls of kale. This will rapidly break down the fiber, shrinking the kale’s volume by half while infusing it with the rich flavors of your dressing. Suddenly you’ve got kale in its rawest form, yet super digestible and with its intimidating texture nowhere to be found.
