Posts Tagged ‘curly kale’
A Great Way to Cook Kale
Wednesday, March 28th, 2012
I’m on a personal mission to get kale the respect it deserves. Have you tried it?
You may not be aware that kale is a hardy green from the cabbage family that often makes top 10 healthiest food lists. (I wasn’t until I made a commitment to eat more greens last year.)
Kale is not only good for you, it is pleasantly tasty too! It is one of the least bitter of the leafy cooking greens so if you like spinach you will probably love it.
But, if you have never eaten it, you may be wondering how to cook kale.
There are lots of different ways for cooking kale – it can be roasted, boiled, steamed or sauteed. It is delicious in soups, stir-fries and even roasted into “chips.” Some people enjoy tender kale in salads, but this can be an acquired taste. (If kale is new to you, it is definitely better to get acquainted with it cooked, before trying it raw.)
One of the best ways to prepare it is to give it a quick boil in 2 to 4 cups of water for 5 to 10 minutes (depending on how tender you want it). It will shrink a lot during cooking, so plan on about one pound (a large bunch) for 3 to 4 servings.
To wash kale, fill a large bowl with cool water, dunk in the greens and swish them around to rinse, then lift them out and place in a colander.
Before cooking, you’ll want to remove the tough stalk and central vein by hand or with a knife, and chop or tear the leaves as instructed in your recipe.
Kale made using this basic recipe is ready to be enjoyed as a simple side dish or added to many more dressed up kale recipes.
Basic Kale Recipe
Serves 2 to 3
3/4 pound kale
2 cups water
Pinch of sea salt
Fill a large bowl with cold water. Dunk in the kale and swish it around to loosen any dirt or sand, which should sink to the bottom. Lift kale out of the water. (If the water is dirty or their is sand in the bottom, dump out the water, rinse the bowl and repeat the process.)
Strip the leaf off each stalk. Discard the stalks and center rib since they can be tough. Chop or tear kale leaves into bite-size pieces. Set aside.
In a large skillet that has a tight-fitting lid, bring the water to a boil. Add the prepared kale, return to a boil, cover and cook over high heat for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the kale is tender. (Be careful that all the liquid doesn’t evaporate.) Season to taste with salt.
Remove the kale from the skillet with a slotted soon. To stop it from cooking more, cool it off in cold water or use immediately in your favorite recipe.
Basic Kale Variations
Saute 2 minced garlic cloves in 1 tablespoon olive oil, add cooked kale and a pinch of salt and heat through.
Drizzle cooked kale with olive oil and fresh lemon juice.
Drizzle cooked kale with toasted sesame oil and toasted sesame seeds and pinch of salt.
Use cooked kale as a bed for grilled fish or chicken.
Martha McKinnon is a health coach and yoga instructor who believes that eating great & losing weight can be simple & delicious when you focus on nourishing the whole you – body, mind, & soul. Her website is http://www.simple-nourished-living.com. Stop by for a free copy of her E-cookbooklet full delicious granola bar recipes.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Martha_McKinnon
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Tags: curly kale
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St Patricks Day Recipe: Colcannon
Thursday, March 15th, 2012
The ever versatile traditional Irish mash – as served at my wedding!
In speaking of this most celebrated of Irish potato dishes, the musician Mick Bolger—whose Denver-based contemporary Celtic band is called Colcannon—notes that it has a “wonderful affinity” for corned beef and cabbage. And he confesses that he has also eaten it “with fillet mignon and port sauce; with rashers [bacon], tomatoes, and kidneys-in-their-jackets at 4 am; and — God forgive me — wrapped in a tortilla, microwaved, and eaten, over the sink, with salsa.” It is, in other words, a versatile creation.
It is also one that exists in numerous variations, depending on the season, the region of the country, and of course personal taste. It is often made with just butter, milk, and kale, but the scholar PW Joyce defines “caulcannon” as “potatoes mashed with butter and milk, with chopped up cabbage and pot-herbs.” Mary Ward, when she makes colcannon at her house in Nenagh, County Tipperary, starts with a trip to the kitchen garden, armed with a basket and a pair of shears. This is her recipe.
Serves 4 to 8.
2 to 2½ lb / 1kg to 1.25kg russet or other floury potatoes (5 or 6)
6 to 8 tbsp butter
2 to 3 lightly packed cups / 400 to 800g chopped kale or assorted chopped greens, such as kale, parsley, sorrel, spinach, and / or broccoli or cauliflower leaves)
1⅓ cups / 320ml milk
4 scallions, green part only, minced
Salt and pepper
Put the potatoes into a large pot, with the larger ones on the bottom, and add water to come halfway up the potatoes. Cover the pot and bring to a boil over high heat. When the water begins to boil, carefully drain off about half of it, then return the pot to the heat, cover it again, reduce the heat to low, and let the potatoes steam for about 40 minutes. Turn off the heat; cover the potatoes with a clean, damp tea towel; and let sit for 5 minutes more.
Melt 4 tbsp of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the kale or assorted greens and cook until just wilted, about 5 minutes.
Combine the milk, scallions, and remaining butter in a medium pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook for about 2 minutes, then add the greens and stir in well. Remove the pot from the heat, cover, and set aside.
Drain and carefully peel the potatoes, then return them to the pot. Add the greens and their liquid and mash until smooth, leaving a few small lumps in the potatoes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
To serve in the traditional Irish manner, push the back of a large soup spoon down in the middle of each portion to make a crater, then put a large pat of room-temperature butter into each one to make a “lake.” Diners dip each forkful of colcannon into the butter until its walls are breached.
• This recipe is taken from The Country Cooking of Ireland by Colman Andrews
Tags: curly kale, potato, spring onion
Posted in Side Dish | No Comments »
Traditional Irish Colcannon
Thursday, October 20th, 2011
Ingredients
Serves: 5
500g kale
500g potatoes
2 leeks
250ml milk
salt and pepper to taste
pinch ground mace
125g butter
Preparation method
Prep: 10 mins | Cook: 20 mins
1. In a large saucepan, boil cabbage until tender; remove and chop or blend well. Set aside and keep warm. Boil potatoes until tender. Remove from heat and drain.
2. Chop leeks, green parts as well as white, and simmer in just enough milk to cover, until they are soft.
3. Season and mash potatoes well. Stir in cooked leeks and milk. Blend in the kale or cabbage and heat until the whole is a pale green fluff. Make a well in the centre and pour in the melted butter. Mix well.
Tip: Cabbage can be substituted for kale.
Tags: curly kale, leeks, potatoes
Posted in Side Dish, Veg Ideas | No Comments »
Kale & chorizo broth
Tuesday, February 22nd, 2011
Ingredients
* 3 tbsp olive oil
* 2 onions , finely chopped
* 4 garlic cloves , crushed
* 2-3 cooking chorizo sausages, sliced
* 4 large potatoes
* 1½ l chicken stock
* 200g curly kale , finely shredded
Method
1. Heat 2 tbsp of the oil in a large saucepan. Add the onions, garlic and chorizo, then cook for 5 mins until soft. Throw in the potatoes and cook for a few mins more. Pour in the stock, season and bring to the boil. Cook everything for 10 mins until the potatoes are on the brink of collapse.
2. Use a masher to squash the potatoes into the soup, then bring back to the boil. Add the kale and cook for 5 mins until tender. Ladle the soup into bowls, then serve drizzled with the remaining olive oil.
Health benefits
Kale is an excellent source of anti-cancer compounds. It is rich in immune-supporting nutrients, such as beta-carotene and vitamin C, which help to maintain a healthy skin and respiratory system, and can also minimise the duration of a cold.
Cooking kale
Slowly cooking shredded kale with olive oil and garlic and serving as a vegetable side dish, instead of spinach.
Tags: curly kale, garlic, onion, potatoes
Posted in All Recipes, Soup | No Comments »