Kale. Who Knew It Could Be This Easy?

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Spring is here. At least in SF. It's got to be close to 70 degrees here with lovely clear, blue skies. A perfect day for a walk over to our local farmer's market.

There was a nice kale salad in our lunch this past week, so I decided to try my hand at cooking some. I've used kale in soups before, but never any other way.

Many varieties of kale showed up this week at the farmer's market. I got some and then stared it in on my kitchen counter for a good long time. I realized that I had no idea what to do with it. Since it seems very fibrous, braising seemed like a good idea. Then I remembered how we always cooked sausages in boiling red wine before putting them into the tomato sauce when I was growing up. Maybe red wine was the way to go.

It most certainly is the way to go with kale. I don't know if there are purists out there who have a particular right way to cook these hearty leaves, but I recommend that you give the red wine a try.

Once I had the kale cooked down, I thought I'd try two different final dishes with it. I served it alongside boiled potatoes straight from the pan with some of the braising liquid and garlic.

And, I made a pesto-style preparation, by pureeing the cooked kale, garlic and braising liquid in the food processor. Both were good, but I preferred the pesto-style, since I'd never tasted kale this way before.

Red Wine-Braised Kale with Boiled Potatoes

  • 1 bunch Kale (or Hearty Greens)
  • 1 cup Red Wine
  • 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 3 cloves Garlic, whole, skin removed
  • Salt and Pepper to taste
  • 3 cups Potatoes, cubed and boiled
  1. Wash Kale thoroughly in cool running water.
  2. Set a large skillet over a burner turned to high-heat.
  3. Add the oil and water.
  4. Turn off the heat and add the wine.
  5. Turn the heat back to high.
  6. Add the Kale and garlic. It will run over the side of the pan at first. It shrinks to less than half it's original volume once it is cooked down.
  7. Cook over medium heat for 20 to 25 minutes, until leaves are tender.
  8. Serve over the boiled potatoes, being sure to scoop up some of the cooking liquid to pour over the potatoes.

Red Wine-Braised Kale Pesto with Boiled Potatoes

  • 1 bunch Kale (or Hearty Greens)
  • 1 cup Red Wine
  • 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 3 cloves Garlic, whole, skin removed
  • Salt and Pepper to taste
  • 3 cups Potatoes, cubed and boiled
  1. Wash Kale thoroughly in cool running water.
  2. Set a large skillet over a burner turned to high-heat.
  3. Add the oil and water.
  4. Turn off the heat and add the wine.
  5. Turn the heat back to high.
  6. Add the Kale and garlic. It will run over the side of the pan at first. It shrinks to less than half it's original volume once it is cooked down.
  7. Cook over medium heat for 20 to 25 minutes, until leaves are tender.
  8. Put the cooked Kale and its cooking liquid into a food processor.
  9. Process until all leaves and stems have been chopped up and incorporated into a mixture.
  10. Serve over the boiled potatoes.

A version of this recipe is featured on The Fruit Guys website.