One of many Brassica oleracea) cultivars, headless cabbage varieties.
"Many varieties of kale and cabbage are grown mainly for ornamental leaves that are brilliant white, red, pink, lavender, blue, or violet in the interior of the rosette. The different types of ornamental kale are peacock kale, coral prince, kamone coral queen, color up kale, and chidori kale"
—Wikipedia
Kale. It's one of those things that parents might encourage their children to eat as it
s packed with nutrients, not to mention the dietary fibre that will make for a healthy bowel and easy pooping.
Most grocery stores will have a variety of curly kale, either 'Dutch kale' or 'Scotch kale', both of which are failry sturdy leaves and tough stems. Othe varieties include 'Lacinato' or 'dino kale', aka 'Tuscan' and black kale. This is a much darker green, with a more intense flavour, which hile very healthy, is often rather stronger than many palates will tolerate. Easire kales include the Russian varieties, Red Russian or White Russian kale. These are the more tender leaves, and along with Siberian kale, make for an easier introduction to newcomers to healthy greens eating.
Cooking the stuff
Nutritionally, all kales are good for you, with Dino kale at the top of the heap, and the lighter kales ranking only a little lower. Cooking is easy; strip the leaves from the stems, roll them into a cylinder and roughly slice with a sharp knife, or tear into strips. This can then be boiled, steamed, sautéed or braised to taste. even the toughest kale needs only a few minutes of cooking (the Russian and Siberian kales being more tender will need less time). Serve with balsamic vinegar or toasted sesame oil (or toasted sesame seeds!). Serve on its own as a side or mix into mashed or chopped potatoes with some butter, like colcannon. In winter, after a frost, the kale will be sweeter and can be served on its own with butter or an oil of your choice. Toss a handful into a sup or stew at teh end of cooking.
My favourite serving is at breakfast with bacon, eggs and sausage (possibly also baked beans and fried tomatoes). A plate of that and a slice of toast; and what with fibre, minerals and vitamins, you're ready to face anything the morning can throw at you.
Objections to kale
i've heard people decline to eat kale because it contains oxalic acid. A poor reason. There's only 0.02% in kale and I don't see you avoiding blackberries or strawberries, both of which also contain small amounts of oxalic acid.
If you find it tough, cook it longer. It may be you're buying old kale. Get to your local farmers' market, buy it fresh, try again. Add a little balsamic vinegar and good oils, throw in toasted sesame seeds. Braise it, or throw it into a soup or stew a few minutes before serving. Expand your palate, ya weakling.
"It tastes nasty/bitter". See above, balsamic vinegar and a little salt will help you choke it down. honestly, some people are just babies. If you have bitter kale, find a local farmer and buy it fresh.
kale is easy to grow at home, especially for the winter. get it started in a seed ray then plan out the seedlings a foot apart. If you have several varieties, they can be sown together in narrow beds to be cut young for a nice and easy braising mix, salad or kale pesto. There are also many ornamental varieties in a wide variety of colours, which can cheer up either your flower or vegetable garden. These ornamentals are edible, if possibly less palatable than regular kale, but may appeal to younger and fussier eaters because look! fancy colours!. There also one variety which tops a long stalk, known to me as 'walking stick kale'. Picking the older leaves encourages the stem to grow ever upward; the stalk can then be cut and dried for a walking staff or cane. Versatile stuff, this kale. Grow, eat and enjoy =]
C-Dawg says: re Kale: I eat Dino kale raw :)
Me: Raw-dawggin' dino kale =]
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