What can you do with kale (spinach substitute) ?

[KurtNYC]

I have been eating a pound of spinach per week -- salads, sauteed in EVOO (Rachel Ray: "...extra virgin olive oil"), spanakopita, etc. So now of course, you can't buy spinach so I am seeking out the nutritional equivalent:

1 cup of: Spinach Kale
Vit A (IUs) 2015 5963
Vit C (mgs) 8 80
Iron (mgs) 0.81 1.14
Calcium 30 90
Fiber 2.2g 2.4g

Kale comes pretty close; actually better in many categories but what the heck can you do with kale? Al the recipes I see call for boiling and braising which sucks in general but expecially in hot weather.

Plus I'm not sure that kale will replace the folate that is in spinach so I may have to go to peas (eg. split pea soup).

Any kale fans out there?

[ScreamingMeemie]

1. Grow your own Spinach!

That's what I did...and we have lots of it. :hi:

[johnnie]

2. Don't let your cows crap on it

Whatever you do.

[ScreamingMeemie]

3. No cows...no worries...

:rofl: You crack me up.

[Shine]

4. I have become a real kale afficianado since spring. It's delicious!

I love it lightly stir-fried in broth with some garlic and then afterwards I put a tablespoon of flax seed oil over it. Also, I like to steam it up with some whole water chestnuts, to add in some extra crunchiness...and then again top it with flaxseed oil. Yummy and good for you, too! :9

:hi:

[miss_american_pie]

5. Soup

1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound Portuguese chourico, broken into large chunks
2 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans, drained
1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained
5 Yukon Gold potatoes, cubed
2 pork chops
salt and pepper
3 tablespoons Pimenta Moida (Portuguese hot chopped peppers)
1 bunch kale - washed, dried, and shredded
1/2 head savoy cabbage, shredded

In a large soup pot, cook onion and garlic in olive oil over medium heat until soft. Mix in choirico, beans, and potatoes, and then add pork chops to the pot. Season with salt and pepper, and add enough water to the pan to cover all of the ingredients. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, and simmer until potatoes are tender.
Once potatoes are tender, taste soup, add Pimenta Moida and more salt and pepper. Stir in kale and cabbage, and increase heat to gently boil. Kale only needs about 5 minutes.

I leave out the Pimenta Moida.

[China_cat]

6. Boorenkook met wurst

(Farmer's cabbage with sausage) It's truly a winter dish. Raw kale tends to the bitter side and the larger the leaves, the more bitter. Cooking removes that. Cook the kale as you would spinach, combine with mashed potatoes and serve with your favorite wurst type sausage or bacon.

[China_cat]

13. That should have been boorenkooL

Didn't see the mistake until after the editing time passed.

[mainegreen]

7. Chopped creamed kale w/onions in pasta.

or steamed w/red wine vinegar on top
or kale and cheese tarts
or kale salad (if its the right kind of kale, like russian kale)
or mashed potatoes and shredded kale.

Mmmmm KALE!

[Arugula Latte]

8. Use it as a replacement for steel wool.

;)

I'm actually a huge veggie fan, but for some reason I find kale a little too tough and fibrous.

[matcom]

9. fix a flat tire

it's THAT strong

[Gormy Cuss]

10. Kale is good!

But you must cook it for it to be palatable. There are two common forms. One is broad-leafed with ruffled edges (sometimes labeled Russian kale) and the other is very dark green, narrow, savoyed leaf (sometimes labeled lacinato or dinosaur kale.) Both should have the center stem removed unless the leaves are very young. The lacinato variety can be boiled and chopped to use as a spinach substitute in dishes like spana. The broad-leafed kind is good in a Portuguese soup called caldo verde (kale, potatoes, linguica, and little else.)

While some people like it steamed or sauteed, I think that kale needs to be boiled or braised for good flavor. I like to braise it with garlic and minced celery or carrots.

Have you considered Swiss chard as a substitute for spinach? It's lighter in flavor than kale and the stalks when cooked have the texture of celery. Chard can be steamed and dressed with lemon and a little oil, or braised or sauteed with garlic or mushrooms. I know that it has a good amount of vit A and C.

[KurtNYC]

15. I did look at chard

which I think has a milder flavor. It stacks up pretty well on A and C. My concern without spinach is getting B complex vitamins. Spinach has been my primary source there. We all hear a lot about "leafy greens" but romaine lettuce is somewhat weak and iceberg lettuce is worthless.


I see kale and chard are pretty equal in this chart (scroll toward bottom):
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid=108

kale at .18 and chard at .15 but spinach was .44 tops in nutrient density and delicious :cry:

Damn you e coli!

I will give chard a chance also. Thanks for the tip.

[pitohui]

24. chard is more versatile than kale

however no one is eating spinach for nutrition, that is very old information, we have known for many years that the oxalic acid in spinach robs it of much of its supposed nutritional value because it interferes in digestion of some of the supposed nutrients contained in spinach

if you like spinach and are willing to cook it well, fine, otherwise, it's a waste of time -- the minerals such as the iron you mention are not biological available and aren't used by your body

sorry, the story of popeye was just that, a story

[MountainLaurel]

11. Cook it up with some bacon

And serve it over pasta, among other things. Epicurious.com is your friend here.

[Xipe Totec]

12. Portuguese Kale soup is just awsome! n/t

[brook]

19. I second that! n/t

[graywarrior]

14. Saute in toasted sesame oil along with onion, carrots.

Throw tamari onto just before serving. Add a little fresh ginger juice.

[Lethe]

16. eat it raw in a salad

it's kale, carrots, celery, raisins, olive oil, white wine vinegar, cumin, cinnamon, maybe a little lemon. (think i left out a spice or two)

kale is pretty strong stuff raw, but it goes pretty good in a spicy salad

[SoyCat]

17. Saute it with olive oil, garlic, and onion and then toss it with (cooked)

black-eyed peas and sweet potato cubes. Then sprinkle it with balsamic vinegar and Tabasco sauce. It's a complete meal and quite tasty.

[trof]

18. You can stitch the leaves together to make shopping bags.

[cwydro]

20. Frozen spinach

is still OK, isn't it? I hope so:scared:

[RumpusCat]

21. Saute that up in bacon fat with garlic!

Them's good eats! I tend to like my greens on the raw-er side, even strong ones like kale, so I don't cook it for too long. :9

[dropkickpa]

22. Colcannon

Which is always a fall favorite (rest of the year, too!!) of mine. I hate cabbage, so I always substitute kale for it, and also add parsnips, which have a pretty decent amount of folate.

DropkickPA's Colcannon

1 lb potatoes, sliced
2 med parsnips,peeled and sliced
2 med leeks
1 c milk
1 lb kale (remove ribs)
1/2 tsp Mace (optional)
2 minced garlic cloves
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 tb Margarine or butter
Parsley

Cook the potatoes and parsnips in water until tender. At the same time in a separate pot, cook the kale in boiling salted water until tender but not overcooked. Drain very well and chop finely.

While these are cooking, chop leeks (greens as well as whites) and simmer in the milk until soft.

Drain the potatoes, season with mace, garlic, salt and pepper, and beat well. Add the cooked leeks and milk (be careful not to break down the leeks too much).

Finally, blend in the kale and butter.The texture should be that of a smooth-buttery potato with well distributed pieces of leek and kale. Garnish with parsley.

I like to add crumbled bacon to it as well. YUMMY!!

[pitohui]

23. i grow kale

it's tough as nails, boiling or braising is unavoidable, raw it is not good, try boiling for a bit to get it in the mood while you have some bacon being crisped in the microwave

drain the kale

saute some chopped sweet onion in the bacon fat and stir fry the kale in it with the bacon chopped into bits

salt, fresh ground pepper

not too bad, no worse than spinach, and the price is right since it grows where spinach won't

[Redstone]

25. You can make something that's a damn sight tastier ehan if it were made

with spinach, that's for sure. Swiss Chard as well.

And no aftertaste, as a bonus.

Redstone

[wickerwoman]

26. Stir-fry the stems with ginger and garlic

and a healthy wallop of canola oil.

Mmmm...

You can use the leaves as a substitute for spinach in quiche.