Kale: Can't Get Into It? Try a Massage for Tender, Delicious Leaves

Margaret Boyles

I knew I hadn't failed childrearing entirely the night my young daughter walked into the kitchen and exclaimed, "Oh goody! Kale for supper."

Years later, she moved to Arlington, Virginia for a job. First phone call: "I can't afford food here. Broccoli costs $2.50 a head, not even organic."

Coming from a home heavy on home-grown vegetables, she hit the luxury of a vegetable-rich diet in a wealthy suburb.

Days later: "Hurrah! Found affordable veggies. Kale—99 cents for a two-pound bag, sold as 'decorative greens.' I don't think they expect anyone to eat it."

My take on kale: Almost everyone thinks they should eat it, many try once or twice, then quit. It's dry (making it winter-hardy), tough, and strong-tasting.

Among the most nutritious vegetables, kale is easy to grow, even in small containers, and less susceptible to diseases/pests plaguing broccoli and cabbage family.

Many varieties: frilly, puckered, or flat leaves; pale to deep green to purple; dwarf to gigantic.

If not home-grown, it's cheap and available year-round.

We grow lots of kale, enjoying it sautéed, chopped fine for salads, added to soups. Made kale chips and rollups (like cabbage rolls), but recently discovered one way to transform big raw kale leaves into a delicacy: massaged kale salad. No kidding!

Try it—you may turn kale-haters into fans. Here's how:

Kale Salad for Four (or More)

Wash hands well.

• Tear leafy parts of a dozen large kale fronds from inner ribs. (Add ribs to vegetable stock with celery leaves, carrot tops, onion skins, etc.)
• Put leaves in large bowl, tear into bite-sized pieces.
• Mix 1–2 tbsp favorite salad oil with same amount lemon juice/vinegar and a pinch of salt.
• Plunge both hands in and massage leaves between thumbs and forefingers until they soften. Or rub handfuls between palms.
• Test occasionally. Greens turn silky, softer, sweeter, more tender as massage breaks down tough cellulosic fibers.
• Add other ingredients if desired—other greens, cherry tomatoes, olives, light dressing.

Note: Once taught, "massaging the salad" is a great task for kids and non-cooks. Store massaged, salad-ready kale a few days in fridge crisper.

~ By Margaret Boyles

About This Blog

Margaret Boyles lives in a wood-heated house in central New Hampshire. She grows vegetables, keeps chickens, swims in a backyard pond in summer, snowshoes in the surrounding woods in winter, and commutes by bike whenever possible.