So last weekend I was out to dinner, after an afternoon spent at a baby shower and then shopping, with a group of friends. We were trying a Mexican restaurant on the recommendation of a friend’s Mexican co-workers, and while I LOVE me some Mexican, I wasn’t terribly hungry. I decided to go with an order of tacos, but wanted something to accompany them, as I scanned the menu of side dishes I decided that the spicy kale sounded perfect, it would be savory, spicy, and not too filling.
Well it turned out to be far more then that. It was the most flavorful kale that I have ever tasted and I decided I had to figure out how to make it myself. After thinking it through for the rest of the weekend, I came to the conclusion that the spice wasn’t simply sprinkled on the kale leaves, rather it was infused into them.
Now I generally make my kale with chicken stock rather then water so I figured if I dissolved Cayenne into the chicken stock that might give it the flavor I was looking for. And I was right!! So, to make the world’s best kale just follow these simple steps;
1) cut the kale leaves off the ribs (I know it’s a pain, but it makes it easier to inhale the delicious kale once its done)
2) thinly slice two cloves of garlic and either 1 shallot or 1/2 a sweet onion (use whatever you have laying around
3) bring 1 cup of stock to a simmer and add 1 teaspoon of Cayenne and 1 teaspoon of salt (unless your stock is salted already)
4) saute the garlic and onion in a bit of olive oil, then once soft (about 3-4 minutes) add the kale and wilt it (again about 3-4 minutes)
5) add the stock and cover the pot, cook for 8-10 minutes
6) eat!
I served it with a really simple salmon with a basil compound butter, and the kale totally outshone the fish.
Give this a try and let me know how it works out for you, k?
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