I had never bought kale before - I'd eaten it at vegetarian restaurants a few times and had never enjoyed it all that much. Then last week I bought a take-out meal at a new organic grocery store in my area - the meal included a small portion of kale. It was delicious and turned out to be my favourite part of the meal. I looked on the internet for a recipe that looked similar to what I'd eaten. I found the recipe below which is similar - the flavour is not as intense. After tasting, I added a few other ingredients - hot sauce (sambal oelek), Bragg's seasoning, rice vinegar and a few drops of umeboshi vinegar. It was very tasty. It did need a bit more 'sour' and I think I'd add some lemon next time. The other thing I might do differntly is to use only a small amount of olive oil to start the cooking process and save the sesame oil for garnish - I think the sesame lost some of its flavour when it was added at the beginning.
The interesting thing about kale - like spinach, a huge bunch cooks down to almost nothing. But unlike spinach, it maintains a lot of body - at fist I wasn't sure I liked the texture, but after eating it cooked in this style a couple of times now, I find I really like the texture. It is certainly worth trying and experimenting with the seasoning.
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound kale (about bunch)
2 teaspoons sesame seed oil
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds
Salt and pepper, if desired
1. Mince the garlic cloves. Wash the kale and shake it over the sink. It should remain a little wet. Remove and discard the stems from the kale and tear it into bite-size pieces. Save the stems for another use, such as vegetable stock.
2. Heat the sesame seed oil in the skillet over medium-low heat. Add the minced garlic to the hot oil and sauté for about 20 seconds. Add the kale and water to the garlic and oil, and cover the skillet.
3. After 1 minute, stir the kale, then re-cover. After 1-2 more minutes, when the kale is wilted, stir in the soy sauce and sesame seeds. If desired, add salt and/or pepper to taste.
Our vegan daughter is trying to find recipes that will make kale palatable. She knows it's really good for her, but it's bitter and the texture is "funny." If you don't mind, I will send her this link.
Posted by: Margaret | May 05, 2007 at 03:28 PM
Hey - came across this posting from a google search of "sesame kale." Whole Foods carries a dish called "Emerald Sesame Kale," and the flavor is quite intense but very similar to your recipe. It's similar to your recipe, but I asked the man behind the counter, and he showed me how to make it.
Basically everything is the same except there is an additional ingredient: tamari (water, soybean, wheat salt). You put that in with the garlic before the kale goes into the pan at all. Tamari makes the dish have more of a concentrated sesame taste.
Moreover, he said that there is a little ginger in the dish, as well.
Posted by: Viv | April 06, 2008 at 06:43 PM
Wow, the cooking way of this dish is great and easy to cook, I’ll try it later and I hope it tastes delicious. Just one suggestion: If you add some cooking pictures it will be easier to follow!
Posted by: Chinese Traditional Recipes | December 16, 2009 at 01:32 AM
Maybe this is me talking nonsense, but it seems like Google isn't a company run strictly by the top and they seem to be doing quite well.
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