Warm Kale and Caramelized Mushroom Salad Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Should you cook kale before putting in a salad? ›

If you're using raw kale in a salad, and want to alleviate both its bitterness and toughness (without cooking it), you can massage the leaves to break down the fibers. In a large bowl, toss your kale leaves with small amount of olive oil and lemon juice, then massage with your hands for three to five minutes.

Massaging Kale – massaging kale with a little oil and/or lemon juice for just a few minutes makes it more tender and easier to chew. Plus, it adds an extra boost of flavor.

Heat olive oil in a skillet. Stir in garlic and cook until sizzling. Add kale to the skillet, toss, cover, and cook (tossing occasionally with tongs) until the kale is tender and vibrant green.

With this in mind, nutrition experts say that most people should focus on adding more vegetables, like kale, to their diet instead of worrying if raw or cooked kale is better. “Though most cooking methods result in loss of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals, kale is still worth eating in whichever form you prefer.

While raw kale may boast the highest nutrient content, the study found that steaming retained the most antioxidants and minerals, compared with other cooking methods ( 7 ).

Once boiled, kale becomes a buttery soft green with a light and mild flavor. If you've avoided kale because of its texture in the past, give boiled kale a try.

Steam It. Steamed Kale. Steaming kale is a wonderfully gentle ​way to handle this tough green. Cut the kale as you want to serve it, set it in a colander or steamer over a pot of boiling shallow water, cover and cook until the kale is tender (about 5 to 10 minutes).

Mix with sweets: combining kale with naturally sweet-tasting foods such as fruits, or sweet-tasting spices can help mask some of its bitterness. Add a touch of salt or spices: spicy and salty flavors can also tame some of kale's strong bitterness. Try cooking kale in vegetable broth with a touch of chili flakes.

To preserve nutrients, don't cook kale for more than 10 minutes over high heat (in a skillet or oven at 400°F). Limit baking kale to 25 to 30 minutes at 350°F. Don't prewash kale before using, it can wilt the leaves quickly.

Additionally, overcooking kale can cause it to become mushy and lose its texture, making it less enjoyable to eat. Another reason why kale can taste bad when cooked is that it contains sulfur compounds that are released when it is cooked. These compounds can create a bitter taste that some people find unpleasant.

How do you soften kale for salad? ›

Some hold that you dress the salad fully, then massage. That's fine. I prefer just to splash a little oil, a couple drops of vinegar or lemon juice, and a pinch of salt on the greens and massage them like that—just rub the strips between your fingers. You'll feel the kale start to break down almost immediately.

Since kale is so fibrous, it can be difficult to cook down the leaves so that they're tender and not chewy. Some recipes have you add water or broth to the skillet while you sauté the leaves, but it's not actually necessary. Instead, after you've washed the leaves, leave them damp.

The leafy green cruciferous vegetable can be tough in texture. One of the health benefits behind kale is that it is high in fiber, but that fiber is also the reason that the leaves can seem dense and unpleasant to chew. Cooked kale does not present the same problem.

Kale doesn't need to be cooked to be enjoyed. If you slice it into fine ribbons or tear it into small bits, it makes a great salad.

Kale can also be eaten raw, and the leaves 'massaged' between your fingers with oil or lemon juice to break down some of the fibres, and make it a bit more palatable.