The lazy womanโs way of drying Kale for the winter
Kale is one of the easiest vegetables to dry for winter. Give this simple Kale drying method a try and you’ll be glad you did.
Donโt hate me
When I first started drying greens for the winter, I dutifully blanched every last quart of harvested, washed, chopped, and sorted greens. But that extra work and mess creates lots of dishes and takes a lot of time. As a result, I rarely got around to doing the task at all โ especially when the garden produces, which is free, comes at the same time as the fall fruit harvest, which I am buying from the farmerโs market or local farms. I always had lots of dried fruit in our winter food storage but not so many vegetables. And I always said, next year will be different. Then I discovered that I didnโt need to work so hard. Really?
I discovered that Kale is easy to dry
Kale is one of the easiest vegetables to dry for winter. Did you know that dried kale and kale chips are the new superfood? My English neighbour says that Kale is just livestock fodder, but the scientists, like Dr. Mercola, would argue with him. In fact, Kale is getting so much press these days, that what used to cost less than a head of cabbage is now more costly than winter lettuce. ย Check out Kale in the produce section in February. I even saw frozen Kale for the first time in my grocery store yesterday. Weird. You can now buy dried kale and kale chips in tiny 60-gram packages for $7 at the organic market. This is true. Do the math. Thatโs like $50 a pound. Thatโs more costly than the most expensive organic grass-fed steak! But you can make your own dried kale at home from Kale you grow yourself. Not only that but itโs easy and fast.
And Kale doesnโt have to be blanched or cooked before it is dehydrated. In fact, many of the health benefits of Kale are diminished when the leaves are cooked. So itโs totally ok, to save all that work and clean up, and dry your Kale raw.
If you donโt have a dehydrator yet, you can do this in your oven overnight, with just the oven light on. Thatโs ok for kale chips or to have some to snack on right now. But you really need to get a dehydrator if you want to do large batches and have a winter supply. (This is the dehydrator I recommend.)
Letโs dry Kale:
Pick the Kale in its prime. Itโs sweeter after itโs had a week or two of frosty mornings. The sugars in the Kale deepen its flavour, replacing the bitterness of summer kale. Discard any insect eaten, slimy, or brown leaves. The red leaves are fine. And the dark green leaves are also good to use. The deeper the colour the better โ more antioxidants and more chlorophyll.
Wash the leaves well. If you see any holes in the leaves, evidence of cabbage butterfly caterpillar damage โ those little green broccoli worms โ soak the leaves in cold water for an hour. Any hitchhiking worms will curl up and drop off into your kitchen sink. Dry the leaves by draining them in a colander or on a dish rack, for a brief period. They donโt have to be totally dry.
On your cutting board, with a sharp knife (the one I use), remove the heavy central rib from each leaf. The central rib is fibrous and difficult to dry. If you decide to dry it, do it separately and then grind it to a fine powder to add to soups and stews. I put mine in the bucket to feed to the goats and chickens โ but the choice is yours.
Chop each leaf into fine ribbons. To do this I like to remove the rib from several leaves. Then stack the green leafy parts on top of each other. Roll this stack into a jelly roll shape, and chop the leaves into fine slivers, no more than 1/8th of an inch wide.
Put your chopped leaves on your dehydrator trays. Dry on medium heat until crisp and crumbly.
Kale dries fast โ usually in 6 to 8 hours if the weather isnโt too humid. The stems will take longer. You want them brittle and crumbly. If there is any limpness at all, dry it a little longer before storage. You donโt want it to mold.
Store your dried kale in glass
Once the Kale is fully dry, allow it to cool to room temperature. Store it in glass jars with tight-fitting lids. You can leave it whole or crumble it as you put it into jars. Itโs raw and full of vitamins and enzymes because you didnโt blanch it. Dried properly, it retains its bright green/pink/purple colours, too. Itโs ready to add to winter soups, stews, bread, smoothies, or even just eat it raw, out of the jar. Itโs delicious.ย You can even powder it like the natural health products business if you really want to.ย But no matter which way you decide to eat it, now you know how easy it is to dry kale.
So give this simple Kale drying method a try and forget all that dishwashing and clean up. Drying this superpower food couldnโt be easier.
Check out my series on getting the most from your dehydrator.
You can also make Kale chips in the oven.
Your Turn:
Whatโs your favourite way to serve the superfood โ Kale?
I love you for this. Going out today to harvest the little kale forest that sprung up because I let one plant go to seed…now it’s taking up so much room. The task seemed horribly daunting because I thought I’d have to blanch it all. Now I know I don’t & I’m super excited!
Grandkids won’t eat kale so dried it and mix with their ranch dressing. Eat it all. Have mine in a jar with shaker top. Sprinkle in my yogurt, over Mac and cheese,my salads in winter.
Thank you for your instructions. I was looking for a better way than using the oven but it seems to be the best way if you don’t have a dehydrator. I have been setting the oven to 170 degrees the lowest setting for my oven. I was getting tired of losing money on my greens. I’d buy them then half or more would go bad in my fridge because I couldn’t use them fast enough. Drying the kale makes a lot of sense for me.
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Thank you because I was expecting to read about how to dry it in the oven. I don’t think ppl need more info on how to dry it in a dehydrator. I also have the same problem with all my veggies, I have a small freezer, live alone, but prefer fresh veggies over any other food. Thanks again, God Bless
I am in the same boat. I live alone and have a small freezer. I bought a 4 tray dehydrator just to dry the food I have before it goes bad. It works really well and is very economical. I save on electricity and reduce food waste.
Thereโs a lot of conflicting information out there about whether or not the nutrients in kale are best absorbed once it is cooked and too hard for our bodies to break down if it is raw – I wish I knew for sure which was the best way to eat it!
How long will it stay good for?
I’m drying kale in my air fryer. It takes about 3 minutes for 1 stem at 370 degrees Fahrenheit. Will try a larger batch later this summer.
You are killing your kale not dehydrating it!
Dehydration is done at 135f. And it does not destroy all the vitamins and antioxidants . High temp does.
Some airfryers have a dehydrating setting.
I am going to grind the stems and dry them like a paste, so nothing goes to waste.
I’ve been doing it in the oven. I was checking to see what temp to set the oven at. My first batch was perfect, but I forgot which temp I used. my second batch got burned. I still ate it. I was wondering what temp to use?/
When I put two full trays in the oven, I preheat at 415* and when it reaches that temp, put the kale in and bake for 5mins. Then bump temp down to 215* and bake for 25mins. That’s always works perfect for me. The bake times may differ depending on how much kale you are baking at once.
I use my oven to dry everything. I always use the lowest setting.
I’ve been growing and storing kale for 25 years. Strip the kale from the stalk, fill your clean washing machine with cold water and fill with kale. Let sit for 30 min for any cabbage caterpillars to drown. If you have aphids add a little salt. Spin dry. (Don’t let it aggitate or you’ll have it shredded and massaged unless you want that.) Dehydrate or stuff into freezer bags raw. I slice the frozen kale or chip when needed. Can’t think of a faster way. ๐ we go through a lot of kale.
I’ve been drying kale and spinach for several years now as my son is mildly autistic and can’t handle the textures of raw greens. After drying the greens I grind them up to a fine powder in our magic bullet using the flares blade. It works fast! I add the powder to everything from spaghetti sauce to macaroni and cheese as well as smoothies. The taste is usually fairly mild and my son is happy to know that he is eating food that fights off germs and diseases ๐
Fantastic solution.
Well, this is just the information I was looking for. So let the drying begin….tomorrow! Thanks for keeping your steps so simple.
Once it dries, what is the texture like if you add it to liquids during cooking? Is it tougher or does it break down easier than fresh? I love the dinosaur kale, mine were finally huge this year – leaves over a foot long! They’re my favorite variety – since they’re so big they’re easier to clean and cut up!
I think it breaks down fairly easily after reconstituting, but it doesn’t disappear in the same way that butternut squash or pumpkin does, unless you grind it to a powder first. Are you familiar with the way dulse behaves when added to a soup or stew? Kale is about the same texture as that. Pretty soft — not fiberous at all.
Being Dutch we grew up with lots of kale. This is the fasted way to dry kale. Pick the bottom leaves of the plant. By hand strip the green off the stock of the leaf starting from the thickest part. Load into washing machine with water. Agitate by hand. If you let the machine agitate, it will break the leaves into smaller pieces. Can add salt if there’s lots of bugs. Spin cycle. Fill dehydrator or oven. When dry it crumbles easily so doesn’t take much space.
I don’t blanche any of my vegetables anymore. Don’t can much anymore either. Trying to keep as much nutrients as possible.
Good luck! Give it a try! and tell me! ๐
Jackie, that sounds like a fabulous and speedy way to get the veggies into the dehydrator. I didn’t blanch my chard this year either and I think it turned out better for not being blanched.
I’ve never thought to dry kale. I feed it to my kiddos, but it is a little “strong” for me, LOL! Does it have as strong of a taste after it is dried?
Chris, I make kale drying even easier and faster…Holding the stem in one hand, I strip off the leaf with the other hand. Lay the large pieces on your cookie sheet or dehydrator try, flatten down a little and dehydrate. When they are done, I crunch them up small and put into a ziplock or glass jar. Store in the freezer (they do not take up much space). Kale can be used for smoothies, soup or other recipes (just not chips). This is super fast and easy.
Depends on the variety. That’s a great idea for Red Russian but my dinosaur kale needs the knife treatment. Which kind are you growing this year?
I should add that my dinosaur kale didn’t get very big, so maybe where you are growing, Evelyn, you get bigger more robust leaves. Mine are puny and soft like salad greens.