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!
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
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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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!