Healthy AND delicious? Hell no, you say.
My friend Taylor recommended (commanded?) that I make kale chips after seeing my Dashi Miso Kale recipe. Since I still had a big bunch of Lacinato lying around and I was “working from home” today, I decided to give it a shot. Borrowing from a recipe at Kath Eats Real Food I came up with the below.
I will rip out your spine and eat your fleshy parts
I like a little more spicy kick in my snacks and since we’re eating some healthylicious shit like kale, might as well ease off on the fat by omitting the cheese. In fact, I even dialed down the olive oil – you really only need the bare minimum to coat the leaves and help the spice stick.
Ready for some lovin' from the oven
Kale’s natural toughness, which usually has to be cooked away, is actually an advantage here because it keeps the leaf together while the heat removes the moisture. The result is a surprisingly crisp and flaky chip. It can be a little tricky to bake them so keep a good eye on the progress. When they look like they’ve started to crisp, snatch a small piece and test it if you have to. Any undercooked pieces will be tough and mealy as soon as they cool – blech! But if you overcook, the leaves will turn slightly bitter.
If you bake it perfectly, though, they’ll turn out the consistency of dried nori or laver sheets. Hmmm…that gives me an idea. Next time, instead of olive oil I’ll do a light sesame oil with a spice mix that includes finely powdered dashi for that Furikake (Japanese rice seasoning ) flavor.
Spicy Kale Chips
Half a bunch of Lacinato Kale, spines removed and discarded; leaves washed and torn into one inch pieces 2 tsp. olive oil 1 heaping tsp. kosher salt 1/4 tsp. white pepper 1/2 tsp. garlic powder 1/4 tsp. chipotle chile powder 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper powder
As Bob Barker would say, "The spice is right, bitch."
Preheat over to 375F. Pre-mix all dry the spices together in a small bowl. Dry kale and toss well with olive oil then add dry spices liberally. You’ll only use about 4 or 5 healthy pinches, but it’s difficult to reduce so save the extra for next time. Spread onto a cookie sheet (doubled up, preferably) and bake about 15 minutes until edges are lightly browned. You might find it useful to give the leaves a good toss before 10 minutes, so that the bottom pieces don’t stick and they dry more evenly. Don’t wait too long to toss – if some of the pieces are already crisp, they’ll crumble when tossed.
I love love love chips! I like to think of my self as a chip connoisseur. If a new chip flavor comes out, I go get it and try it. When I eat sandwiches I need to eat chips with it or I won’t eat a sandwich! I love all kinds of chips, but my favorite are the Red Hot from Utz or Herr’s Red Hot chips. I’m thinking that I need to have both and do a taste comparison to see which one is my number one favorite.
Anyway…..The husband made some Kale chips and I thought, “Chips made out of a green veggies, I don’t know about this.” But I have to say it was tasty. His first attempt at Kale Chips wasn’t bad. The first time he took them out the oven and gave me a sample I thought it was ok. Not too crispy, but there was a nice saltiness to it and it had a good kale taste to it. He then put them back in the oven to make them crunchier and I tried it for a second time. The second time wasn’t as good. They were overcooked and had a bitterness to them. So there’s a fine line when baking kale chips….you gotta get them out of the oven right at the perfect time before they change flavor and become bitter.
Posted by 1milagritos | November 14, 2011, 3:20 pmUTZ RED HOT ARE THE BEST! I will try this recipe. they sound good. is there a visual that tells you the prefect moment to take them out so they aren’t over cooked?
Posted by Rob | September 18, 2012, 7:41 amWhen the edges start to slightly brown, they are just about perfect. The best test, though, is to pluck one out, blow to cool, then pop it in your mouth.
Posted by Huy-zer | September 18, 2012, 10:06 am