I love kale. There, I said it. It's one of those vegetables that often gets a bad rap, more frequently found as a green garnish around the edge of a salad bar than cooked and on your plate. However, I've found it to be one of the most forgiving and easy to cook of the leafy green family. It's also great to serve to guests, because it doesn't shrink down into a pile of nothing the way that spinach or chard does.

The only trick with kale is making sure you clean it sufficiently, as all those curly corners can trap dirt and grit, unpleasant things to bite down into. The first time I cooked kale, I didn't know just how rigorously it needed to be washed and had to throw the whole, aromatic, garlic-infused pan of bright green veg into the trash. I was not a happy camper that day.
The best way I've found to clean it is to fill up the sink with water and plunge the whole pile of kale into it, shaking vigorously. Then I strip the leaves from the tough stem and dry them in a salad spinner, a step that gets off excess water and gives those gritty bits one last chance to leave the building.

Sometime during the washing step, I heated up big saute pan and poured in a tablespoon or so of olive oil and gently started to saute some diced onion and garlic. Sometimes I run a knife through the kale before tossing it into the pan and sometimes I don't, it just depends on the size and shape I'm going for. Once all the kale is in the pan, I toss with tongs and low the heat to medium and let it cook away. I don't cook it until it's mush, instead going for consistency that resembles al dente pasta. Salt and pepper to taste and the end and that's it. No more work than washing and chopping greens for a salad.

This rumination on kale was triggered by an email a friend sent me earlier today with a link to an article from England's Daily Mail about the resurgence of kale in the UK. Long live kale!