Why You Have Been Cooking Kale All Wrong: the Secret to Eliminating Bitterness
By James H. Sterling
Restaurant kitchens rarely stop at cold salads. Chefs often lean into kale's structural durability to craft dishes that would turn softer greens into watery pulp. In autumn and winter service, warm composed salads demonstrate the leaf's resilience against hot fats and sharp acids.
To execute a warm pomegranate salad, cook thick-cut bacon or pancetta in a wide skillet until the fat renders. Remove the meat, leave the rendered lard over medium heat, and immediately add roughly sliced lacinato dinosaur kale. The flat, pebbled surface of dinosaur kale wilts evenly under the hot fat in roughly two minutes. Toss in toasted walnuts, sharp pomegranate molasses, fresh arils, and a splash of sherry vinegar. The intense tartness of the pomegranate cuts right through the earthy brassica, while the lingering pork fat coats the palate and masks lingering bitter compounds.
In Southern-inspired culinary kitchens, chefs take tenderizing one step further by incorporating greens into deep-fried cornmeal batters. Finely shredded, blanched curly kale folded into traditional hush puppy batter brings moisture and earthy complexity to the interior while the exterior fries to a golden crust at 365°F (185°C). The steam trapped inside the cornmeal orb finishes softening the greens, yielding a tender, savory center that upends expectations of how brassicas behave.
James Sterling reports on renewable energy developments, climate policy, ecological conservation, and green tech innovations around the globe.
