I wash and chop mine roughly, then saute up some minced/crushed garlic in a pan until fragrant...add the chopped kale and a good splash of chicken broth (half a cup or so?), then steam until tender.
I've had better luck with kale when I removed the ribs (white portions) - they were a little tough and stringy, in my opinion.
Kale is great in soup! Really any of the greens are, my favorite is chard for soup though. It makes the texture silky and the flavor not bitter at all. I use a favorite recipe with beans, tomatoes, greens, and veggies and it is awesome. And yes, remove the thick stems, they won't be good for eating.
Cut out the ribs and chop roughly. Boil in water with some (tsp perhaps) caraway seeds. Drain carefully. (You can eat the seed.)
My mother is very agin kale. 'Only fit for cattle' IHO. I like it. It's great with any kind of pork, and in soups with pork & potatoes. It's a traditional vegetable of the European Celtic seaboard. You could google 'caldo gallego'.
I use the entire bunch of kale, not discarding a thing!
I like it in soup (especially with potato, onion, leek, garlic...MMMM!), steamed and tossed with garlic, lemon and a good oil with a pinch of salt and pepper...it's good cooked like that served on top of mashed potatoes
...Kale chips are good too (baked after seasoning, so good!).
yeah that's right, teach that kale a lesson!!
sorry, that was cute and it just struck me as funny.
I love kale! I usually just cut the dark green part away from white (rib) part and use the green part - steam it and toss it in any kind of stir fry I make.
I don't buy kale all the time but when I do, I usually add to anything I make: soups, stews, even to chili or sloppy joe.
Quickly sauteed with some garlic is awesome as side dish (especially if you add one slice of finely chopped bacon). ;-)
I had some sesame kale today at Whole Foods. I'm not sure exactly how they made it, but it was a warm dish so I'm guessing sauteed with sesame oil, carrots and red peppers.