Make kale chips even more guilt-free: no oil needed!
I do make kale chips with oil when we harvest a bunch from the garden; they crisp beautifully and hold spices like cajun, garam masala, or chipotle. The kale pictured here is from the first pickings of our urban patch.
The photos below show chips rubbed with a little oil and cooked on the stovetop with cajun spice.
Oil-free chips are crunchy but spices don’t cling as readily. They work wonderfully with dips like vegan ranch, hummus, nut butter, or any dressing you prefer. I made these on the stovetop; you’ll need a large pan and may have to do more than one batch to fill a bowl. If you’re already cooking, they come together quickly.
To bake: use a lower oven temperature around 250°F (about 120°C) for 7–10 minutes.
Pictured: oil-free kale chips.
You can also make these from other sturdy greens like chard. How do you like your kale chips?
Steps:
Place the leaves on a hot pan over medium-low heat.
Place the leaves on a hot pan over medium-low heat.
The kale will begin to crisp and crinkle after 2–3 minutes.
Flip as many leaves as you can and shift pieces around so outer leaves move to the center. Cook another 3–4 minutes, until crunchy.
I plan to use some chips in a masala papad salad: crisp papad topped with tomatoes, onions, and chaat masala. Oil-free chips tossed with chaat masala, onions, and tomatoes will be delicious — I’ll add a photo later.
Kale Chips with Garam Masala
Fat-free, vegan, gluten-free.
Stovetop method: about 7–8 minutes.
Ingredients:
Kale leaves, torn into large bite-sized pieces with stems removed.
Salt to taste.
Garam masala to taste.
Method:
Heat a large pan over medium-low heat.
When the pan is hot, place the kale leaves in a single layer as much as possible.
Let them cook uncovered for 2–3 minutes.
Flip what you can and move outer leaves to the center to ensure even cooking.
Cook another 3–4 minutes, or until the leaves are crunchy.
For the oil method on stovetop:
Use a few teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil or your oil of choice and rub it into the leaves.
Place the leaves on the hot pan, flip after ~3 minutes, and cook until crunchy.
Finish by sprinkling salt and garam masala or other seasonings, then serve.
This edition of kale chips and What I Ate (WIAW) includes a few other meals from the day.
My current photography setup uses a black backdrop with the camera opposite a black blocker; I sometimes add small white reflectors on the right. I’m teaching myself food photography and may pick up a reference book for composition and mood lighting.
Breakfast:
Ginger-snap pancakes: half Bob’s Red Mill 7-grain pancake mix, half almond flour, with ginger, clove, and nutmeg, molasses, and coconut milk.
Add some candied ginger, if you have it.
Lunch: pasta with roasted tomato–chipotle cauliflower cream sauce and shells — same recipe but extra spicy.
Snacks/Dessert:
Chivda — savory rice krispies with cashews, almond slivers, sesame seeds, and cranberries.
Pretzel: salted chocolate pretzel (wheat version).
Oil-free almond, barley, and millet chocolate-chip cookie — similar to the millet almond cookie but without oil and with more ground almond.
Dinner: achari bhindi (okra in pickle spices), kachumbar quinoa salad, and a bowl of split-pea dal with cauliflower and bell peppers.
Okra in Indian pickle spices — recipe here.
Cooked rainbow quinoa tossed with kachumbar salad: red onion, tomato, cucumber, lots of cilantro, salt, chili powder, and lime juice.
Thanks to Jenn at Peas and Crayons for hosting the WIAW event.