Delicious ways to use Kale in Indian Recipes

Delicious ways to use Kale in Indian Recipes

Delicious ways to use Kale in Indian Recipes- Easy and simple ways to incorporate nutrient-rich kale greens into your Indian recipes. From kale parathas to Kale raita , here are some easy ideas and inspirations to add Kale to your daily meals.

What are Kale Greens ?

Kale is a leafy vegetable that belongs to the Brassica family, which includes other cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage.

Known for its curly leaves and deep green or purple color, kale has been cultivated for centuries and is celebrated for its impressive nutritional profile.

Kale is a great addition to Indian meals, because of its unique flavour and impressive nutritional profile, It has a slightly bitter and earthy taste, which makes it versatile for use in a variety of cuisines, including Indian cuisine.

Over time, I’ve realized that incorporating kale into Indian recipes not only makes meals healthier but also brings a fresh perspective to flavors that we’ve cherished through generations.

Sharing these ideas is my way of showing how easily we can adapt familiar recipes to include vegetables like kale or brussel sprouts, making them both nutritious and delicious.

I know some of you find it hard to understand how to use kale in Indian recipes, so I’m sharing this list to make it helpful for your daily cooking.

Benefits of Using Kale

Incorporating kale into your meals can offer numerous health benefits due to its dense nutrient content. Here are some of its key benefits:

  • Nutrient-Dense: Kale is packed with vitamins and minerals, including:
    • Vitamin A (essential for vision and immune health)
    • Vitamin C (an antioxidant that supports skin health and immunity)
    • Vitamin K (crucial for blood clotting and bone health)
    • Calcium and Magnesium (important for bone health)
  • Rich in Antioxidants: Kale contains powerful antioxidants like quercetin and kaempferol, which help fight oxidative stress and reduce inflammation.
    Source: Healthline
  • Supports Heart Health: Kale greens are heart friendly because of its high fiber content and ability to lower cholesterol levels . Studies show that consuming kale juice regularly can significantly improve cholesterol profiles.
    Source: PubMed Central
  • Aids Digestion: With ample fiber, kale supports healthy digestion and promotes regular bowel movements.
  • Low in Calories, High in Nutrients: Kale is an excellent choice for those looking to maintain a healthy weight while ensuring they get essential nutrients.
  • Potential Cancer-Fighting Properties: Kale is rich in glucosinolates, compounds found in cruciferous vegetables that may have protective effects against certain cancers.
    Source: National Cancer Institute
  • Improves Skin and Hair Health: The high levels of vitamins A and C promote healthy skin and hair, supporting collagen production and repair.
  • Supports Detoxification: Kale contains compounds that assist the liver in detoxifying harmful substances from the body.
    Source: Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
  • Hormonal Balance: Cruciferous vegetables like kale have shown potential benefits for hormonal health. For postmenopausal women, consuming kale may help regulate estrogen levels due to the presence of glucosinolates and other bioactive compounds. Research published in the Journal of Nutrition highlights that diets rich in cruciferous vegetables can influence estrogen metabolism, promoting a balance that may reduce risks associated with hormone-related conditions.
    Source: Journal of Nutrition

How to Prepare Kale for Cooking

Preparing kale properly is key to ensuring it blends well into Indian recipes. Here’s a simple guide:

  1. Wash Thoroughly: Kale often has dirt or grit on its leaves. Rinse the leaves under running water or soak them in a bowl of water for a few minutes. Swish them around to remove any debris, then drain and pat dry, or dry them in a Salad spinner.
  2. Remove the Stems: Kale stems can be tough and fibrous. Hold the base of the stem with one hand and strip the leafy part away with the other. Discard the stems or save them for making vegetable stock. If the Kale is really fresh the stems might be tender and in that case you can shop them and add to your recipe.
  3. Chop or Tear: Depending on the recipe, chop the leaves finely or tear them into bite-sized pieces. Finely chopped kale or grinding works best for parathas, theplas, and raitas, while larger pieces are great for sabzis,curries or adding them to dal recipes.
  4. Blanch if Needed: For recipes like Kale raita, blanch the leaves in boiling water ,add salt for a minute, then transfer them to ice water. This helps soften the leaves and reduce their bitterness.
  5. Dry Before Cooking: If you’re planning to sauté or stir-fry kale, ensure the leaves are dry to prevent splattering and to achieve a better texture.

Using Kale in your regular Indian recipes

Rather than sharing detailed, step-by-step recipes here, I’ve put together a collection of ideas on how I incorporate kale into my daily cooking. These are practical suggestions for including kale in Indian meals, giving you a variety of options to try.

I have added a few links to the existing recipes on the blog where Kale can be easily added as an additional ingredient.

If you’d like me to elaborate on any of the ideas with a more detailed recipe, please don’t hesitate to ask in the comments—I’d be more than happy to help!

1. Kale Sabzi (Stir-fried Kale)

  • Ingredients: Kale, onions, garlic, green chillies, cumin seeds, turmeric, coriander powder, and red chilli powder.
  • Method: Heat oil, add cumin seeds, and sauté chopped onions and garlic until golden. Stir in the spices, then add chopped kale. Cook until tender. This pairs beautifully with rotis or parathas.

2. Kale Dal

urad chana daal

Simply add Chopped Kale leaves to Dal while boiling Dal. It goes perfectly in Chana Dal, or Hari Masoor dal. I usually use it the same way to cook as i cook palak wali dal (Spinach daal).

You can also add it to this Urad Chana dal recipe while you are boiling the daal . The proceed with the rest of the steps and tempering (tadka).

3. Kale Paratha and Kale pooris

palak poori

Finely chop kale and knead it into a spiced dough made with whole wheat flour to make Kale parathas or pooris.

As Kale leaves are a bit hard you can consider blanching and then making a puree of kale leaves. Then add it to your regular parantha / poori dough while kneading.Here is a simple Kaddu paratha recipe (Pumpkin parantha) , and Palak poori recipe where pumpkin and spinach can be easily replaced with Kale, or Kale can be used in addition to the vegetables you are adding to make Kale paronthi or Kale poori recipe.

These go perfect with Instant chilli and garlic chutney or Mango chutney.

4. Kale Thepla and Kale besan chilla

Kale Besan chilla
Kale Besan chilla

If you prefer theplas to parantas, you can absolutely add make Kale theplas or Kale besan chilla too.Though i devour my methi theplas, i would anyday go for Kale theplas.

Some finely chopped Kale leaves, whole wheat flour, gram flour, yogurt, turmeric, and sesame seeds and regular spices make delicious Kale theplas.

These Kale theplas are ideal for breakfasts or as a travel snack.

To make Kale chilla , just add a cup full of chopped kale leaves to the besan and spice batter. Cook in a little oil/ ghee as you would normally do.

5. Adding Kale to vegetable Pakoras (Fritters)

Kale Pakoras with chai
Kale Pakoras (Kale fritters)

If you love making vegetable pakoras (fritters), you can add chopped kale to your pakora batter along with other vegetables to make it more nutritious.

Make a thick batter using gram flour, rice flour, chopped vegetables, spices, and water. Add Chopped Kale leaves to the mix. Deep Fry or Air fry as you would normally do.

These vegetable fritters are perfect with a cup of Jaggery masala chai.

6. Add Kale to vegetable Pulao

If like me vegetable Pulao is your answer to an easy midweek meal, and you have some curly kale or Cavalo nero Kale in your vegetable box, please dont forget to add it to your pulao.

Kale, rice, vegetables, whole spices (bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves), and paneer or your preferred protein, make a healthy, simple, easy , filling and delicious midweek dinner

Simply sauté whole spices, add onions, garlic, and vegetables, then toss in some chopped kale greens. Mix with rice and cook. Garnish with fried onions,nuts or just some fresh coriander .

This is a wholesome super healthy one-pot meal.

7. Kale Raita

Some fresh chopped Kale greens, yogurt, chopped onions ,tomatoes, roasted cumin powder, green chillies,coriander ,black salt and seasoning make for a delicious Kale Raita.

You can blanch or chop kale finely, and mix into whisked yogurt seasoned with spices and fresh herbs. A cooling accompaniment for spicy meals, or just a snack for those in between meal hunger pangs. Here is a delicious pumpkin raita recipe, if you are looking for a detailed recipe of Yoghurt/ dahi Raita.

8. Kale Curry

Kale chickpea curry
Kale chickpea curry
Kale palak paneer
Kale palak paneer

I use Kale a lot in my recular Indian curries. You can add it to your chickpea curry to make a delicious chickpea kale curry , or to aloo matar, matar paneer curry or any Paneer recipes.

If you are making Palak paneer , mix a few Kale leaves to your spinach while blanching and blend together. Follow rest of the recipe to make a delectable Kale palak paneer. Here is a detailed recipe of Palak Paneer on the blog.

You can also mix Kale greens in sarson ka saag recipe or while cooking shalgam recipe (Spices turnips) or Shalgam palak recipe using a mix of spinach and Kale greens .

Check out here how to use Kale in Saag recipe.

9. Masala Kale Omelette

Masala veggies, ham and Kale frittatas
Kale frittatas

Yes you read it right. Freshly chopped Kale greens, eggs, onions, green chillies, coriander, red chilly powder , salt and pepper make a delicious and healthy Masala Kale omelette.

This is quite a regular breakfast in our home and nobody even knows it has Kale.

To make masala Kale omelette, you can use finely chopped kale, mix with spiced beaten eggs, and cook into an omelette. Perfect for a quick and healthy breakfast.

Kale can be added to this easy curry masala veggies and ham frittata recipe to make Kale frittatas.

10. Kale Kadhi

Kale Kadhi
Kale Kadhi

Although i have never added to Kale to traditional Punjabi Kadhi pakora, but i love making Palak Kadhi and Kale is a such great addition to this lehsuni Palak Kadhi recipe (Spinach kadhi).

You can adjust the recipe to use a mix of both Kale leaves and Palak leaves (Instead of just palak leaves) to the Kadhi recipe. I have tried it a number of times and it turns out delicious.

11. Sautéed Potatoes with Kale recipe

Sauteed Kale with potatoes
Sauteed Kale with potatoes

This is one of my kids favorite recipes. They love having a simple sauteed potato with Kale sabzi with simple roti or home cooked parathas.

This recipe is very similar to my aloo methi recipe . If you love a simple Kale recipe cooked Indian style here is the link to Sauteed potato with Kale recipe on the blog. This is a no onions, no tomato very easy to cook recipe.

12. Kale Aloo Tikki

  • Ingredients: Kale, boiled potatoes, breadcrumbs, green chillies, ginger, garam masala, and chaat masala.
  • Method: Combine boiled potatoes, finely chopped kale leaves, and spices. Shape into patties, coat with breadcrumbs, and shallow fry until crisp. Serve with mint chutney.

13. Using Kale in Soups

Kale isn’t just for traditional Indian recipes, it can be a wonderful addition to your regular soups

Here is how you can add Kale greens to your soups recipes.

Clear vegetables and beans soup with Kale
Clear vegetables and beans soup with Kale

Kale in Soups

  • Preparation: Chop or tear kale into small pieces before adding it to soups.
  • When to Add: Add kale towards the end of the cooking process to retain its vibrant color and nutrients.
  • Pairings: Kale works well in lentil soups, tomato-based soups, or creamy soups like Leeks and potato soups or pumpkin / butternut squash soups. It is a perfect addition to a broccoli or Spinach soup where you can blanch / boil Kale with Broccoli or spinach and puree it along with other greens. You can absolutely try adding finely chopped Kale to to my favourite clear vegetables and beans soup.
  • Flavor Boost: Enhance the flavor with a tempering of garlic, cumin, and a hint of red chili.This goes for any soup you are making.

14. Kale Smoothies

I love adding kale to my smoothies.

If you are new to using Kale, start with a small amount of kale and gradually increase as you get used to its flavor.

Kale in Smoothies
Kale in Smoothies

Kale in Smoothies

Preparation: You can use fresh Kale leaves or frozen ones for the smoothies. Any variety of kale leaves is good, use either Cavolo nero leaves or curly Kale. Remove stems for a smoother texture.

Combinations: You can blend kale leaves with fruits like bananas, mangoes, or pineapples to balance its bitterness. Yogurt, milk, or plant-based milk can be added for creaminess.

Boosters: Including nuts, seeds, or a dash of honey for adds flavor and nutrition to your smothies.

Here are two very quick , easy and delicious Kale smoothie recipes on the blog Kale Mango coconut smoothie and Beetroot Kale Smoothie recipe. For more delicious smoothie recipes click here.

Kale may not be a traditional ingredient in Indian cooking, but its versatility and health benefits make it a wonderful addition to your meals.

I hope this list of ideas inspires you to experiment with kale in your own cooking. If you have your own creative ways to use kale or if you’d like a more detailed recipe for any of these ideas, please feel free to share your thoughts or questions in the comments below .



Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *