Kale Spices: Garlic, Chile, Pepper, Mustard and Acid for a Bitter Green

Kale has a strong, slightly bitter flavor, so it stands up to bold seasoning. Start with garlic softened in olive oil, add red pepper flakes or black pepper, and finish with something sharp, like lemon juice or mustard, to balance the bitterness. In Bremen, in northern Germany, the classic kale dish gets little more than salt, pepper and 3 tablespoons of mustard. And if you take warfarin, read the vitamin K note at the end before you eat a lot more kale.

At a glance

What kale is

Kale is a loose-leafed member of the cabbage group. It’s grown mainly for autumn and winter harvest, because cold improves its eating quality and flavor, and you can eat the leaves fresh or cooked.² In Bremen, the first frost kicks off the city’s curly kale outings.¹

The seasonings and what each does

Garlic

The most common way to season sautéed kale is garlic softened in olive oil before the greens go in. Slice it thin and cook it until just golden, and it also makes crisp chips to scatter over the top. If it takes over, see too much garlic.

Red pepper flakes

A pinch of red pepper flakes in the oil gives sautéed kale a gentle heat. McCormick’s science institute says crushed red pepper is typically made from cayenne-type chiles, alone or blended with other cultivars.³ Gochugaru is a milder, fruitier swap.

Black pepper

Bremen’s kale recipe seasons with salt, pepper and mustard at the end.¹ Freshly ground smells better than pre-ground.

Mustard

Mustard is the one spice built into the classic German kale dish. Bremen’s recipe for curly kale with smoked pork and Pinkel sausage calls for 3 tablespoons of mustard, added with the salt and pepper.¹ Katzer notes that prepared mustard is a common condiment for boiled or broiled meat across Central and Northern Europe.⁴ See mustard powder and brown mustard seeds.

Lemon and other acids

A squeeze of lemon over sautéed kale, or lemon juice in a raw kale salad dressing, balances the green’s bitterness.

Olive oil

Olive oil isn’t a spice, but it’s the usual fat for sautéing kale, dressing it raw and coating kale chips before baking.

The German classic: kale with Pinkel

Bremen’s version shows how plainly the dish is seasoned. A big pot of curly kale cooks down with onions, lard and stock, then simmers with smoked pork, boiled sausages and Pinkel sausages, with optional porridge to thicken it. It’s finished with mustard, salt and pepper.¹ Most of the flavor comes from the onions, lard and smoked meats. The only added spices are pepper and mustard.¹

Kale and vitamin K

USDA data list raw kale at 390 µg of vitamin K per 100 g.⁵ NIH’s Office of Dietary Supplements gives an average daily recommended vitamin K intake of 120 mcg for adult men and 90 mcg for adult women, and names kale among the leafy greens that supply it.⁶ By our math, that puts 100 g of raw kale at more than three times the men’s figure.

That matters for one group. ODS warns that vitamin K can interact seriously with the blood thinner warfarin (Coumadin), and that people taking it should keep their vitamin K intake about the same from day to day.⁶ If you’re on warfarin and plan to eat a lot more kale, check with your doctor first.

Related

• Garlic
• Red pepper flakes
• Black pepper
• Yellow mustard seeds