Smoky Braised Kale With Tomato

- Total Time
- 1 hour
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- ¼cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2Spanish onions, peeled and diced
- 8cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
- ¼cup tomato paste
- 1teaspoon hot smoked paprika (pimentón)
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 3cups turkey or chicken stock, ideally homemade or low-sodium
- 1tablespoon red wine vinegar, plus more to taste
- 4(¾-pound) bunches washed kale (any kind), thick stems discarded or cut into thin strips, leaves cut into thick strips (about 16 packed cups total)
Preparation
- Step 1
Place a large, heavy-bottomed, high-sided pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add olive oil. When it shimmers, add onions and garlic and cook until they soften and begin to turn translucent, about 5 to 7 minutes.
- Step 2
Add tomato paste and smoked paprika, reduce heat to medium, and cook, stirring frequently, until the paste begins to caramelize, about 5 to 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, then add stock and vinegar, and allow to come to a boil.
- Step 3
Add half the kale, cover, and cook for a minute or two, until it wilts. Repeat with remaining kale. Stir to incorporate the onion mixture into the soft kale and simmer until tender, 20 to 30 minutes, partly covered. Season to taste with salt and pepper, drizzle with a little more vinegar, and serve.
Private Notes
Comments
Delicious!! I've been making a version of this since in appeared in the "you don't need a recipe" newsletter. For the two in our household, I use 1 extra-large bunch of kale, one onion and 3 cloves garlic. Go heavy on the smoked paprika and vinegar--it really amps the flavor, as does a shake of crushed red pepper. And I always add some diced, cooked chicken or smoked andouille sausage to make it a one-dish meal, perfect for cold weather. A winner!
Can this be made ahead and reheated?
I added more tomato paste, more smoked paprika, less kale, included mushrooms and chickpeas and served it with polenta. It was really great. A very forgiving recipe! Probably took 40 mins from start to sitting down to eat though I could have been faster.
Delicious! For two person household, I quartered all ingredients. I added farro and had cheese omelette on the side for a satisfying yet simple weekday meal.
This is so easy and delicious. It will become a standard in my repertoire of sides. FWIW, I followed advice to reduce the liquid a bit. And I didn't bother using stock; just a splash of wine and water. All the aromatics and olive oil gave it plenty of flavor.
Red onion, added mushrooms - also changed proportions b/c I was using what was left of kale and for one - but worked great and will be using variations of this to cook braised greens!
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