16 Kale Recipes That Actually Make the Bunch in Your Fridge Exciting Again

A dish of roasted kale salad with wooden serving spoons on a blue tablecloth — Serious Eats / Qi Ai

Kale is as ubiquitous in the produce aisle as carrots, spinach, and broccoli. In fact, I would say it's the superstar of leafy greens. Available in so many varieties these days, you can have your pick of everything from big, hearty stalks to tender baby leaves. If you're like me and can't resist buying more than one type, you're gonna need a lot of kale recipes. No worries there! We've got you covered with ideas to take you from breakfast to dinner and beyond. We've provided a ton of options to make the most of all that kale in your fridge, so make sure to check out these kale recipes below.

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Tofu and Kale Salad With Avocado, Grapefruit, and Miso-Tahini Dressing

Serious Eats / Victor Protasio

Crispy tofu seasoned with a hit of za'atar provides both texture and vegan protein, while creamy avocado and bright grapefruit segments complete the trifecta of hero components that make this colorful kale salad an absolute winner.

Tofu and Kale Salad With Avocado, Grapefruit, and Miso-Tahini Dressing
Warm Kale and Caramelized Mushroom Salad

Serious Eats / Qi Ai

Here, browning the mushrooms first amplifies its earthiness, gently wilts the kale, and contrasts nicely with the zippy dressing. This makes for a simple yet flavorful vegetarian lunch or starter.

Warm Kale and Caramelized Mushroom Salad
Creamed Kale

Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt Ward

Spinach doesn't have to be the only leafy green worthy of a creamy spotlight. Kale, with its hearty leaves and faintly bitter, earthy flavor, works just as well.

Creamed Kale
Kale Caesar Salad

Serious Eats / Qi Ai

All hail the kale in this hearty iteration of the tried-and-true Caesar! A quick treatment in olive oil transforms the tough leaves into tender greens. Throw in some ultra-crispy croutons and you'll be wondering why you haven't tried a kale Caesar sooner.

Kale Caesar Salad

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Kale Salad with Oven-Dried Grapes, Toasted Walnuts, and Blue Cheese

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

What really takes the classic combo of blue cheese, walnuts, and dried fruit over the top in this salad are the juicy oven-dried grapes—plump little jewels with way more personality than your run-of-the-mill raisins.

Kale Salad with Oven-Dried Grapes, Toasted Walnuts, and Blue Cheese
Crispy Kale, Brussels Sprouts, and Potato Hash

Serious Eats / Mateja Zvirotic Andrijanic

Want a satisfying vegetarian hash? Start with par-cooked potatoes that are pan-fried until golden, add a healthy dose of crispy kale and Brussels sprouts, then top the hash with a couple of poached or fried eggs—maybe some hot sauce. Brunch is served!

Crispy Kale, Brussels Sprouts, and Potato Hash
Bacon, Cheese, and Kale Strata

Serious Eats / Liz Voltz

Kale not only breaks up the cheesy layering of bacon, egg, and bread in this recipe, but also adds a fiber-rich green vegetable to balance out the dish. The beauty of this savory bread pudding is that you can assemble it ahead and pop it in the oven in the morning, making it ideal brunch fare.

Bacon, Cheese, and Kale Strata
Roasted Kale Tahini

Serious Eats / Qi Ai

A hot oven, a quick massage, and a simple sauce—suddenly kale's the best thing on your plate.

Roasted Kale Tahini

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Pasta With Beans and Greens

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

Pairing a pantry staple like white beans with kale is a simple and easy way to pack nutrition into a pasta dish. Garlic, anchovies, and dried chiles form the flavor base while the bean liquid helps to create a creamy sauce that beautifully coats the noodles.

Pasta With Beans and Greens
Hearty Vegan Polenta and Kale Soup With Miso and Toasted Sesame Oil

Serious Eats / Fred Hardy

Leave it to Kenji to take a classic Italian hearty polenta and kale soup and give it a Japanese twist. Here, he replaces the Parmesan with toasted sesame oil, light miso, soy sauce, and sliced scallion for a complex, rich umami flavor—making it completely vegan and totally satisfying.

Hearty Vegan Polenta and Kale Soup With Miso and Toasted Sesame Oil
Spanakopita (Greek Savory Greens Pie)

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

An oldie-but-goodie gets a reboot with Sohla's new-and-improved version of spanakopita, which includes a variety of greens and herbs. While this recipe is designed to utilize tender greens like arugula and spinach—as opposed to heartier ones like kale and collards—you can always use baby kale if you'd like.

Spanakopita (Greek Savory Greens Pie)
Easy Kale Quiche

Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

What better way to use up a big bunch of kale than to pack it into a cheesy quiche. A coating of butter and bread crumbs keeps the quiche from sticking to the pan and adds a nice bit of crispy browning around the edges.

Easy Kale Quiche

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Bok Choy and Kale Fried Rice With Fried Garlic

Serious Eats / Shao Z.

Fried garlic, kale, and bok choy are a match made in heaven—especially in a vegetarian fried rice. Using the garlic frying oil to stir-fry the rice and greens intensifies the overall garlic aroma.

Bok Choy and Kale Fried Rice With Fried Garlic
Caldo Verde (Portuguese Potato and Kale Soup With Sausage)

Serious Eats / Eric Kleinberg

Hailing from from northern Portugal, this potato, sausage, and kale soup is tailor-made for lazy chilly days when you want something comforting and easy to prep. It's another one-pot wonder that's ready in about 40 minutes. We recommend using both starchy and waxy potatoes for textural contrast.

Caldo Verde (Portuguese Potato and Kale Soup With Sausage)
Easy Sausage, Kale, and Black-Eyed Pea Soup With Lemon and Rosemary

Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

A flavorful sausage and aromatics like garlic, rosemary, and lemon zest are the secret to transforming dried beans and kale into a ridiculously easy to make soup. A good soak in salted water improves the texture of the beans.

Easy Sausage, Kale, and Black-Eyed Pea Soup With Lemon and Rosemary
Cheesy Mashed White Beans With Kale, Parmesan, and a Fried Egg

Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

Mashed canned white beans are a clever hack for those times when you're just too lazy to make proper grits. Top it with sautéed kale and a fried egg and you've got yourself a savory breakfast of champions.

Cheesy Mashed White Beans With Kale, Parmesan, and a Fried Egg

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16 Kale Recipes That Actually Make the Bunch in Your Fridge Exciting Again

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