A must try even if you don't like Kale.

I don't know where to post this, so I thought here would be fine....

I've never been a fan of kale, but I will certainly have to give it another try using the suggestions presented here. I'll probably have to wait until I get back to green Spain up in Asturias to find the stuff though.

When I lived in the Netherlands, I learned that the Dutch use it regularly in what's called "Boerenkool Stamppot" (literal translation: "Peasant/farmer cabbage Mashed pot", or some such combination thereof, but the actual translation is "Kale Hash"). Do a search with the words in the subject area and you'll find this easy-to-make, hearty winter recipe (which isn't so bad in warm weather either).

This dish, which was often served at least once a week in the hospitals and institutions I'd worked at, always left me with the impression that adding kale was nothing more than adding green coloring to mashed potatoes; but then again, I used to be a smoker in those days and probably couldn't appreciate its subtle flavor.

By the way, there are other Stamppots that are made with endive (my favorite), and another with carrots (also good). Serve these with a worst and you're set.

Interesting cultural difference: it's common in the Netherlands to respond to the question, "What's for dinner?" by only mentioning the vegetable. When I asked this and got the response "Boerenkool" (Kale), it always prompted me to add..."And?" The look I got was that of a tolerant "he's a foreigner". It took me a while to realize that first of all, certain meats were always associated and served with certain vegetables (I never could remember which went together).
Second of all, the questions "And?" is regarded to be rude. The Netherlands was actually quite a poor country until they discovered gas under the North Sea in the 1950s, thus, there was a long history of people only having enough money to afford a vegetable for dinner and you left it at that, maybe it was accompanied with a piece of meat, maybe not. You simply don't pursue it.

I just thought I'd add trivia to the kale-craze here today at Rouxbe while at the same time promoting a small, somewhat less-known cuisine located in a corner of northern Europe.

Thanks for the info Jim. Feel free to add it to the Rouxbe facebook page as well, under the "Behold the Awesomeness of Kale" post. Cheers!

Always a big hit at dinners, love this dish.
My only tip: careful with the salt, with kale a little goes a long way!!