Sautéed kale with garlic (Easy side dish)

One thing I appreciate about kale is its versatility.

You can eat it raw or cooked.

You can have it for breakfast in a tofu scramble. Or tuck it into a cherry smoothie.

It can be served alongside vegan fried chicken or lasagna at dinner.

Kale is hardier than spinach. So when cooked, it keeps its shape.

And you don’t have quite the same stark disappearing act as it cooks.

It’s also lighter and less fibrous than collard greens. So it doesn’t require the same lengthy cooking time to soften its leaves.

One of my favorite ways to prepare kale is sautéed.

My easy sautéed kale recipe has lots of garlic flavor. Plus, it’s a terrific way to work more nutrient-dense dark, leafy greens into your meals.

In this post:

Kale: Curly kale is my preferred option, but lacinato or purple kale will also work.

Oil: Avocado oil is my go-to, but any neutral-flavored cooking oil will work here.

Garlic: Fresh garlic really makes the flavor pop. For easy mincing, use my favorite garlic press. You don’t even have to peel the garlic before pressing!

Bouillon: A little Better Than Bouillon no chicken base adds salt and umami. If you don’t have this ingredient, it can easily be omitted.

Salt: A pinch of salt makes the flavor pop. (If you’re using bouillon, go light on the salt.)

Bring a sauté pan or pot to a medium heat with oil.

Sauté minced garlic cloves until fragrant.

Add chopped kale & sauté.

Add a splash of water + bouillon (or vegetable broth). Give everything a stir.

The kale will kind of steam from the liquid.

Cook for 2 to 10 minutes, depending on how soft you prefer it.

For even softer kale, turn the heat to low & cover with a lid.

You can make this sautéed kale your own by varying the cooking length or seasonings.

Cook it a longer or shorter amount of time

If you like it just lightly cooked, only sauté it for a couple minutes after adding water. Once it’s bright green, it’s good to go.

If you like the leaves to be really soft & almost fall apart in your mouth, turn the heat to low, cover the pot, and cook the kale for about 10 minutes.

It’s done when all of the water & moisture in the kale has cooked off.

Use broth instead of water + bouillon

Instead of adding Better Than Bouillon and water, you can use vegetable broth. Or simply omit the bouillon and use water.

The bouillon isn’t essential. It simply adds a subtle bit of richness & salt.

Vary the seasonings

Try finishing the sautéed kale with a squeeze of lemon juice or splash of red wine vinegar for tang.

Season it with red pepper flakes, black pepper, or your preferred seasoning salt.

For crunch, add a handful of toasted pine nuts.

This easy side dish can be served any time of year. It’s equally good for the winter holidays as it is for a summertime patio gathering.

Serve it with these main courses:

• Vegan fried shrimp
• Buffalo chickpea sandwich
• Vegan pulled pork
• Veggie wraps with tahini sauce
• Hot open faced sandwich
• Air fryer stuffed peppers
• Grilled tofu with lemon & rosemary
• French lentils du Puy with caramelized onions
• Seitan piccata (below)

Kale is terrific massaged into a salad or added to your favorite soup.

More kale recipes to try:

• Use it raw in a kale salad with roasted chickpeas
• Add it to a vegan quiche or vegan frittata
• Throw a handful into a pumpkin smoothie
• Get cozy & include it in soups like creamy gnocchi soup, potsticker soup, or sweet potato peanut stew
• Enjoy it cold in sesame kale
• Get spicy with it in a sweet potato black bean hash
• Turn it into a crispy snack of air fryer kale chips

📖 Recipe

Sautéed kale with garlic

Author: Cadry Nelson

5 from 7 votes

Sautéed kale is a terrific, nutrient-dense, and easy side dish. It's vegan & gluten-free. Plus, it goes well with almost any main course.

Depending on the size of your kale bunch & appetites, this can serve 2 to 4 people.

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 people

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American, Vegan

Keyword: easy side dish, greens recipe, vegetable side dish

Ingredients

• ▢ ½ teaspoon avocado oil or your preferred cooking oil
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic minced
• ▢ 1 bunch curly kale leaves coarsely chopped with ribs removed**
• ▢ 1 to 2 Tablespoons water Plus an extra splash, if needed
• ▢ ⅛ teaspoon Better Than Bouillon, no chicken base optional
• ▢ Pinch of salt

Instructions

• ▢
  Bring a skillet or pot to a medium heat with oil. Add garlic & sauté until fragrant, about a minute or so.
• ▢
  Add chopped kale, 1 to 2 Tablespoons of water (depending on the size of the bunch), Better Than Bouillon (if using), and a pinch of salt. Continue cooking the kale, stirring occasionally, until it is wilted and soft.

  For bright green steamed kale, cook for 2 or 3 minutes. For softer kale that's deeper in color, turn the heat to low & cover with a lid. Cook for about 10 minutes, until all of the liquid cooks off.
• ▢
  Taste for salt and add more, if needed.

Notes

Curly kale can be replaced with any kind of kale that you enjoy.

Although kale stems can be eaten, I prefer this dish without them. While you’re washing the kale, pull the leaves off of the stems with your hands. Then chop the leaves. You don’t need to dry off the kale before using it in this dish. It will add extra moisture.

If your bunch of kale is on the large side, you’ll want to use 2 Tablespoons of water. If it’s small, you can use just 1. If you can’t decide, err on the side of more. As it’s cooking, if it looks like the kale is too dry or not softening enough, add another splash of water.

Instead of water + bouillon, you can use vegetable broth or just plain water without the bouillon.

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Nutrition

Calories: 23kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Sodium: 13mg | Potassium: 166mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 3247IU | Vitamin C: 39mg | Calcium: 52mg | Iron: 1mg