Easy creamed kale in cashew sauce (Dairy-free)

But sometimes you want to eat food for pleasure alone – not just for the nutrients an ingredient provides.

That’s where this vegan creamed kale recipe comes in. It takes that dark leafy green superstar and turns it into a cozy and warming side dish.

Kale is steamed first to soften the leaves. Then it’s added to a skillet with sauteed garlic, and finished in a creamy cashew sauce that’s flavored with umami-rich miso, nutritional yeast, and tamari.

The end result is a side dish that feels worthy of a dinner party. (No one has to know it took you less than twenty minutes to make it!)

In this post:

Here are the ingredients you will need to make this recipe.

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

Raw cashews: Look for raw cashews with other nuts in the center aisles of the grocery store. They add creaminess and body. I recommend using raw cashew pieces since they’re usually cheaper than whole.

Tamari: This Japanese-style soy sauce adds richness, salt, and umami. If can be replaced with whatever soy sauce you prefer.

White miso paste: Look for this fermented soybean paste in the refrigerated section of the grocery store near the tofu. It adds salt and umami.

Nutritional yeast flakes: This inactive yeast adds slight cheesiness to the sauce. If you don’t have it or don’t like it, simply omit it. (For more information on nutritional yeast, check out this explanatory post.)

Avocado oil: Any neutral-flavored cooking oil can be used here, but avocado oil is my go-to.

Garlic: I recommend finely mincing fresh garlic, or using a garlic press or grater.

Salt & pepper: A little salt and pepper finishes the whole thing off. Add them both to taste.

This section shows how to make this recipe at a glance with process photos of the steps. For complete ingredient amounts & instructions, keep scrolling to the recipe card below.

1. Fill a pot with about an inch of water and cover with steamer insert. Add chopped kale.

2. Cover steamer pot with lid, and bring to a boil. Steam for 3 to 5 minutes, until the kale is bright green. Then remove from heat and set aside.

3. In a high-speed blender (like Vitamix), make the creamy cashew sauce. Add the following to the blender:

• Water
• Raw cashews
• Tamari
• White miso paste
• Nutritional yeast flakes

4. Blend until completely smooth.

5. Saute minced garlic in oil in a skillet over medium heat until fragrant.

6. Add steamed kale to the skillet, and combine the kale with the garlic.

7. Lower the heat and pour in the creamy cashew sauce. Use a spatula to fully incorporate the sauce with the kale.

Allow the sauce to reduce and cook down. Once the sauce has reduced, turn off the heat, add salt & pepper, and then serve.

You can make this simple side dish your own by varying the ingredients.

• Replace curly kale with a different type of kale like lacinato (dinosaur) or purple
• If your kale bunch is on the small side, you can make a smaller batch of cashew sauce (See instructions in recipe card notes.)
• Season the kale with a pinch of nutmeg
• Finish the dish with toasted breadcrumbs or several dashes of vegan parmesan cheese

This dairy-free creamed kale is an easy side dish for weeknights, but it’s also perfect for holidays like Thanksgiving or Christmas.

It’s great alongside breaded seitan and mashed potatoes or buttery noodles. It’s also wonderful with any of these dishes:

• Baked tofu with lemon & rosemary
• Vegan garlic butter noodles
• Grilled lemon rosemary tofu
• Mini vegetable pot pie
• Hot open faced sandwich
• Baked farro with tomatoes & herbs
• French lentils with caramelized onions
• Seitan piccata
• Vegan fried chicken drumsticks

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They will keep for 3 or 4 days.

Reheat in the microwave or in a skillet on the stove.

📖 Recipe

Easy creamed kale in cashew sauce

Author: Cadry Nelson

5 from 3 votes

In this tasty side dish, hearty kale is enveloped in a creamy & flavorful cashew sauce. It's simple enough for a weeknight dinner, but feels fancy enough for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or other holiday gatherings.

Depending on the size of your kale and appetites, this side dish will serve 2 to 4 people.

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 12 minutes minutes

Total Time: 17 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 people

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American, Vegan

Keyword: greens recipe, holiday recipe, thanksgiving recipe

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 large bunch curly kale leaves roughly chopped with ribs removed
• ▢ ¾ cup water plus more for steaming
• ▢ ¼ cup raw cashews soaked if necessary
• ▢ ¾ teaspoon tamari
• ▢ ½ teaspoon white miso paste
• ▢ 1 teaspoon nutritional yeast flakes
• ▢ ½ teaspoon avocado oil or your preferred neutral-flavored oil
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic minced
• ▢ Pinch of salt
• ▢ Dash of pepper

Instructions

• ▢
  Fill a pot with steamer insert with about an inch of water. Bring to a boil. Put kale in steamer insert and cover with lid. Steam for 3 to 5 minutes, until it is bright green. Then remove from heat and set aside.
• ▢
  While the kale is steaming, make the creamy cashew sauce. Into a high speed blender, add ¾ cup water, tamari, white miso paste, and nutritional yeast flakes. Blend until completely smooth. (Stop and scrape down the sides of the blender, if necessary.)

  If your bunch of kale is especially small and/or if you're using a standard blender, see the notes below for more instructions.
• ▢
  Bring a skillet to a medium heat and add oil. Add minced garlic to the skillet and saute for a couple minutes, until fragrant.
• ▢
  Add steamed kale to the skillet. Use a spatula to fully combine the kale with the garlic.
• ▢
  Lower the heat and add the creamy cashew sauce. Use a spatula to totally incorporate the sauce with the kale. Allow the sauce to reduce and cook down.

  If your kale bunch is large, this won't take long at all – 30 seconds to a minute. If your kale bunch is small, there will be more liquid vs. kale. So you'll have to cook it longer to reduce the liquid.
• ▢
  Once the sauce has reduced, turn off the heat. Add a pinch of salt and dash of pepper. Then serve.

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. 

Small kale bunch instructions

Even though kale is always sold in bunches, the size of bunches can vary quite a bit. If your bunch of kale is especially small, you may not want quite so much sauce. For less sauce, reduce the amount of raw cashews to 3 Tablespoons and water to ½ cup. All of the other ingredients can stay the same.

Standard blender instructions

If you’re using a high-speed blender, you don’t need to soak the raw cashews before blending. However, if you’re using a standard blender, you may need to help the blender to break down the raw cashews fully.

Choose one of these 4 options to soften the cashews. #1 is my preferred option. 

1. Grind the dry raw cashews in a coffee grinder until they have the consistency of flour. Then add them to the blender with the other ingredients.
2. Put raw cashews in a bowl, cover them in water, and allow them to soak for a few hours to soften them. Then drain the cashews and add them to the blender with the other ingredients.
3. Boil the raw cashews in water for 15 minutes. Then drain & add to the blender.
4. Microwave raw cashews in water for 2 minutes. Then drain & add to the blender.

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Nutrition

Calories: 67kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 111mg | Potassium: 187mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 3248IU | Vitamin C: 31mg | Calcium: 91mg | Iron: 1mg