Braised Kale with Bacon and Cider

Randy Mayor; Lydia DeGaris-Pursell
This recipe calls for what might appear to be a lot of kale, but it wilts to a manageable amount in the pan. The dish is a suitable side for roast chicken or pork. Also, consider using kale as a stand-in for spinach in other dishes. This low-calorie side dish has about 15 percent of the minimum daily recommended amount of fiber.
Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 2/3 cup)
Ingredients
- 2 bacon slices
- 1 1/4 cups thinly sliced onion
- 1 (1-pound) bag chopped kale
- 1/3 cup apple cider
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 1/2 cups diced Granny Smith apple (about 10 ounces)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
Place a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add bacon; cook 5 minutes or until crisp, stirring occasionally. Remove bacon from pan, reserving 1 teaspoon drippings in pan. Crumble bacon, and set aside.
Increase heat to medium-high. Add onion to pan; cook 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Add kale, and cook 5 minutes or until wilted, stirring frequently. Add cider and vinegar; cover and cook 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add apple, salt, and pepper; cook 5 minutes or until apple is tender, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with bacon.
Nutritional Information
- Calories:
- 75 (28% from fat)
- Fat:
- 2.3g (sat 0.8g,mono 0.9g,poly 0.4g)
- Protein:
- 2.5g
- Carbohydrate:
- 12.7g
- Fiber:
- 2.1g
- Cholesterol:
- 3mg
- Iron:
- 1mg
- Sodium:
- 255mg
- Calcium:
- 71mg
Member Ratings and Reviews
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This is perfect for the Fall/Winter time when you might have apple cider on hand in your fridge. I had some cider from Thanksgiving leftover and it was a great way to use the kale and apples from my produce box. With the bacon, vinegar, sweet from the apples and cider, and pepper....all your flavors were a perfect balance. Like other reviews....you need to cook it 2x longer to make the greens softer (but they were still a bit chewy, which is good). I served it with lamb, pork, and polenta and it was perfect. And there was nothing left!12/05/08
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This is a great recipe, although I love Kale and do not see the need to add apples, but my boyfriend LOVED the combo...also, we cooked much longer than recipe indicates05/19/08




