Wednesday Food Blogging: Kale with White Beans and Brown Rice

On Saturday my daughter's softball team had a triple header, up near Peterborough. After driving home through a rain storm, and another M25 diversion, we were hungry and too tired to cook, but the thought of three people eating out in this country makes my wallet shudder.

Fortunately I had a bag of chopped kale in the fridge (for some reason, kale comes pre-chopped here) and with the help of quick-cooking brown rice, I soon had dinner on the table. See how easy it is to cook up a vegetarian meal in a hurry? And cheap, too. Do your budget a favor; cook greens and beans instead of steak some night.

Cruciferous greens are kind to you waistline, too, and of course contain cancer-fighting antioxidants, plus calcium for us milk-haters. And with crushed red pepper and Tabasco for a kick in the taste buds, no one can complain there's no there there.

If you haven't tried kale, or you haven't been able to convince your kids to eat it, give this a try. (Maybe you could lay off the Tabasco, for tender young tongues.) Remember, kale, unlike most greens, needs to be cooked well or it is too chewy. Don't worry, though, there are plenty of vitamins to spare.

Kale with White Beans and Brown Rice

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 lb (200 g) kale, chopped
1-2 cups vegetable broth or water
1 teaspoon vegetarian worcestershire sauce or soy sauce
1 cup white beans (cannellini works fine)
salt and pepper to taste
splash of Tabasco
cooked brown rice

In a large skillet or dutch oven, saute onion and garlic in olive oil over medium-high heat. When soft, add red pepper and kale and cook down, about 5 minutes. Lower heat, and add broth, worcestershire sauce, and beans. (Start with 1 cup of broth; add more as needed.) Cover and cook until kale is soft, about 20 minutes, on medium-low heat.

Add salt and pepper to taste, and serve with Tabasco and cooked brown rice.

Comments

[Rod]

mmmmmm Kale. I like to sautee in a little olive oil and add just a touch of Balsamic vinegar. Same thing works well with chard or mustard/collard greens.

[KathyF]

Ah, yes. I like greens with cider vinegar infused with a good splash of Tabasco. Simple and delicious!

[SusanV]

Greens and white beans is one of my favorite quick meals. Bring on the Tabasco!

[Diane]

For those who want some flavor but don't want it hot, Tobasco Green is great. It tastes like the pepper-flavored liquid my father used to shake out of the pepper bottle onto his peas when I was a child. I use Tobasco Green for lots of things.

[kathryn]

Thanks for this recipe, I've been making all sorts of combinations of it, since reading your post.

Depending on what's in the fridge and pantry I've had it with silverbeet, cabbage, spinach, barley instead of rice and I've also topped off with a poached egg, when I've been out of beans. It's so simple, flexible and delicious.