Crispy chilli & Szechuan peppercorn cavolo nero with roasted Thai garlic & sweet soy

Autumn is an awesome time for produce and there is some seriously tasty stuff around this time of year.
This is a bloody easy recipe which shows off how tasty kale can be, with little to no work. Put it in a soup, stir fry, curry, pickle it, steam it, pan fry it, deep-fry it or as I do in this recipe roast it, hell you can pretty much do anything with it if you like, It’s even commonly eaten raw in smoothies as it’s high in antioxidants if you’re into that kind of thing? I like to keep the stems also, when thinly sliced these can be pickled and used as tasty additions to curries and salads, definitely worth a go at some point if you have never tried it.

Thai baby garlic is smaller and sweeter, at Farang we buy it young so the skins can also be eaten as they are thinner.

People always say that you should wait until after the first frost to allow kale to sweeten and soften naturally and be at its best. To this I agree, but to waiting, most certainly not! If your kale is tough and a little bitter, stick it in the freezer for a few hours before preparation, this helps sweeten and soften the leaves making them delicious to eat and easier to cook.

Serves 2-3 (VEGAN)

Ingredients

10 cloves Thai baby garlic, (You can find Thai baby garlic in most Thai supermarkets or at Farang, however if you can’t, replace with 6 cloves normal garlic.

20g ginger, peeled
2 teaspoons coriander roots, washed and chopped
(leave these out if you can’t find them they are just an added bonus)
A small pinch coarse sea salt
100ml light soy sauce

1 tablespoon kejap manis (sweet soy sauce)
1/2 teaspoon dried chilli powder
2 teaspoon soft brown sugar

1 teaspoon caster sugar
300g, Kale (thick stems removed for this recipe, then ripped into roughly 4cm by 8cm pieces)
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon Szechuan peppercorns,
(toasted and spice ground to a fine powder)

Method

1. In a pestle and mortar or a food processor add the peeled garlic, ginger and the coriander roots and pound to a paste, using a little coarse sea salt as an abrasive if needed. Next add all the other ingredients except the kale and loosely combine. Next thoroughly toss this through the Kale making sure to coat every single piece.

2. Meanwhile preheat an oven to 80 degrees centigrade and lay these out on large baking trays lined with parchment paper, making sure not to overlap too much to allow for even cooking within the oven. Give it a little shake as you put the kale on the tray as we want it coated in the strong marinade, not drenched.Place in the oven on the lowest shelf and check every 15 minutes after the first hour and cook until it is crisp and ready to eat, it usually takes around 1.5-2 hours, depending on your oven. Do make sure to keep checking it regularly as if it is left for too long it will turn brown and taste bitter. The garlic should begin to cook with the leaves and fill the kitchen with the smell of roast garlic, most definitely one of my favourite smells. Low and slow is the aim of this game if you try to cook it on a high heat, or forget about it for even 10 minutes at the wrong time it will be game over, so be mindful of this and remember all good kale comes who those who wait.

3. Once crispy and dry to the touch allow to cool if not eating immediately. These are delicious served warm as a pre-dinner bar snack, or they can be kept for a few days in an air tight container. Serve with sweet chilli, burnt chilli or sriracha to dip as a tasty snack.

Thanks for reading and I hope you like the recipe, please do let me know your comments if you cook it up, (unless you don’t like it of course,in which case you can bugger off).

Hopefully I’ll see you in Farang soon for a bite.

Cheers,

Sebby Holmes