Kale is one of the first garden veggie to produce a crop in early leaping . Depending on the variety and your maturate conditions , it can keep grow all season long . And , after other crop have petered out , that reliable kale patch can attend on well into late drop . Kale grows so prolifically , in fact , that you might not be capable to corrode all that you get , leaving you to enquire how to preserve this produce superfood .
You do n’t have to let it go to waste . apart from give your extras to friends , neighbors or your local soup kitchen , you may try these recollective - full term computer storage techniques .
Freezing Kale
freeze is one of the best ways to keep cabbage over the retentive catch , and it works well for all kale types . ( This year , for illustration , I maturate Lacinato , Siberian and Jersey kale varieties . Each of these freezes beautifully . However , because their overall leaf sizes and thicknesses vary , I make each kind severally before freezing.)Susan Brackney
For the very best event , you should blench your shekels before you immobilise it . “ To parboil [ kale ] , you put it in boiling water , then institute it right back out , and immerse it in ice rink - stale water system , ” Karen Richey explains . Richey isHealth and Human Sciences Extension Educator with Purdue University .
“ The philosophy behind blench is that you have enzyme in your garden truck , and those enzymes have to be shocked , ” Richey order . “ You are shocking those enzymes to just kind of [ say , ] ‘ OK . We ’ve produce to check right now . ’ By shocking the [ enzyme ] through blanching , you retain the color , you retain the flavor , and you retain the texture . So , it just better the product . ”
appall the enzyme that are naturally present in your produce also facilitate to retain more of its nutrients . It ’s best to blanch your kale in small quantities within a boiling water bath rather than via steam . “ If you steam blanch greens , the leaves can mat up together and they may not blanch properly , ” Richey notes .
To blanch kale , first rinse it thoroughly to remove any dirt or detritus . you could leave tender , new leaves whole . But you ’ll probably want to de - stem and chop shot heavy , thicker farewell . So that every kale leaf is properly pale , utilise a four - to - one ratio . That ’s four cup of washed , pack wampum foliage per one gallon of stewing water .
Bring weewee to a boiling point , add kale leaves , and , once the water returns to a boiling point , bulge timing . For very large , thickheaded parting — think Jersey kale — allow three minutes in the boiling water tub . For thinner , more ticklish leaves , blanch for up to two minutes .
Susan Brackney
Once the time ’s up , remove the kale leaf and immediately plunge them into an ice - piss bath . Allow the same amount of time for this part of the process as you did for boiling . So , if you boiled your gelt for two minutes , you ’ll also submerge it in ice rink body of water for two moment .
As time ’s up , just run out and pack your clams into Deepfreeze - safe bags or container . Once frozen , your kale can keep for up to a year .
Rather not jam with pale ? you may also add kale to your best-loved soups and stews and then freeze out service of those inclined meal instead .
Read more : Try these rare and heirloom kale varieties for something new in the garden .
Canning Kale
As with other veg , you canuse a air pressure canner to uphold kail . “ You do n’t take to summate lemon succus to kale like you would if you were canning tomatoes , ” Richey pronounce . “ But youdoneed a pressure canner , because kail is a low - acid intellectual nourishment . ”
For food safety gadget ’s saki , humiliated - acid solid food necessitate pressure canning , rather than preservation with a simple water system bath canner .
Dehydrating Kale
Dehydrators diverge , but , as a general pattern , you should be able-bodied to sue your colewort at 125 arcdegree F for five or six hour . sporadically check the progress of kale leaf on individual shelves within your dehydrator , and increase desiccation clip accordingly . leave dry out kale leaves to cool down completely before place them in an airtight container . Store the container in a cool , dark place .
As with other farsighted - full term storage methods , you ’ll belike discover some kale varieties keep up well than others . Kale with thick , flat leaves may dry more uniformly than some of the curly - leaf type .
“ When you dry kale , it can become very brittle , ” Richey says .
Although they do n’t keep quite as long as frozen or dried lolly , baking kale chipsis another tasty way to save that bumper harvest . Richey has had especially right effect with the Lacinto variety . “ They have dark , blue - fleeceable leaves and a crease texture , ” She enunciate . “ That one works the secure for chips . ”
Read more : Keep an eye out for these 4 lettuce pest .
Keep It Growing
Put in a little extra exertion this fall , and you may be able to keep your kail bring forth all winter long . I ’ve had bully results growing Russian and Siberian kale varieties outside under heavy , clean plastic .
you could use old Lycopersicon esculentum cages or PVC pipe to make tunnel armatures and then embrace with plastic sheeting . I ’ve secure my plastic sheeting with landscaping staple .
You ’ll still need to irrigate your plants as needed . And , during unseasonably fond winter days , you may also want to open up up some of the plastic to earmark for spare air travel flow .
