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Salty, crispy kale chips that are baked in the oven make the perfect healthy snack! All you need is fresh kale, olive oil and some salt and you have a crispy treat ready to nibble on.
Try my air fryer kale chips for another easy method – it’s actually far easier than this one if you have an air fryer! But if you don’t have an air fryer, then this method is the one for you!
Fast and Easy Crispy Kale Chips
If you like kale chips, you like kale chips. I feel like there is nothing more polarizing than these green crispy snacks, either you love them, or you loathe them. My family is split, Mr. Magpie, my son, and I think they’re a delicious snack, while my daughter is a hard pass!
Ingredients for Crispy Kale Chips
- 1 bunch of kale
- 1 -2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 tsp of fine sea salt – to taste.
What Type of Kale is Best for Making Kale Chips?
Now, all kale is not created equal for making kale chips. I prefer the curly kale for making chips, it’s less likely to crumble apart instead of crisping up nicely and you get a slight chewiness with it as well. It also seems to roast up better since it’s curled up, allowing air to circulate among the pieces more than a flat leaf kale like Lacinato kale.
How to Wash and Cut the Kale
- Wash and dry your kale completely. I find it’s easier to wash the large pieces of kale before you cut them up. If you don’t dry your kale completely, it will not crisp up as nicely in the oven!
- Take a pair of kitchen shears or a knife and cut the leaves off of the large middle stem. The middle rib is too tough to roast and is the most bitter part of kale as well.
- Tear or cut the kale into pieces around 2 inches long.
How to Make Kale Chips
So here’s the how-to-make kale chips folks. It’s so seriously easy!
- Place the kale into a large bowl then drizzle the olive oil over it. I work the olive oil in using my hands instead of tossing it. Curly kale has more nooks and crannies than the other kale does, so I make sure that it’s coated completely. Too much oil can cause limp kale, but too little and you’re not crisping it up!
- Place in a single layer on a baking sheet and sprinkle with salt. I love mine good and salty, you may have to start at 1/2 tsp and work your way up to what you prefer.
- Bake in a 300-degree oven for 10-15 minutes. Now, here’s where it gets tricky. This time is going to completely depend on the type of oven you have, how good the air circulates in it, how correct the heat temperature is. I suggest checking these at around the 8-minute mark and watching them closely. Mine took close to 15 minutes to dry out and crisp up, your kale chips might take more or less.
- You bake them until they are crisped up like I show in the pictures.
Flavored Kale Chips
- Try sprinkling 1 tsp garlic powder along with the salt for garlic kale chips
- Add 1/2 tsp chili powder and 1/2 tsp of cumin along with the salt for Tex-Mex kale chips
- Are you a dill lover? Try 1 tsp or more of dill with the salt!
These kale chips were a hit with two out of four family members. I’m not surprised that my daughter didn’t like them, but I am even more surprised that Mike DID like them enough to snack a bit! He tasted one and was like “meh”. Then he came back and said, “Wait a second, those are actually really good!”. That basically sums up what kale chips are like. You eat one and you might not be that impressed. Then something in your mind triggers that hey, maybe I should eat another. Then you eat another…and another. And then all of a sudden, they are gone!
They are a “green” tasting snack (not in a bad way) and not crispy like a potato chip. They are crispy to start then get a little bit chewy. You’ll just have to try them yourself to see what I mean! Let me know if you give these a try at home!
Thanks for stopping in everyone!
Love,
Karlynn
How To Make Kale Chips
Ingredients
- one large bunch of kale
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt to taste
Instructions
- Wash and dry your kale completely.
- Take a pair of kitchen shears and cut the leaves off of the large middle stem.
- Tear or cut the kale into pieces around 2 inches long.
- Place the kale into a large bowl then drizzle the olive oil over it. I work the olive oil in using my hands instead of tossing it.
- Place in a single layer on a baking sheet and sprinkle with salt.
- Bake in a 300°F oven for 10-15 minutes, shaking the pan 5 minutes in. Start checking them at 8 minutes then remove from the oven when they are dried out and crispy.
- Cool and enjoy!
Nutrition
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angela hammill says
these are surprisingly yummy….kale used to scare me because its healthy!!! but now its a perfect snack 🙂