Healthy Kale Recipes

Find healthy, delicious kale recipes including kale chips, kale with sausage, and sautéed kale. Healthier recipes, from the food and nutrition experts at EatingWell.

Staff Picks

Vegetable Weight-Loss Soup

Rating: Unrated
21
A big bowl of this veggie-packed minestrone will leave you satisfied for hours without consuming a lot of calories--plus it's an easy way to boost your vegetable servings for the day. Top with a dollop of pesto before devouring this delicious skinny vegetable soup.
By Hilary Meyer

Skillet Lemon Chicken & Potatoes with Kale

Rating: Unrated
7
This easy one-pan skillet-roasted lemon chicken is perfect for weeknight dinners. Juicy chicken thighs are cooked in the same pan as baby potatoes and kale for a satisfying meal with the added bonus of minimal cleanup.
By Carolyn Casner

Slow-Cooker Mediterranean Stew

Rating: Unrated
3
This Mediterranean stew is a healthy dinner chock-full of vegetables and hearty chickpeas. A drizzle of olive oil to finish carries the flavors of this easy vegan crock-pot stew. Swap out the chickpeas for white beans for a different twist, or try collards or spinach in place of the kale. Any way you vary it, this stew is sure to go into heavy rotation when you are looking for healthy crock-pot recipes.
By Sarah Epperson

Sheet-Pan Chicken Fajita Bowls

Rating: Unrated
3
Skip the tortillas in favor of this warm fajita salad, which features a nutritious medley of chicken with roasted kale, bell peppers and black beans. The chicken, beans and vegetables are all cooked on the same pan, so this healthy dinner is easy to make and the cleanup is easy too.
By Sara Haas, R.D.N., L.D.N.

Roasted Root Veggies & Greens over Spiced Lentils

Rating: Unrated
2
This earthy bowl of lentils bursting with Middle Eastern flavors is topped with leftover roasted root veggies from a large batch for an easy weeknight dinner. Keep it vegan or add a drizzle of plain yogurt for extra richness.
By Sylvia Fountaine

Slow-Cooker Chicken & White Bean Stew

Rating: Unrated
10
This load-and-go slow-cooker chicken recipe is perfect for a busy weeknight dinner. Serve this Tuscan-inspired dish with crusty bread, a glass of Chianti and a salad.
By Adam Dolge

Vegan Superfood Buddha Bowls

Rating: Unrated
3
This nutrient-packed vegan Buddha bowl recipe comes together in 15 minutes with the help of a few convenience-food shortcuts like prewashed baby kale, microwavable quinoa and precooked beets. Pack these ahead to keep on hand for easy meal-prep lunches or dinners on busy nights.
By Carolyn A. Hodges, R.D.

Mason Jar Power Salad with Chickpeas & Tuna

Rating: Unrated
1
This power salad will keep you fueled for hours, thanks to 26 grams of protein and 8 grams of fiber. Tossing the dressing and kale, and then letting it stand in the jar, softens it enough so you don't need to massage or cook it to make it tender.
By Katie Webster

Slow-Cooker Vegetable Soup

Rating: Unrated
13
Make a big batch of low-calorie veggie-packed soup with ease in this load-and-go crock pot recipe. After simmering away in the slow cooker, portion it into individual serving containers and store in the fridge or freezer for fast, healthy lunches or an easy, satisfying snack. This weight-loss vegetable soup fills you up without a lot of calories, plus it's an easy way to eat more vegetables.
By Hilary Meyer

Roasted Salmon with Smoky Chickpeas & Greens

Rating: Unrated
9
In this healthy salmon dinner, you'll get a dose of greens and green dressing! Chowing down on 6 or more servings of dark leafy greens a week can help keep your brain in top shape. This dish features the Test Kitchen's current go-to method for doctoring a can of chickpeas: spice them up and roast until crispy.
By Breana Killeen

Stuffed Sweet Potato with Hummus Dressing

Rating: Unrated
14
Hearty yet simple to prepare, this stuffed sweet potato with black beans, kale and hummus dressing is a fantastic 5-ingredient lunch for one!
By Katie Webster

Cauliflower & Kale Frittata

Rating: Unrated
2
Inspired by traditional Spanish tortillas made with potatoes, this healthy frittata recipe swaps potatoes for low-carb cauliflower. Serve it along with kale (or your favorite greens) for brunch or an easy breakfast-for-dinner.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Inspiration and Ideas

16 Kale Salads Perfect for Summer

16 Kale Salads Perfect for Summer

Tuscan White Bean Soup

Tuscan White Bean Soup

Rating: Unrated
2
A pound of dried beans is the inexpensive foundation for this simple, hearty meal. Serve it with slices of whole-wheat bread or a side salad for a complete and satisfying lunch or dinner.
Low-Carb Chicken Soup

Low-Carb Chicken Soup

Superfood Chopped Salad with Salmon & Creamy Garlic Dressing

Superfood Chopped Salad with Salmon & Creamy Garlic Dressing

Rating: Unrated
3
Herby Mediterranean Fish with Wilted Greens & Mushrooms

Herby Mediterranean Fish with Wilted Greens & Mushrooms

Really Green Smoothie

Really Green Smoothie

Rating: Unrated
2

Adobo Chicken & Kale Enchiladas

Rating: Unrated
8

Put out your favorite toppings for these quick and healthy layered enchiladas. We like cilantro, sour cream, guacamole and jalapeños.

All Healthy Kale Recipes

One-Pot Tomato Basil Pasta

Rating: Unrated
4
This one-pot pasta with tangy tomato-basil sauce is a simple, fast and easy weeknight dinner. All of your ingredients go into one pot, and with a bit of stirring and about 25 minutes of cook time, you'll have a healthy dinner the whole family will enjoy.
By Carolyn Casner

Roasted Kalettes

Kalettes, a cross between kale and Brussels sprouts, cook quickly in a hot oven in this easy vegetable side dish recipe.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Green Veggie Bowl with Chicken & Lemon-Tahini Dressing

Rating: Unrated
4
For this healthy 30-minute dinner, treat your veggies like pasta and cook until al dente, or just done. If you have a little extra time, double or triple the lemon-tahini dressing and use it to quickly dress a salad or as a sauce for steak or shrimp.
By Joy Howard

White Bean-Sausage Soup

Rating: Unrated
2
Make this heart-healthy main-dish white bean and sausage soup with fresh onions. If you're really pressed for time, look for frozen chopped onions, which can be added to soups and stews in seconds.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Mediterranean Lentil & Kale Salad

The kale and lentils in this Mediterranean-inspired salad recipe are combined with sweet red peppers and a bold garlic and dried tomato vinaigrette. To cut down on prep time, we use refrigerated steamed lentils, but offer instructions on preparing your own.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Smoky Chicken Stew with Kale & Pinto Beans

Chipotle chile powder is made from smoked jalapeño peppers that are dried and ground, giving this stew a hint of smoky flavor.
By Joy Howard

BBQ Shrimp with Garlicky Kale & Parmesan-Herb Couscous

Rating: Unrated
4
In the U.S., dry whole-wheat couscous has been partially cooked, making it a quick-cooking (5 minutes!) whole-grain weeknight dinner champ. And when you buy peeled shrimp, plus a bag of prechopped kale and bottled barbecue sauce, the savings in prep time helps to get this healthy dinner done in a jiff.
By Breana Killeen

Kale, Wild Rice & Chicken Stew

Chicken thighs get perfectly tender in just a few hours in the slow cooker. Plus, cooking everything together low and slow infuses all the flavors together for complexity in every bite.
By Devon O'Brien

Ginger-Beet Juice

Rating: Unrated
7
In this healthy ginger-beet juice recipe, we pack in vegetables by adding kale and a carrot, and sweeten with an orange and apple. No juicer? No problem. See the juicing variation below to make this beet juice recipe in the blender.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Zuppa Toscana

Rating: Unrated
3
This creamy soup is packed with savory flavor from Italian sausage and bacon. But don't worry, we tucked in healthy ingredients too, like kale and white beans, for added nutrition and fiber to round out a healthy dinner or packable lunch.
By Hilary Meyer

Kale Salad with Beets & Wild Rice

Rating: Unrated
2
Beets and kale, speckled with chewy wild rice and crunchy sunflower seeds, make a satisfying, colorful dinner salad. The beets are nicest when they are sliced paper thin. Use a mandoline or vegetable slicer, if you have one.
By Carolyn Casner

Sweet Potato, Kale & Chicken Salad with Peanut Dressing

These hearty kale salads hold up well for 4 days, making them perfect for meal-prep lunches. To keep the ingredients from getting soggy, dress this salad and top it with peanuts just before serving. For a delicious vegan option, swap in roasted tofu for the chicken breast (see Associated Recipes).
By Carolyn A. Hodges, R.D.

Jason Mraz's Avocado Green Smoothie

Rating: Unrated
3
To make this green smoothie recipe a meal-in-a-glass, musician Mraz adds a tablespoon of coconut oil and some sprouted flax or chia seeds.
By Jason Mraz

Crispy Chickpea Grain Bowl with Lemon Vinaigrette

Rating: Unrated
3
Our favorite part of these vegetarian grain bowls is the tangy lemon vinaigrette, which ties together a satisfying combo of quinoa, toasted pumpkin seeds, and roasted chickpeas and kale. Whip them up for easy meal-prep lunches or a healthy and satisfying dinner.
By Sara Haas, R.D.N., L.D.N.

Baked Eggs in Tomato Sauce with Kale

Rating: Unrated
2
You can make these three-ingredient tomato-simmered eggs with things you probably already have on hand in your freezer and pantry. To make these baked eggs more like eggs in purgatory, look for a spicy tomato sauce and don't forget some whole-wheat bread for dipping.
By Lauren Grant

Kale & Strawberry Salad

In this kale and strawberry salad, apple-cider vinegar and mustard flavor the dressing while fresh strawberries offer a touch of sweetness. Creamy herbed goat cheese completes this healthy salad that's perfect for lunch or dinner.
By Ali Ramee

Brazilian Black Bean Soup

Rating: Unrated
10
Brazil's cuisine often features smoky, grilled meats, but this healthy vegetarian bean soup recipe is completely meat-free. Instead, blackened jalapeños, fire-roasted tomatoes and smoked paprika provide the Brazilian flair. A little molasses adds a sweet-toasty note, and the kale, while not traditional, bumps up your daily veggie count.
By Danielle Centoni

Sauteed Broccoli & Kale with Toasted Garlic Butter

Rating: Unrated
3
In this easy vegetable side dish, broccoli and kale are drizzled with a butter, garlic and crushed red pepper sauce. Serve this healthy recipe alongside roasted chicken, turkey or ham--or on top of your favorite whole grain, such as quinoa or farro.
By Lia Huber

Chicken Thighs with Couscous & Kale

Rating: Unrated
7
One-pot meals, like this all-in-one chicken thigh, kale and Israeli couscous recipe, are perfect for nights when you want to keep cleanup to a minimum. Look for Israeli couscous--small pearl-shaped pasta made from semolina flour--near other Middle Eastern dry goods in well-stocked supermarkets or specialty-foods stores.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Cobb Salad with Herb-Rubbed Chicken

Try this satisfying salad recipe for an updated version of the classic Cobb. Kale, feta and strawberries give this chicken salad a colorful upgrade.
By Gaby Dalkin

Eat-the-Rainbow Chopped Salad with Basil & Mozzarella

Rating: Unrated
3
This fresh and colorful salad has all of the delicious flavors you love from the classic caprese salad, plus even more healthy veggies. Double this and top each portion with 3 ounces grilled or roasted chicken to take it from a simple side to a quick main dish.
By Carolyn Casner

Greek Kale Salad with Quinoa & Chicken

Rating: Unrated
2
Toss the cooked chicken into this healthy 5-ingredient salad recipe while it's still warm to lightly wilt the kale, making it softer and easier to eat. Using store-bought salad dressing saves time, but you could also make your own Mediterranean vinaigrette.
By Joy Howard

Hearty Tomato Soup with Beans & Greens

Garlicky kale and creamy white beans elevate simple canned tomato soup into a 10-minute lunch or dinner that really satisfies. Use a soup with tomato pieces for a heartier texture. Look for a brand that's low- or reduced-sodium, with no more than 450 mg sodium per serving.
By Carolyn A. Hodges, R.D.

Fall Vegetable & Sausage Stew

Hot Italian sausage complements the sweet potatoes and greens, providing just the right amount of heat in this comforting soup. Simmering with rosemary sprigs infuses the soup with aromatic flavor without the extra work required to mince the leaves before cooking them.
By Andrea Kirkland
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