Kale Salad

On the TV show Ghosthunters, one of the crew remarked how odd it was that people only see Victorian-era ghosts. Obviously if ghosts exist, they can come from any era; but people’s fascination with the past leads them to want/hope to see a ghost with long flowing white dresses . . .  not one wearing torn blue jeans and an AC/DC T-shirt.

So it is with food history. We are (OK, I am) obsessed with finding out how people used to eat back in the day, instead of looking at the food history happening right in front of us. Today’s hot new food trend could easily become the mysterious old-fashioned dish researched by someone in the 22nd century. So pay attention.

Franny's on Flatbush in Brooklyn, now closed.

Enter the kale salad. It took the restaurant world (and the cookbook world) by storm in the early 2000s. But will the kale salad turn into a classic? Or will it be a blip on the food history radar, like Cheese Monkey*?

Time will tell, but since time hasn’t told quite yet, here is the original kale salad, from Joshua McFadden, the chef who is credited with introducing the kale salad in 2007 when he was working at Franny’s in Brooklyn. This is the recipe as it appears in his book on vegetables, Six Seasons: A New Way with Vegetables (Artisan, 2017).

 

The Kale Salad That Started It All

This is the raw kale salad that changed my life. I was the chef de cuisine at Franny’s in Brooklyn, back in 2007. I was mad that I couldn’t find good salad greens in the middle of winter, and I especially hated (still hate) the “mesclun mix” that lines the shelves of supermarkets—no flavor, no texture. I created this kale salad in rebellion against those crappy miserable greens, having no idea it would take the world by storm. But once it got written up in The New York Times, the world seemed to have an unending hunger for kale salads!
Serves 2 to 4 

1 bunch lacinato kale (aka Tuscan or cavolo nero), thick ribs cut out
1/2 garlic clove, finely chopped
1/4 cup finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese, plus more to finish
Extra-virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
1/8 teaspoon dried chile flakes
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup dried breadcrumbs 

     Stack several kale leaves on top of each other and roll them up into a tight cylinder. With a sharp knife (all your knives are sharp, correct?), slice crosswise into very thin, about 1/16 inch, ribbons (this is called a chiffonade). Put the kale in a salad spinner, rinse in cool water, and spin until completely dry. Pile the kale into a bowl.
     Put the chopped garlic on a cutting board and mince it even more until you have a paste (you can sort of smash and scrape the garlic with the side of the knife, as well). Transfer the garlic to a small bowl, add 1/4 cup pecorino, a healthy glug of olive oil, the lemon juice, chile flakes, ¼ teaspoon salt, and plenty of twists of black pepper and whisk to combine.
     Pour the dressing over the kale and toss well to thoroughly combine (you can use your clean hands for this, to be efficient). Taste and adjust with more lemon, salt, chile flakes, or black pepper. Let the salad sit for about 5 minutes so the kale softens slightly. Top with the breadcrumbs, shower with more cheese, and drizzle with more oil.

*I thought you’d never ask. A Cheese Monkey was a thick cheese sauce served hot over crackers or toast. I first ever saw a recipe for it in the original Joy of Cooking from 1931.