This stir fried cavolo nero recipe is quick, easy and out of this world delicious. With some chilli, garlic, touch of lemon and crispy capers it makes perfect side for any occasion.
This simple side dish uses seasonal cavolo nero aka black kale together with few flavour enhancing ingredients like garlic, chilli, lemon and capers for true taste sensation.
For tips on how to prepare cavolo nero to make this recipe take a quick look at my "How to Cook Cavolo Nero" post.
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✔️ Why you'll love this recipe!
- Quick and easy vegan and veggie side dish
- Flavour sensation
- Fresh, seasonal ingredients
- Great accompaniment to many dishes
- Fantastic on sourdough toast
- Perfect for using up surplus of cavolo nero
- Gluten-free
📝 Ingredients and substitutes
Here's what you will need to make Cavolo Nero with Chilli, Garlic and Crispy Capers:
Cavolo Nero Kale - Our star of the show in this simple recipe. You will need 350-400g (12-14oz) head of cavolo nero which will yield you roughly 125-150g (4.5-5.5oz) of leaves after stripping them off the stalks.
For this recipe you'll want leaves off the stalks, washed and either roughly chopped or teared into pieces.
You don't have to be super precise with the amounts, they are supposed to serve you as a guide.
If you don't have a cavolo nero, other types of kale will work as well here.
Fresh Red Chilli - Feel free to use as much or as little chilli as you like. I went for one whole chilli (smallish one) which I deseeded first to keep the heat moderate.
In the absence of fresh chilli, you could substitute it with some dried chilli flakes or if you don't like the heat simply leave it out.
Fresh Garlic - 2 finely chopped garlic cloves is what I've used for a bit of a garlicky flavour which was not at all overpowering.
Lemon Juice and Zest - I used juice and zest of half a lemon but make sure to use your own tastebuds to adjust the amounts.
Capers - Use anything between 2-3 or even more heaped tablespoons here.
Trust me, once you've pan fried them you won't be able to resist them. I'm pretty sure some will go straight into your belly instead this cavolo nero recipe (and that's ok).
Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Sometimes I use cold-pressed rapeseed oil for frying the capers but extra virgin olive oil for the rest of this quick stir fry for extra flavour.
Yes it is fine to fry using extra virgin olive oil but feel free to use any oil you like.
Salt & Pepper - To taste. Make sure you watch the salt though as capers are pretty salty already.
🔪 How to make this easy cavolo nero recipe
Ingredient quantities & detailed instructions to be found in recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Start with preparing cavolo nero - take leaves off the stalks, wash and roughly chop them.
Next, chop chilli and garlic and drain capers in a small sieve over a bowl.
***PRO TIP***
To help capers get super crispy when you fry them, pop them on a paper towel once you've drained them in a sieve to soak up any remaining brine and dry them even more.
Heat up a tablespoon of oil in a pan and fry drained and dried capers until lightly golden and crispy.
Move them onto a plate lined with paper towel to soak up some of the oil as you get on with the rest of the recipe.
Add another tablespoon of oil or extra virgin olive oil to the same pan and add finely chopped/minced garlic.
Fry for a minute or two giving it a stir so that it doesn't burn as it would make it bitter.
Add chopped chilli and fry for another minute or so.
Add prepared cavolo nero to the pan with chilli and garlic and give it all a good stir.
Sautée for 5-8 minutes until slightly wilted and cooked but not mushy and still with some "bite" to it.
Add lemon juice and zest to taste and follow with crispy pan fried capers.
Taste and season with salt and pepper as required and perhaps a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
Serve and enjoy!
🥡 Storing
Cavolo nero with chilli, garlic and crispy capers can be kept in the fridge for 3-4 days and reheated gently in a pan or even in a microwave.
You can also freeze it for up to a month.
💭 Pro Tips
Don't be tempted to use cavolo nero stalks in this dish, they're simply too tough for this quick stir fry. Leaves are all you want!
Make sure your cavolo nero leaves are well dried after washing (salad spinner is great for that) so that it fries instead of steaming in the pan.
When cooking garlic make sure the pan is not on high heat but slow and low to prevent garlic from burning and becoming bitter. Turn the heat up after adding cavolo nero and mixing it with chilli and garlic.
🍴 Serving suggestions
This simple cavolo nero side dish is super versatile and goes well with variety of dishes.
It's perfect with pasta dishes like my Vegan Lentil Ragu or One Pot Bean and Sausage Pasta.
Try it with my Vegan Lentil Roast and some roast potatoes - perfection!
Or how about with this Quorn chicken pie and carrot and swede mash?
Personally, I love it super simply on its own served with grilled sourdough toast.
❓ FAQs
Yes you can! Try curly or red kale instead and use them in the same way.
Have you tried my Cavolo Nero with Chilli, Garlic and Crispy Capers recipe? Please consider giving it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in recipe card below and share your views or tips in the comments.
😋 How about these kale recipes?
📋 Recipe
Cavolo Nero with Chilli, Garlic and Crispy Capers
Ingredients
- 400 g cavolo nero weight before taking leaves off the stems
- 2 cloves garlic peeled and finely chopped/minced
- 1 fresh red chilli deseeded (if you want) and finely chopped
- ½ lemon (juice and zest) or to taste
- 2-3 tablespoon capers drained
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil + extra for drizzling, or oil of your choice
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Start with preparing cavolo nero - take leaves off the stalks, wash and roughly chop them.
- Next, chop chilli and garlic and drain capers in a small sieve over a bowl. To help capers get super crispy when you fry them, pop them on a paper towel once you've drained them in a sieve to soak up any remaining brine and dry them even more.
- Heat up a tablespoon of oil in a pan and fry drained and dried capers until lightly golden and crispy. Move them onto a plate lined with paper towel to soak up some of the oil as you get on with the rest of the recipe.
- Add another tablespoon of oil or extra virgin olive oil to the same pan and add finely chopped/minced garlic. Fry for a minute or two giving it a stir so that it doesn't burn as it would make it bitter.
- Add chopped chilli and fry for another minute or so.
- Add prepared cavolo nero to the pan with chilli and garlic and give it all a good stir.
- Sautée for 5-8 minutes until slightly wilted and cooked but not mushy and still with some "bite" to it.
- Add lemon juice and zest to taste and follow with crispy pan fried capers.
- Taste and season with salt and pepper as required and perhaps a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Nutritional information is approximate, per serving (based on 4 servings) and should be treated as a rough guideline only.
- Leftovers can be stored for up to 4 days in the fridge or frozen for up to a month.
- Feel free to use any oil you like for frying here. I sometimes use cold-pressed rapeseed oil for frying my capers but EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil) for everything else. As we don't fry for long EVOO is absolutely fine to use here.
- On tips how to prepare your cavolo nero for cooking see my guide on "How to cook Cavolo Nero".
- Don't be tempted to use cavolo nero stalks in this dish, they're simply too tough for this quick stir fry. Leaves are all you want!
- Make sure your cavolo nero leaves are well dried after washing (salad spinner is great for that) so that it fries instead of steaming in the pan.
- When cooking garlic make sure the pan is not on high heat but slow and low to prevent garlic from burning and becoming bitter. Turn the heat up after adding cavolo nero and mixing it with chilli and garlic.
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