How To Dehydrate Kale and Make Kale Chips

Today it’s all about how to dehydrate Kale and make Kale chips. If you don’t have a dehydrator, no worries. I have the instructions for using an oven below to do both of these.

If you are on blood thinners you may not want to eat these. You could make them for your family though.

According to AARP Healthy Living: “A word of caution: Kale is very high in vitamin K, known as the clotting vitamin because, without it, blood won’t clot properly.

If you are taking blood-thinning or anticoagulant drugs, like Warfarin (brand name Coumadin), you need to avoid large amounts of kale.”

How to Dehydrate Kale

In order to make Kale Chips, you need to know how to dehydrate kale. I’m going to show you step by step instructions on how to dehydrate kale. Don’t worry, it’s easier than you might think.

Step One

Wash and pat dry the Kale. Tear off the leaves, or use a knife to cut them away from the rib. The rib has a strong flavor and does not taste good.

Step Two

Place the leaves on the dehydrator racks, making sure they are spaced evenly. My Excalibur Dehydrator said to set the temperature on 125 degrees.

I have directions below on how to use your oven if you don’t have a dehydrator. No worries, you can dehydrate these in your oven and still make the chips.

Step Three

These took between 2-3 hours to become crispy. I will let them sit overnight to be sure they are totally dry before putting them in mason jars.

Step Four

I use my FoodSaver to keep these fresh for about a year. I’m a Master Preserver-Canner and I learned that the best shelf life for home dehydrated vegetables is one year.

That works for me. I buy freeze-dried fruits and veggies for longer shelf-life.

How To Make Kale Chips

Making kale chips is something I feel like everyone should know. They are a healthy alternative to regular chips. Keep reading to discover how to make kale chips.

Step One

The first thing you need to do is wash and gently pat the kale dry. You’re going to want to remove the leaves from the rib because it has a strong flavor and you don’t need them in your kale chips.

I remove them when I dehydrate Kale as well.

Step Two

Place the leaves in a large bowl. I have the recipe below, but let’s talk about how to make these right here. You will need olive oil, salt, and cayenne pepper, if desired.

I used cayenne in this recipe today. I drizzled the oil over the leaves in the bowl and used my hands to thoroughly cover the leaves with the oil.

Step Three

Here you can see the bowl with the kale, olive oil was added above. Then I sprinkled the salt and cayenne pepper over the leaves.

Step Four

Place the seasoned leaves on the dehydrator racks. I have an Excaliber Dehydrator and the book states to set the temperature at 125 degrees.

Step Five

These took about 2 hours from start to finish. Oh my gosh, these are so good! I think these are a healthier choice over potato chips. You will love them.

Finished Product

Kale Chips Recipe

Can I Make These in My Oven?

Yes, you can. If you don’t have a dehydrator, here is how you make these. You will follow the steps above, but put the leaves on a cookie sheet.

No need to grease the pan, they will not stick. Set your oven to the lowest temperature, mine is 170 degrees.

Next, prop the oven door open with a chunk of foil to keep the oven from getting too hot. Please remember, there is no way to gauge the time it will take to dehydrate the Kale or the Kale chips in the oven.

You will have to monitor your oven at least every 15 minutes to be safe. Remove the cookie sheets when you can feel that they are totally crisp.

I would still let them sit overnight to be sure they are totally dry before placing them in mason jars for storage.

Is Kale Healthy?

When it comes to kale, you may be wondering if it’s healthy or not. Kale contains fiber and antioxidants. You will also notice that kale contains vitamin K. You will be getting lots of nutrients when you consume kale.

How Can I Use Dehydrated Kale?

A lot of times people will use dehydrated kale to make kale chips. Kale chips are a popular alternative to regular chips.

You can also use dehydrated kale has a snack. In an emergency, dehydrated kale chips come in handy.

What Can I Serve With Kale Chips?

When I’m eating kale chips, I enjoy eating other fruits and vegetables. I think you can eat just about anything with kale chips.

You can scoop a little hummus on the chips, which is also delicious. Some people may choose to eat kale chips with ranch or another homemade dip.

Here are the other Dehydrating Posts I have done:

• Dehydrating Apples
• Dehydrating Bananas
• Dehydrating Blackberries and Powder
• Dehydrating Blueberries and Powder
• Dehydrating Cilantro
• Dehydrating Cucumbers and Powder
• Dehydrating Ginger and Powder
• Dehydrating Green Onions and Powder
• Dehydrating Kale and Kale Powder
• Dehydrating Kiwi
• Dehydrating Lemons and Powder
• Dehydrating Marshmallows
• Dehydrating Peppermint Marshmallows and Powder
• Dehydrating Mushrooms and Mushroom Powder
• Dehydrating Onions and Powder
• Dehydrating Pears
• Dehydrating Pineapple
• Dehydrating Raspberries and Powder
• Dehydrating Spinach and Powder
• Dehydrating Strawberries
• Dehydrating Tomatoes and Powder
• Dehydrating Watermelon

Final Word

You may be able to grow kale where you live. I know I can here in Southern Utah. The more food we can grow ourselves the better off we will be.

I’m trying to show others how to dehydrate so our bounty can be preserved.

Even if you only have window screens, you can dehydrate food. Just cover it with netting to keep the birds and critters away.

Where I live we have night critters, so I would have to bring the window screens inside the house.

Whatever works, we need to know other ways to preserve our food. We can do this, I promise. Thanks for being prepared for the unexpected. May God bless this world, Linda