Coconut Curried Kale and Sweet Potato
Hearty braised and curried kale with sweet potato makes a delicious wintertime meal! This healthy dish is vegan, dairy free and gluten free.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on September 5, 2024
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I’m finally back in Kansas City. I arrived home on Tuesday, to a house full of all the things I haven’t used in the past month. I almost hoped I’d greet the things like long-lost friends (oh hello, favorite knee-length boots!) but I really just sighed at the sight of those things, those burdens that I pack up and carry from place to place.
If you took away the blog-related cookbooks and photography props (code word for so many breakable plates and glasses), maybe it would be a more reasonable amount of stuff for one person. My closet is definitely overstuffed, however. The end of winter is nearing and I’m feeling some pressure to wear all of my cold weather apparel at least once before it goes. I have too much!
I think about minimalism a lot—how much I love the concept and how difficult it is to put into practice. I’m too attached to my things. I often find myself looking around my place and wondering, how much does one person really need? Is this a reasonable amount for one person?
I’ve watched my grandmothers downsize into smaller, more manageable living situations and I think about all of the care and time that went into filling their homes and the difficulties in downsizing. Some of that is inevitable, but I don’t want my life to be characterized by the getting and getting rid of things.
Today’s recipe comes from America’s Test Kitchen’s newest book, The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook. I adore America’s Test Kitchen so I couldn’t say no to their new cookbook, which includes over 700 impeccably well-tested vegetarian recipes. Basically, any recipe you could think of to make is in this book. I’d even go so far as to say that if you’re going to own only one vegetarian cookbook, this is the book for you. I’m eyeing my heavy shelves of cookbooks now and owning only one cookbook is a lovely thought!
This recipe turned out to be more work than I bargained for, but it was absolutely worth the effort. That’s the beauty of America’s Test Kitchen recipes—they’ve been tested every which way, so the only trick, if you even want to call it that, is to trust their methods and carry them through. I deviated from the recipe by using sweet potato instead of butternut squash. In hindsight, I think butternut might be the better choice, although I do love the sweet potato version.
I was drawn to the recipe because it sounded very similar to an original recipe I attempted a couple of times in Austin that never turned out quite right. Those ATK cooks nailed it. It’s a stewy concoction that is loaded with greens (two bunches’ worth!), cooked down into hearty, comforting goodness. I never would have thought to add toasted pepitas, but they round out the dish perfectly. It’s not the prettiest of dishes, but trust me, it’s delicious!
The giveaway is now closed! Congratulations to Annie, the winner, whose go-to is a noodle bowl with tempeh! I have one copy of America’s Test Kitchen’s The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook to send to one lucky reader. To enter, leave one comment below and tell me about your go-to meatless recipe! Only one comment per person, please. I’ll randomly select a winner next Wednesday at midnight CST. Good luck!
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Coconut Curried Kale and Sweet Potato
Hearty braised and curried kale with sweet potato makes a delicious wintertime meal! This healthy dish is vegan, dairy free and gluten free. Be sure to have your ingredients prepped before your start cooking! Recipe yields four servings.
Ingredients
Braised kale and sweet potato
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- ½ teaspoon fine salt, more to taste
- 2 pounds sweet potato or butternut squash, peeled and sliced into ½-inch cubes
- 5 garlic cloves, pressed or minced
- 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
- 1 teaspoon curry powder
- 2 large bunches of kale (about 2 pounds), stemmed and chopped
- 1 cup vegetable broth
- 1 (14-ounce) can full-fat coconut milk
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- ⅓ cup pepitas (green pumpkin seeds)
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- Red pepper flakes (optional), to taste
Rice
- 1 ½ cups brown basmati rice, rinsed
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
- To cook the rice, bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the rinsed rice and cook for 30 minutes, reducing heat as necessary to prevent overflow but keep the water boiling. Turn off the heat, drain the rice and return the rice to pot. Cover and let the rice rest for 10 minutes or longer, until you’re ready to serve.
- Meanwhile, warm 2 tablespoons olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion and ½ teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add sweet potato or squash, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sweet potato is bright orange (or until the butternut is just beginning to brown), about 5 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a bowl for now.
- Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to the pot and raise the heat to medium-high. Add garlic, ginger and curry powder and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add half of the kale and stir until it’s beginning to wilt, about 1 minute. Stir in remaining greens, broth, all but ½ cup coconut milk and ½ teaspoon salt.
- Cover pot, reduce heat to medium low, and cook, stirring occasionally, until kale is wilted, about 12 to 15 minutes. Pour in sweet potato or squash mixture, cover and continue to cook until kale and sweet potato or squash are tender, 10 to 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, toast the pepitas in a medium skillet over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until they’re fragrant and making little popping noises, about 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl to cool.
- Once the kale and sweet potato/squash are tender, uncover the pot and increase heat to medium-high. Cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has evaporated and sauce has thickened, 2 to 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and stir in the remaining coconut milk. Add the lime juice and season with salt, pepper and optional red pepper flakes, to taste. Divide rice into bowls, then top with kale mixture and a generous sprinkling of pepitas before serving.
Notes
Recipe adapted from The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Wow! We do a monthly ‘culinary’ dinner. Each month we choose an ingredient that needs to be included from cocktails thru dessert. This month was coconut. I tied for best with your recipe (well, close). I used a powdered coconut milk and some freshly ground red peppers. Delicious!
Thanks for sharing, Susan!
I recently made this dish and it’s sooo tasty! I love the addition of the pepitas. Thank you for sharing Kate! :)
I love the crunch and flavor they provide too! Thank you, Elizabeth for your kind review.
Flavour is fantastic. Thanks for posting this recipe.
You’re welcome, Cathy!
This was DELICIOUS. I just made it for my vegetarian friend and her one-year-old, plus my fam. Everyone really enjoyed it. I thought that the curry (I used Indian) flavor would be lost, but the hint of it was just lovely. I used a short cut: Costco frozen organic squash (in 1 lb bags)–sure beats peeling and dicing sweet potatoes or squash and worked well (maybe a bit messier at the sauté stage). Thanks for sharing this recipe!
You’re welcome, Kerry! I’m glad you liked it.
This is delicious, fast and easy. Great side to any main dish as it’s so simple and the flavor goes with anything. Thank you for the delicious recipe!
You’re very welcome, Michelle! Thank you, for the review.
Delicious. I made it with butternut squash.
I used about a table spoon of grated ginger. I left out about 1/2 of the coconut milk solids. I added one can of chickpeas at the very very end as they fall apart. I added two little red peppers that I grew on my fire escape last year. I used the juice of one entire lime.
I imagine the sauce I made is not as thick as yours but it is so so so good.
So very delicious!
My daughter 16, loves it! She asked me to make it twice in one week.
I would say that’s a win, Tiffany! I’m happy your daughter enjoyed it so much.
You said “sweet potato” in this recipe, but the picture you have and the reference you make to it “turning orange,” actually shows you were using yams, not sweet potatoes. I am pointing this out only because I bought sweet potatoes before I read the instructions, since that was what the recipe said, and then I realized it was the wrong ingredient, which was frustrating for me. So, you might want to correct or clarify that somewhere.
Otherwise, love your recipes! Delicious, filling, nutritious, and wonderful. Great work!
Hi Diana, Thank you for your comment. There are a variety of different sweet potatoes. These are actually sweet potatoes. :) I’m glad you are a fan!
This was SO delicious! I didn’t even get tired of it as leftovers for several days. I used yams and already roasted pumpkin seeds that I toasted in a dry skillet before serving. The pumpkin seeds really do make a satisfying addition. Highly recommend.
Oh! I also substituted a jarred Thai red curry paste for the yellow powder, with excellent results.
Great to hear, Jen! Thanks for the review.
This was amazing!
Thanks, Nita!
I loved this recipe! I made it when I had some leftover kale and it turned out so well. Thanks so much for sharing! – Steph
You’re welcome! I’m excited you loved it.
This dish is so simple, yet has quickly become one of our absolute favorites! The flavors are amazing together and even my toddler ate it
That’s wonderful, Kate! I’m happy it’s a hit with the kiddo.
Almost 800 calories for 1/4 recipe? Doesn’t make sense as this is not a CheeseCake Factory cheesecake!
Delicious and have made it lots of times and freezes well. Yum.
Hi Anne, the nutritional information is approximate only. I’m happy you enjoy the recipe!
Really loved this one! I only had one bunch of kale, so would have preferred it will the two called for in the recipe to make it even more nutritious. I didn’t have pepitas, but sprinkled some sunflower seeds on top over brown rice. A very filling meal and I will definitely have leftovers for a week!
This was delicious! I added garbanzos for protein. Definitely on the A list.
I’m happy to hear that, Jamie!
Love this, making it with saffron rice! I used butternut squash & a little more curry than called for! I also omitted the oil & it was delicious!!!! Thank you!❤️
Thank you for sharing, Laura!
Turned out so good thank you I put pureed tomatoes too and some cayenne pepper to spice it up cause I’m from India and like my currys spicy
Thanks a lot! Delicious
You’re welcome, Sharon!
Kate! I was looking for something new to make and was excited to come across this recipe because I happened to have all of the ingredients! It was so so good and will for sure go into my recipe rotation. Your blog is the best.
This made my “winner dinner” list!
Made this recipe tonight. It was very good and filling. I put it over farro instead of rice.This is keeper.
Just made this and it’s really delicious! I did end up adding about a teaspoon more curry powder and some chili powder, but curry varies a lot so I’m chalking it up to my specific seasoning not having as much zing. It was fairly involved, but the recipe was easy to follow and the results are almost exactly like the picture. I used a large stainless steel pot instead of a Dutch oven and it worked just fine.
Hello, You might enjoy the book, “The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning” by Margareta Magnusson. It talks about minimalism in the same way you did above.
Wonderful flavor! We also squirted some lime juice on top along with the pepitas.
If I made a big batch of this (except for the rice), does it refrigerate well? I don’t have a microwave so I wonder if it would be easy enough to reheat on the stove for leftovers.
Hi! This will make good leftovers and should keep for a few days.
Even though this is more of a fall recipe, I had to use up some kale and a butternut squash, so I decided to make it. It is so delicious. I admit it does not look as pretty as some dishes but the flavor is worth it. From start to finish, it took me about an hour to make everything, including the rice.
Great meal! We all enjoyed it very much.
Thanks for posting!
The kale and sweet potato at my local grocery looked good, and I thought this combination would taste good – but I wasn’t sure how to go about it. I looked to google for suggestions and this recipe was suggested. I was a little afraid to try it given the nature of some of the comments…
But I did try it and I’m glad I did. It’s more like a base recipe that you can use as is – or dress it up or down with a little fusion flare. I added a Pueblo Lindo chipotle pepper and got very good results. It also goes great with a meat side dish.
I was looking for recipes with kale and sweet potatoes earlier today and I’m so glad I stumbled upon this one. I followed the directions exactly except I didn’t have vege broth so I just used water. It took a while to come together, perhaps an hour or so but it was worth it. It’s so delicious! I will definitely make this again. Thank you!!!!!
So delicious… I did add a curry paste on top of curry powder and I seasoned my sweet potatoes. Definitely a simple delicious
meal in a pinch
So simple yet sooo delicious :) thank you for the recepie!
Delicious! One of my favorite recipes cooking with kale. I didn’t have coconut milk and used oat milk instead. Wasn’t as creamy but still worked. Thank you for the recipe. Also made enough for leftovers the next day.
You’re welcome, Melisa! Thank you for your review.
Absolutely delicious! one of my favorite meals! Thank you! :)
You’re welcome, CT!
I love this sweet potato coconut kale curry. I ate it without the rice as a stew. It was so worth the trouble. I made it for just myself so I ate several bowls and I still have leftovers. I had a bunch of coconut milk in the frig and ginger that needed to be used up. The swiss chard at Sprouts was irresistible. I picked up a bag of sweet potatoes because they are so good and so healthy. When I got home, I searched sweet-potato kale and found this. I used the chard and a bag of frozen spinish instead of the kale. I’m looking forward to enjoying it again.
Great to hear, Emilie! I appreciate your review.
This is so yumm! Loved the flavour!! We added chickpeas and a combo of pumpkin and sweet potatoe and omgoodness!!
Beautiful! Thankyou x
Just made the vegan kale and sweet potato curry tonight. The fresh ginger seasoning and coconut flavoring were delicious! And the pepitas, which I learned to toast for the first time, added a special touch.
Really good! We found it could use a bit more spice and sauce. Added more curry powder, onion powder, garlic powder, plenty of salt. I didn’t have pepitas so used chopped roasted cashews instead which was delicious.
I’m glad you made it and enjoyed it, Karin! I appreciate your review.
I made this exactly as written and it was delicious! It does need a lot of prep time but it’s worth it. Don’t omit the toasted pepitas!
Delicious! Added roast capsicum and potato as I didn’t have enough sweet potato. Worked just as well.
WOW! This is SO DELICIOUS!!!
That’s great to hear, GB! Thank you for your review.
Delicious recipe! I’m always pleasantly surprised by how much I look forward to eating this dish given the lack of dairy and gluten (my staples!).
Thank you for your review, Erika!