Kale

Kale originates from Northern Middle English cale (compare Scots kail and German Kohl) for various cabbages. The ultimate origin is Latin caulis 'cabbage'.[2]

Children collecting leaves of red Russian kale (Brassica napus L. subsp. napus var. pabularia (DC.) Alef.) in a family vegetable garden

Kale originated in the eastern Mediterranean and Anatolia, where it was cultivated for food beginning by 2000 BCE at the latest.[3] Curly-leaved varieties of cabbage already existed along with flat-leaved varieties in Greece in the 4th century BC. These forms, which were referred to by the Romans as Sabellian kale, are considered to be the ancestors of modern kales.

The earliest record of cabbages in western Europe is of hard-heading cabbage in the 13th century.[3] Records in 14th-century England distinguish between hard-heading cabbage and loose-leaf kale.[3]

Russian kale was introduced into Canada, and then into the United States, by Russian traders in the 19th century.[3] USDA botanist David Fairchild is credited with introducing kale (and many other crops) to Americans,[4][5] having brought it back from Croatia,[5] although Fairchild himself disliked cabbages, including kale.[5] At the time, kale was widely grown in Croatia mostly because it was easy to grow and inexpensive, and could desalinate soil.[5] For most of the twentieth century, kale was primarily used in the United States for decorative purposes; it became more popular as an edible vegetable in the 1990s due to its nutritional value.[5]

During World War II, the cultivation of kale (and other vegetables) in the U.K. was encouraged by the Dig for Victory campaign.[6] The vegetable was easy to grow and provided important nutrients missing from a diet because of rationing.[7]

Kale is usually an annual plant grown from seed with a wide range of germination temperatures.[8] It is hardy and thrives in wintertime,[8] and can survive in temperatures as low as –15.0° Celsius.[9] Kale can become sweeter in taste after a heavy frost.[10]

One may differentiate between kale varieties according to the low, intermediate, or high length of the stem, along with the variety of leaf types. The leaf colours range from light green to green, to dark green and violet-green, to violet-brown.

Classification by leaf type:

• Curly-leaf (Scots kale, blue curled kale)
• Bumpy-leaf (black cabbage, better known by its Italian translation 'cavolo nero', and also known as Tuscan Cabbage, Tuscan Kale, lacinato and dinosaur kale)
• Plain-leaf (flat-leaf types like red Russian and white Russian kale)
• Leaf and spear, or feathery-type leaf (a cross between curly- and plain-leaf)
• Ornamental (less palatable and tougher leaves)

Ornamental kale in white and lavender

Because kale can grow well into winter, one variety of rape kale is called "hungry gap" after the period in winter in traditional agriculture when little else could be harvested. An extra-tall variety is known as Jersey kale or cow cabbage.[11] Kai-lan or Chinese kale is a cultivar often used in Chinese cuisine. In Portugal, the bumpy-leaved kale is mostly called "couve galega" (Galician kale or Portuguese Cabbage).[12]

Raw kale is composed of 84% water, 9% carbohydrates, 4% protein, and 1% fat (table). In a 100 g (3+1⁄2 oz) serving, raw kale provides 207 kilojoules (49 kilocalories) of food energy and a large amount of vitamin K at 3.7 times the Daily Value (DV) (table). It is a rich source (20% or more of the DV) of vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin B6, folate, and manganese (see table "Kale, raw"). Kale is a good source (10–19% DV) of thiamin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, vitamin E and several dietary minerals, including iron, calcium, magnesium, potassium, and phosphorus (see table "Kale, raw"). Boiling raw kale diminishes most of these nutrients, while values for vitamins A, C, and K, and manganese remain substantial (see table "Kale, cooked").

The Kailyard school of Scottish writers, which included J. M. Barrie (creator of Peter Pan), consisted of authors who wrote about traditional rural Scottish life (kailyard = 'kale field').[32] In Cuthbertson's book Autumn in Kyle and the charm of Cunninghame, he states that Kilmaurs in East Ayrshire was famous for its kale, which was an important foodstuff. A story is told in which a neighbouring village offered to pay a generous price for some kale seeds, an offer too good to turn down. The locals agreed, but a gentle roasting on a shovel over a coal fire ensured that the seeds never germinated.[33]

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  Curly-leaf kale
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  Red Russian kale
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  Tuscan kale
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  Making kale chips in Illinois
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  A traditional New Years Danish dish: boiled ham, glazed potatoes and stewed kale
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  A kale-based dish with other vegetables and sourdough bread, served at a restaurant in Australia

• Bowen's Kale
• Crambe maritima – sea kale
• Leaf vegetable
• Kalettes
• Cabbage

Look up kale in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Brassica oleracea var. viridis and Brassica oleracea var. sabellica.

• Marrow-Stem Kale – Plants for a Future database
• PROTAbase on Brassica oleracea (leaf cabbage)