Air Fryer Kale Chips (No Oil)

Learn how to make some delicious super cheesy crispy kale chips in your air fryer. They are extremely healthy, very easy to make and lightly seasoned, nut free with no oil. Suitable for vegans, gluten free and paleo friendly. With oven and dehydrator options.

Don't you just love recipes that don't require any oil? I mean c'mon, they are a huge bonus.

No these chips aren't burnt, rather than have been generously seasoned and air fried at a low temperature to lock in all that seasoning with a nice crisp.

Have you tried kale chips? If not, what are you waiting for? I first hopped on the kale waggon some years ago when I started eating seaweed.

Initially I was skeptical about the concept of making kale chips, how would they taste? Would they be soggy?

You see, I was so used to eating kale as a part of my main meals so the idea of snacking on it seemed crazy to me.

Anyway, let me tell you just how amazing kale chips are. They are incredibly easy to make and not to mention super healthy, and extra cheesy thanks to the use of nutritional yeast.

Nutritional yeast is a great dairy free/vegan alternative to cheese. You get that taste of cheese without depending on animal milk.

You can literally eat your way to optimal health by eating these chips. Unlike potato chips that are processed and made with refined oil.

On the contray, kale chips can be made in either the oven, dehydrator or the air fryer.

Today I am going to show you how to make kale chips using all 3 methods with the primary focus being on using the air fryer because this is a quick, no fuss with minimal clean up method.

Type of kale to use

Just like many leafy green vegetables, there are several varieties of kale and you can use any of the following;

• Common curly kale
• Lacinato
• Kaileen
• Redbor kale
• Red Russian
• Baby kale
• Siberian kale
• Ornamental kale

For this recipe I decided to use curly kale and lacinato/dinosaur kale since that both are the most popular and accessible type of kale over here.

How healthy are kale chips?

Kale chips retain a lot of their health properties due to being minimally process, unlike potato chips. They are;

• High in fibre (great for easing digestion and prevention constipation)
• Contain antioxidants which protect cells against free radicals
• High in vitamins A, C, K and calcium ( for optimal vision, cell growth, immune system booster, healthy teeth/bones and blood clotting formation)
• Low in calories and great for weight loss
• Low in fat and may lower cholestoral levels (source)

Air frying kale chips

I've tried this recipe in the air fryer, oven and dehydrator with my favourite method by far being the air fryer.

The reason being is that is it so quick and convienient. While the dehydrated method retains more of the nutrients, the air fryer wins by far in terms of speed.

When using the air fryer method you need to be mindful of the temperature and the type of model. 

A lot of recipes recommend air frying the kale chips at a high temperature. I personally DON'T recommend doing this because the chips crisp more uneven and run the risk of burning rather than "frying".

Also, if you're using a fan forced air fryer you will need to pack the kale chips in the basket or use a trivet to suppress them because the chips will wilt and become light weight which increases the chance of the them flying around the fan.

However my guidelines do acknowledge this and make sure you are able to perfect the recipe the first time so don't worry!

The steps

• Wash the kale leaves in cold water and thoroughly blot them until they are completely dry.
• Remove the ribs from the kale (you can do this by hand or with kitchen scissors).
• Proceed to tear/cut the leaves into small bite sized pieces and place them in a large bowl.
• Place the lime juice in one bowl and the nutritional yeast, smoked paprika, garlic, onion powder and pink salt in another (be sure to mix the dry ingredients).

• Pour the lime juice all over the kale leaves and use your hands to thoroughly coat the leaves.
• Sprinkle and coat the leaves (using your hands) with smoked paprika, nutritional yeast, garlic granules and pink salt mix.
• Preheat the air fryer basket.
• Pack the leaves in the basket (you will need about 3 layers)
• Air fry the chips for 5-6 minutes at 150C/300F or until they are crispy. Shake the basket half way through and place the rack on top of the kale leaves if you are using a fan forced air fryer to prevent them from flying around.

To oven baked the kale chips

• Preheat the oven at 300F/150C and line a large baking tray with parchment paper.
• Wash and blot the kale chips dry and season them accordingly (as per instructions).
• Place the seasoned kale chips on the baking tray (it's okay to pack them on but not too much).
• Bake the chips until they become crispy (it should be ready in 10-18 minutes, turning and shaking them half way through (the chips will wilt as they crisp up).
• Keep an eye on the chips and remove any that become crispy quite early.

To dehydrate the kale chips

• Wash, blot and dry the kale chips dry and season them accordingly (as per instructions).
• Arrange the kale chips on the dehydrator trays, being careful not to overcrowd.
• Set the unit to 60C/140F for 4-6 hours or until the chips are crispy.

How to store kale chips

In order to safely store the chips, first of all, you will need them to be completely cool at room temperature so they don't create any moisture or become soggy and unplesant to eat.

Keep the kale chips stored in an air tight container or brown paper bag for up to 3 days. After that, they may begin to soften.

You can throw them back in the air fryer for a few minutes to re-crisp them, if you want to.

Alternatively, you can store the chips in an air tight container with a cup of rice or silica gel packs.

Both are great to use for drawing out any additional moisture, with the silica gel packs being re-usable, you can dry them out in the oven or microwave and they are ready to be re-used again.

If you want to extend the shelf life abit longer then use a vaccuum drawn storage bag to compress the chips for longevity. 

Which ever method you choose I would recommend storing them away from heat, if you live in a hot climate then you will definitely want to be mindful of storing them in order to retain their crispiness.

Notes and tips

• Make sure the leaves are completely dry before seasoning. You can leave them to air dry for up to an hour, use a salad spinner or what I do is use kitchen paper and carefully blot each section dry.
• If you want to bake the kale chips in the oven bake at 300F/150C for 10-18 minutes or dehydrate at 140F/60C for 4-6 hours.
• It is normal for the kale chips to look quite brown because of the excess use of nutritional yeast so don't be alarmed, its NOT burnt!.
• DON'T air fryer the kale chips in single layers, you will want to slightly pack the basket instead or apply an air fryer trivet on top of the chips to prevent them from flying around.
• For very large quantities of kale, you may need to air fry in batches.
• The more seasoning you use, the darker the chips will be.
• Feel free to add any additional seasoning i.e curry powder, chilli flakes, cumin etc...
• Cooking time may vary depending on the make and model of your unit. Mine took 6 minutes to get crispy and for the nutritional yeast to turn golden (it's not burnt FYI).

More chips and fries to try

• Green Banana Chips
• Persimmon Chips
• Oven Baked Sweet Plantain Chips
• Breadfruit Fries
• Parsnip Fries
• Yuca Fries
• Funchi Fries

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