This 3-ingredient kale chips recipe comes together quickly and is easy to customize with your favorite seasonings.

Kale Chip Ingredients

Here are a few brief notes about the 3 basic ingredients that you will need to make kale chips:

Fresh kale: It’s best to use a sturdy variety of kale, such as curly kale or Lacinato (a.k.a. “dinosaur”) kale, when making kale chips so that they will crisp up and hold their shape nicely while baking.
Oil: I typically use extra-virgin olive oil to make kale chips, but feel free to use any other mild-flavored cooking oil that you prefer. Avocado oil, grapeseed oil, or coconut oil would all be good options.
Salt: Finally, don’t forget to season your kale chips to bring out the flavor of the kale! I typically use fine sea salt or flaky sea salt for a bit of extra crunch.

How To Make Kale Chips

Full instructions for how to make kale chips are included in the recipe below, but here are a few additional tips to keep in mind:

Choose good kale. When shopping for kale, look for fresh kale leaves that are a vibrant green color (not yellowed or brown) with firm stems (not wilted).
Take time to dry the kale thoroughly. Moisture is the enemy of crispy kale chips, so be sure to take time to dry the kale thoroughly with a salad spinner, a clean kitchen towel or paper towels after it has been rinsed. Then toss with oil, seasonings and bake!
Don’t overcrowd the kale. It’s important that the kale leaves are arranged in an even layer (not overlapping) so that they can bake evenly and not steam.
Monitor closely while baking. Kale chips can go from crispy to burnt in a matter of minutes. So keep a close eye on them during the final few minutes of baking, especially if you have an oven that runs hot or cooks unevenly.
Store properly. Kale chips are definitely best enjoyed fresh. But if you happen to have any leftovers, just store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 48 hours.

There are countless ways that you can add extra seasonings to your kale chips, but here are some of our favorites:

Garlic Parmesan: Sprinkle with garlic powder and Parmesan before baking (or you can add the Parmesan after baking).
Nutritional Yeast: Sprinkle with nutritional yeast before baking.
Lemon Herb: Toss with lemon juice and dried herbs (such as an Italian seasoning blend) before baking.
Everything Bagel: Sprinkle with everything bagel seasoning before baking.
Cool Ranch: Sprinkle with ranch seasoning before baking.
Chili Lime: Toss with lime juice and Tajín before baking.
Za’atar: Sprinkle with za’atar seasoning before baking.

Looking for more delicious ways to enjoy fresh kale? Here are a few of our favorite kale recipes:

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This classic kale chips recipe comes together quickly and is easy to customize with your favorite seasonings.

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Prep the oven and baking sheet. Heat oven to 350°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Prep the kale. Rinse the kale leaves with cold water, then very thoroughly dry the leaves either using a salad spinner or paper towels. Strip away and discard the tough kale stems. Tear the remaining leaves into chip-sized pieces, keeping in mind that the kale will shrink as it bakes, and then place them in a large mixing bowl.
Toss. Drizzle the kale evenly with oil, then gently toss until all of the leaves are very lightly and evenly coated. Arrange the leaves in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet (or you may need to use two baking sheets if the kale does not fit in a single layer), then season evenly with a generous amount of sea salt.
Bake. Bake until the leaves are crispy, about 13 to 16 minutes. You’ll want to keep a close eye on the leaves during the final few minutes of baking so that they do not accidentally burn.
Serve. Remove the baking sheet and let the kale chips cool for 10 minutes. Then serve and enjoy!