diff --git a/meta/classes/kernel.bbclass b/meta/classes/kernel.bbclass
index 880ee61406..4f304eb9c7 100644
--- a/meta/classes/kernel.bbclass
+++ b/meta/classes/kernel.bbclass
@@ -655,7 +655,7 @@ FILES:${KERNEL_PACKAGE_NAME}-modules = ""
 RDEPENDS:${KERNEL_PACKAGE_NAME} = "${KERNEL_PACKAGE_NAME}-base (= ${EXTENDPKGV})"
 # Allow machines to override this dependency if kernel image files are
 # not wanted in images as standard
-RDEPENDS:${KERNEL_PACKAGE_NAME}-base ?= "${KERNEL_PACKAGE_NAME}-image (= ${EXTENDPKGV})"
+RRECOMMENDS:${KERNEL_PACKAGE_NAME}-base ?= "${KERNEL_PACKAGE_NAME}-image (= ${EXTENDPKGV})"
 PKG:${KERNEL_PACKAGE_NAME}-image = "${KERNEL_PACKAGE_NAME}-image-${@legitimize_package_name(d.getVar('KERNEL_VERSION'))}"
 RDEPENDS:${KERNEL_PACKAGE_NAME}-image += "${@oe.utils.conditional('KERNEL_IMAGETYPE', 'vmlinux', '${KERNEL_PACKAGE_NAME}-vmlinux (= ${EXTENDPKGV})', '', d)}"
 PKG:${KERNEL_PACKAGE_NAME}-base = "${KERNEL_PACKAGE_NAME}-${@legitimize_package_name(d.getVar('KERNEL_VERSION'))}"