Earlier this month, we posted a survey asking which vegetable you fear cooking. Many of you mentioned bitter greens, the category of collards, turnip greens, and mustard greens that can turn out tough and unappealing. So we have some tips and recipes to help...
The classic way to cook collard and turnip greens—especially for those of us who grew up in the South—is to braise them with pork, either smoked ham hock or thick-cut bacon. The flavor of the pork mellows out the greens and gives them a much needed salty boost. The fat makes the leaves tender and silky.
• Our general method for the toughest greens (collards and turnip greens) goes like this: Cook some thick, chopped bacon in a heavy saucepan until the fat is rendered. Add the greens (which we've sliced into ribbons) and cook in the pork fat with plenty of salt and pepper until they are wilted. Add enough chicken stock or water to barely cover the greens, cover the pot, and cook for about half an hour or more, until the greens are soft and an army green color. That's right. We like ours to lose that all-important, vitamin-packed bright green color. We like 'em a little overcooked.
If you are a vegetarian, or just don't want to use pork fat, you can cook your greens in olive oil. But we'd recommend salting heavily and adding stock rather than water for more flavor. Of course, there are myriad variations. Some people add cider vinegar, wine, or onions. Some people boil their greens and then drain them.
• As for kale and mustard greens, they tend to be more tender (we even eat kale raw, in salads) and don't need as much time or heat. You can stir them into soups and they'll soften up nicely.
Some recipes to try:
Easy Braised Collard Greens, from the Kitchn
Collard Greens, from Paula Deen
Cavolo Nero Kale, from the Kitchn
Slow-Cooked Cavolo Nero, from the Kitchn
Turnip Greens Cooked in Rich Pork Stock, from Bon Appétit
Mustard Greens, from Simply Recipes
Grapefruit, Mustard Green, and Date Salad, from Gourmet
Seasonal Spotlight: Amaranth
Seasonal Spotlight: Braising Greens
Related: Less Meat, More Flavor: Salt Pork
(Image: Flickr member peskymac, licensed under Creative Commons)
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One of my absolute favorite lazy and healthy dishes is to take chopped collard greens and slowly cook them with sliced chicken/turkey andouille (from Trader Joe's) and black beans in a pot with some water and beef bouillon. I use Herb Ox sodium free bouillon since the sausage has enough on its own. I'll let this cook for a while(sorry dunno how long... till it smells good) and serve on brown rice or barley.
The chicken/turkey andouille isn't as good as the pork version. I won't lie. But this is meant to be healthy. Its still REALLY good, and the flavor really does permeate the dish quite well.
I make collard greens with cider every Thanksgiving, and it is a huge hit even with previous collard-phobes. I use the following recipe, substituting smoked turkey legs for the ham hock. Super easy; the broth cooks for a long time, but surprisingly, the collards do not. They end up mellow and mildly smoky. http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/cider-braised-collards-with-ham.
I just stir-fry them in a little olive oil and a lot of garlic.
Smoked paprika also adds a really nice flavor to greens if you don't want to use meat.
Cut collard greens into super thin slices and flash cook it with a bit of oil and garlic. It takes only minutes and you retain more nutrients as well as the beautiful green colour. It is the way Brazilians prepare it. Sometime ago Gourmet made a similar recipe:
collardshttp://www.gourmet.com/recipes/diaryofafoodie/2007/01/collardgreens
I also eat them raw in saldas.
I've never thought of eating collards raw, will try that, pinkbites. The old fashioned way (mom's) is to boil them with pork. I prefer to cut out the tough center of the leaves, roll and slice the leaves into strips, then braise in a big shallow pan 'til tender with some garlic and some balsamic vinegar. Essential for the New Year and good all winter long.
Although I'm a meat-eater, I prefer my greens without meat. To get a rich flavor without pork, I use a combination of olive oil and toasted sesame seed oil. The strong flavor of the sesame oil stands up well to the bitter flavor from the greens.
And a generous dash of vinegar at the end makes the greens sublime.
I could eat them every day.
I braise greens in cider, too. I like them with bacon, but caramelizing a sliced onion before adding the greens and cider is a fine substitute. I always add a splash of vinegar at the end, too.