Braised Collard Greens
Collard greens are a staple of southern U.S. cuisine. They’re also incredibly healthy — a single serving of collards can deliver half your daily fibre requirement and more than six times the daily recommended dose of vitamin K.
And they’re absolutely delicious…if done right.
Collard greens are easy to grow at home!
There are three common ways to prepare collard greens:
Quick Collard Greens (e.g. Brazilian Collard Greens) are made by slicing the greens very thin (almost like shredded cabbage) and quick sautéing them with olive oil and spices.
Slow-Cooked Collard Greens (e.g. Southern Collard Greens) are made by braising the greens with smoked ham hock, apple cider vinegar, garlic and spices over the course of several hours. If you’ve ever had collards in a soul food restaurant or anywhere in the Southern United States, this is what you had.
Braised Collard Greens are somewhere in the middle. They’re braised in a vinegar-based liquid similar to slow-cooked collards, but for a shorter amount of time. Bacon is used in place of ham hock to provide the umami. The slower cooking time results in greens that maintain more of their original shape and texture when compared to slow-cooked collards (which break down and are much more tender).
While I love southern-style collard greens, my favorite preparation to make at home is an asian-influenced style of braised collard greens. Preparing the ingredients takes only a few minutes, with the braising process just under an hour (plenty of time to prepare whatever other dishes you plan to serve). The addition of soy sauce to the braising liquid gives an extra saltiness and depth of flavor to the potlikker that makes it taste as though it were braising for far longer than it actually does - like a cheat code for your collards.
Braised Collard Greens
Adapted from Momofuku: A Cookbook by David Chang and Peter Meehan.
Serves: 4
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
Ingredients
1 bunch collard greens
1 piece of bacon (substitute 1 tbsp olive oil to make vegan/vegetarian)
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp sherry vinegar
1 cup water
Pinch of kosher salt
Preparation
The most important step in making good collard greens is to wash them thoroughly. Greens can be very sandy, so it’s essential to get the grit off if you want them to have the best flavor and texture. If you’ve ever washed rice before, it’s the same concept.
Start by cutting the center rib / stem off of each leaf (leaving you with twice as many “half-leaves”).
Fill your sink with lukewarm water. Submerge the leaves in the sink and gently scrub them between your hands (imagine that you’re washing delicate “hand-wash-only” clothes). Empty the sink, rinse the leaves with clean water from the tap and repeat. Do this 2 or 3 times until you’re confident that the sand is gone.
Next, coarsely chop the leaves. You want to end up with pieces that are about 2” in size (small enough to eat without being too small).
If you have a salad spinner, place the leaves in there and give them a few spins to dry off the excess water (otherwise, use a paper towel to gently press away the moisture).
In a measuring cup or bowl, add the soy sauce, brown sugar, sherry vinegar and water and stir to combine. Set aside the mixture.
Place the bacon in your sauté pan and heat over medium-high.
Once the bacon strip has started to render a good amount of its fat, add the collard greens. Use your cooking tongs to toss the leaves in the sauté pan in order to coat them with the bacon fat.
Add a large pinch of kosher salt and cook the leaves, stirring frequently until they start to release the moisture held within and just barely start to shrink. This should take 2-3 minutes.
Pour the soy sauce mixture into the sauté pan, reduce the heat to low and cover with the lid. After a couple of minutes, lift the lid to check what’s happening. The liquid should be gently simmering. Adjust the temperature if necessary.
Simmer for another 40 minutes, lifting the lid and stirring every 10 minutes or so, until tender.
Serve warm.
