A few months ago I wrote about cabbage, much known, and much disparaged as, the poor people's vegetable throughout the ages. Well, in these parts there is another vegetable that wears the poor people's crown, and that vegetable is known as "collard greens." Predictably, collard greens are just another form of cabbage, a kind that doesn't head, but grows large leaves. But people around here don't disparage their collards. Everyone knows they are cheap, nutritious, and most importantly, tasty.
A quick note on the "cheap" aspect: I went to Dekalb Farmer's Market, and was able to buy a bunch of Georgia-grown collards bigger than my torso for just $2.49. That's a crazy low price, especially considering the nutrient/quantity/price ratio. There is no way my family can eat that many greens before they go bad, but all you have to do is blanch the extras, chop, and freeze them. Or turn them into these bhajis.
At any rate, now that you know how enthusiastic I am about collards, you can imagine my excitement a couple weeks ago when chef Bryant Terry was a guest on NPR's The Splendid Table, and spoke about... you guessed it: collard greens. Bryant Terry is the author of "Vegan Soul Kitchen: Fresh, Healthy, and Creative African-American Cuisine." (I'm next in line on the wait list at my public library to check this book out. I've been waiting awhile. Apparently someone doesn't want to return it! That must mean it's a good one, so once I finally get my hands on the book, I'll happily let you know more about what's inside.) On the show he mentions the traditional method of cooking collard greens, which is to simmer them in a pot with some pork for a very long time, until they are thoroughly soft, and a dull green. He said he likes to cook them for a much shorter amount of time, to keep the color bright green and more of the texture and nutrients intact, along with the actual flavor of the greens. I totally agree with Mr. Terry's way of doing things. You can check out his recipe for Citrus Collards with Raisins, and see if you agree too.
The past few days my kids have been struggling with strep throat, and yesterday I was starting to feel fatigued, with a vaguely sore throat. Inwardly, I screamed in horror, "Nooooo!" Outwardly, I cooked my collards simply, with olive oil, chili flakes, and garlic.
Simple Collards, with Red Chili Flakes and Garlic
(I'm not a doctor, but I ate a pile of these greens last night feeling sick. Today, I'm not sick. Just sayin'.)
Big bunch of collard greens, leaves separated from stems, sliced in strips one inch thick
Large pot filled with salted boiling water
A few glugs of olive oil
Several cloves of garlic, minced (Use as many cloves as you can handle. I used six.)
Pinch of red pepper flakes
Salt
Blanch the sliced collard greens in the boiling water until wilted. Quickly remove them and drain in a colander. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet, and saute garlic and chili flakes until the garlic releases its fragrance. Add the blanched collards and salt, and mix with the garlicky oil. Cook the greens until they reach the desired softness. Do not overcook them—keep the leaves a beautiful bright green. Add more salt if needed. These greens are great as a dinner side dish, or eat them for breakfast with a nice piece of buttered whole wheat toast. The fashionable thing is to serve a poached egg on top, which is quite delicious, though a gently fried egg with runny yolk works well too.
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6 comments:
We never buy collards, but I love the way you prepared them. Garlic, olive oil, red pepper flakes...all the good stuff. :)
Thanks -- I do this with any type of greens, including spinach (don't blanch it). It's the default greens recipe everyone knows. I was debating whether I should even post it, but figured advertising the dish's healing properties (and the Bryant Terry book) made it worthwhile.
sounds great! did you know mike has a poem in bryant's book? (they went to college together)
Wow, that's really cool! I didn't know that. What a small world. I'm getting the book tomorrow from the library, so I'll get to read it.
I think I negate some of the healthy properties of the collards by cooking them in bacon grease. My kids had strep a couple of weeks ago too!
This was round two of strep. Too bad I couldn't get my kids to eat more greens. I am sure bacon grease has health properties yet unexplored. But as long as you eat it with your greens, you can't go wrong, I say.
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