How do you prepare collards?

Answer 1

The traditional way to cook collards is to boil or simmer them slowly to soften up the leaves and reduce the bitter taste. Typical seasonings can consist of diced onions, vinegar, salt, and black, white, or crushed red pepper. The most common side dish to serve with collard greens are baked or fried corn bread, and some people like to put hot sauce on the greens for extra flavor. They are often prepared with other similar green leaf vegetables, such as kale, turnip greens, spinach, and mustard greens in "mixed greens" or "mess o'greens."

Braising retains more of the nutrients than boiling, and is especially good for fresh, tender, young collards.

Basic Southern Braised Collards

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon of olive oil (optional)

2 or more large garlic cloves, minced

1 pound fresh collard greens

1 cup vegetable stock (optional)

1 tablespoon balsamic or cider vinegar

2 teaspoons sugar (optional)

Salt to taste

Red pepper flakes to taste

Procedure:

1. Wash the greens well under slightly warm running water. You may want to let greens soak in water for a few minutes to loosen any dirt, then rinse well.
2. Trim away any rough stems pieces or bruised leaves.
3. Cut out the stems from all the leaves, collect together and chop into one-inch pieces.
4. Stack the leaves and roll them up lengthwise as if you were rolling up a newspaper or cigar. Rolling the leaves together helps you to get them cut a lot more quickly, so feel free to roll together as many as your knife can handle.
5. Holding a roll with your fingers, to hold it together, slice into it lengthwise, turn ninety degrees and cut lengthwise again.
6. Then cut cross-wise about an inch apart, you'll end up with one-inch squares.
7. Spray a little olive oil in a large skillet, or just heat a little water or broth if you want to avoid the fat.
8. Add the garlic and cook for a minute.
9. Stir in the greens, stirring to coat.
10. Add the remaining ingredients.
11. Cover and cook until tender, stirring occasionally. If your collards are tender and fresh from your garden or farmers' market, they only take 10 minutes or so to braise, without the vegetable stock. But if yours are store-bought or tough, you may want to try adding the vegetable stock and simmering for up to 45 minutes.
12. Taste and adjust seasonings.