collard/mustard/turnip greens

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palomalou2
palomalou2 Posts: 25 Member
in Food and Nutrition
They were out of my usual big weekly bag of spinach SAturday so I bought a bag of this. Browned a chopped up slice of bacon, threw in the greens and a bunch of water. Gag!!! I was hoping for a new veggie to go with the usual broccoli, green beans, asparagus, and squash rotation. NOT this!

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  • prattiger65
    prattiger65 Posts: 1,657 Member
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    It's a sophisticated dish. How long did you cook it? I throw raw bacon in when I cook it.
  • palomalou2
    palomalou2 Posts: 25 Member
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    About an hour. The lady across the street when I was little cooked them and I remember her cooking them for a long time, so I tried that. They also seemed much tougher than spinach, so I picked longer cooking time.
  • ZiezieO
    ZiezieO Posts: 228 Member
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    I lightly sauté mine and have like chicken or salmon on top of them. I can imagine they would be icky and no longer fresh and zesty if you cooked them for an hour.

    I also like mine with a little sriracha on them too. I haven't tried them with bacon, but try just putting them in a pan with a little olive oil and sauté them so that they're slightly wilted but not fully limp. They were much more enjoyable the second time I tried cooking them. The first time I tried I put soy sauce and lots of salt - it was gross.
  • happilysingle69
    happilysingle69 Posts: 27 Member
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    No way greens are a wonderful veggie, I add some fresh spinach to them about 30 minute before there done.... but you need to add smoked meat which it much more a southern way of cooking them and chicken broth and they need to be cook for several hours... google some recipes don't give up on one of my favorite veggie... but there nothing like spinach.
  • enkennon
    enkennon Posts: 161 Member
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    Greens can take all DAY depending on how flavorful you want them. You'll need smoked meat if you want them to have a lot of flavor!

    You can cook tem meatless but the key is the timing. One hour is not enough! Give em another try :)
  • LJGettinSexy
    LJGettinSexy Posts: 223 Member
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    Those variety of greens must simmer much longer than an hour, they're not like spinach at all. If picked fresh, you have to wash them leaf by leaf, then add twice as much water to fully cover the greens for simmering, and season to taste with salt. pepper, onions and cooked bacon or smoked turkey. That's the southern way of cooking greens. I usually add bouillion cubes and Lipton onion soup mix to give mine more flavor. But normally, cooking greens is an all day cooking adventure with a dish worth waiting for; the pot lasts for days and you can easily freeze the leftovers.
  • Zumaria1
    Zumaria1 Posts: 225 Member
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    Yeah, just saw in another thread where someone was saying they don't like kale. The trick is knowing how to prepare it. I absolutely love collard greens, they are my favorite veggie. But it takes alot of time to cook, they are much tougher than a spinach leaf.

    When you buy them, buy ones that look fresh, not wilted or old and dry. Also, I love the southern way of cooking them with a smoked meat. You put smoked turkey wings in water enough to cover them, and simmer for about 30 min. While they are simmering, like someone mentioned, you fill the sink with water, and submerge the greens, you want any sand or grit to fall to the bottom of the sink. After they are cleaned, I chop them up pretty finely and add to the water. In the water I put salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, a little vinegar, a little sugar( it balances out the greens if they are too bitter). Let simmer until the greens turn a lighter green shade, and are soft. This takes about an hour. As you can see, its a labor of love, and not at all like cooking other veggies.
  • palomalou2
    palomalou2 Posts: 25 Member
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    Oh, thanks for all these ideas! I will try them again.
  • writergeek313
    writergeek313 Posts: 390 Member
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    If you're used to spinach, greens like the ones you mentioned are going to be an adjustment. I still don't really like mustard and turnip greens that much, but I love collards.

    Here's a recipe I really like for collards: http://www.theppk.com/2011/12/hottie-black-eyed-peas-with-ginger-sweet-potatoes-apples/ I don't always make it with the mashed sweet potatoes. Sometimes I have it with rice, polenta, or mashed potatoes. I was skeptical about there not being bacon in this recipe, but the smoked paprika adds bacon-like flavor. I even tried it with bacon a few times and finally decided it wasn't that much different or better to make it worth the extra calories.
  • Sunbrooke
    Sunbrooke Posts: 632 Member
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    I like to use frozen greens. They are great for adding to a big pot of bean soup, or hoping johns, and they don't take all of the time. Probably less expensive too.
  • prattiger65
    prattiger65 Posts: 1,657 Member
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    Salt, pork fat and cook them forever. I love greens, but i know its an aquired taste. Collards are certainly different than turnips.
  • PaleoPath4Lyfe
    PaleoPath4Lyfe Posts: 3,161 Member
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    I love me some greens...............

    Sauteed in some bacon grease and bone broth

    Or long cooked with smoked meat (turkey or pork), Braggs apple cider vinegar, cayenne pepper, salt, black pepper and some red pepper flakes.

    MMMMMMMMMM
  • Anonycatgirl
    Anonycatgirl Posts: 502 Member
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    I love mustard and turnip greens and I find I can saute them up fairly quickly (20 minutes or so). I like their bite! Collards...not so much. By the time I cook them enough to be tender, they taste like mush. I don't eat pork products (allergy) so I've pretty much given up on collards.
  • dbanks80
    dbanks80 Posts: 3,685 Member
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    No way greens are a wonderful veggie, I add some fresh spinach to them about 30 minute before there done.... but you need to add smoked meat which it much more a southern way of cooking them and chicken broth and they need to be cook for several hours... google some recipes don't give up on one of my favorite veggie... but there nothing like spinach.

    This^ I add a smoke turkey leg. Season them with chopped onions, green peppers and garlic. Season salt pepper. Delicious. But you have to let the cook for some time.

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