I have heard the words before, I have seen the HUGE, slightly frightening bunch of them in the produce section. I have heard my friends in the south talk about them like everyone knows what they are... I have always been curious but I was too afraid to ask. Then, about 2 weeks ago I met this wonderful lady in the store, she was an older woman looking a little lost in the spice area so I offered my help, we talked for a while about food and the such, as she started to walk away she said (to herself) Oh I still need to get my collards... so I held my nose and jumped in hoping not to look like a fool. She showed me where they were and told me all the ways she had ever had them. Some ways took all of the "healthy" out of eating a veggie and I was starting to get a little discouraged but then this method came out so I thought I would give it a try. I loved them, the rest of the family was good with them. I wouldn't say they were much excited about them, they are after all "green" LOL
So my 2 cents.. try these. The taste is sort of like a spinach but they have a bit more texture. If you are like me you are always trying to find ways to get more veggies to your family, and if you guys eat spinach then you should like these.
First things first, clean them.. they are HUGE so the easiest way I found was to let them soak in a sink full of cold water for a bit, give them a little toss every few minutes. Then move them to a large surface so you can start prepping them.
I am sure I could have found a prettier leaf to show but oh well... see the thick stem? That needs to go. I tried a few different ways and I found it easier to run a knife down both sides. Once you have stemmed it (hmmm wander if that is even a word.. oh well it is on this blog LOL ) you want to cut it into bite size pieces. It is easier to stack a bunch up and give them a nice rough chop.
Next you want to shove them down into the biggest pot you have (depending on the size of your pot, you may need to do this in 2 bunches) Then add water.. how much? I couldn't really tell you, the greens were all the way up to the top so you don't cover them like you would when you boil anything else, you are more steaming them so I added a few glasses full, turned them on med heat and let them go for about 20-30 min ( I think I should have let them go just a little bit longer maybe as long as an hour if you have the time.)
Then drain them and try to press out most of the water. While they sit, saute some onions and garlic in a little olive oil, add the cooked and drained greens into the onion mixture and saute for about 15 min. Before serving hit it with a BIG splash of red wine vinegar OR the juice of maybe 1/2 lemon. There you have it I hope you try it out. They really are yummy!
So my 2 cents.. try these. The taste is sort of like a spinach but they have a bit more texture. If you are like me you are always trying to find ways to get more veggies to your family, and if you guys eat spinach then you should like these.
First things first, clean them.. they are HUGE so the easiest way I found was to let them soak in a sink full of cold water for a bit, give them a little toss every few minutes. Then move them to a large surface so you can start prepping them.
I am sure I could have found a prettier leaf to show but oh well... see the thick stem? That needs to go. I tried a few different ways and I found it easier to run a knife down both sides. Once you have stemmed it (hmmm wander if that is even a word.. oh well it is on this blog LOL ) you want to cut it into bite size pieces. It is easier to stack a bunch up and give them a nice rough chop.
Next you want to shove them down into the biggest pot you have (depending on the size of your pot, you may need to do this in 2 bunches) Then add water.. how much? I couldn't really tell you, the greens were all the way up to the top so you don't cover them like you would when you boil anything else, you are more steaming them so I added a few glasses full, turned them on med heat and let them go for about 20-30 min ( I think I should have let them go just a little bit longer maybe as long as an hour if you have the time.)
Then drain them and try to press out most of the water. While they sit, saute some onions and garlic in a little olive oil, add the cooked and drained greens into the onion mixture and saute for about 15 min. Before serving hit it with a BIG splash of red wine vinegar OR the juice of maybe 1/2 lemon. There you have it I hope you try it out. They really are yummy!
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