Southern Style Collard Greens

I’m a fan of southern food, slow barbecue and slow cooker pulled pork It just so happens that there’s a side that goes with all those, and it’s good for you, so this post is about southern style collard greens, oh, and they are good.

The name collard comes from the medieval word Colewart, which means cabbage without a head. That’s because collard are loose leaf plants. This makes them more hearty and less susceptible to fungus and such. Although the word that describes the collards we know is medieval, they have been cultivated for over 2000 years. Although they are available pretty much all year, they’re best after the first frost

I would just like to add here. The thing about vegetables is that although most are available pretty much all year because they’re grown all over the world and shipped all over the world. They are better at certain times, more so than other times. And they are susceptible to climate, rains, heat etc. So, sometimes the quality is not that good. If you go to the store and there’s nothing good available, just cook something else. There are so many choices of what to cook. The quality of the ingredients really shows up in the finished dish.

As with most leafy greens, they’re good for you. One serving has high levels of vitamin A and C. But just one serving of collards has 3 times the daily dose of vitamin K. These are all important vitamins that we need. So there’s definitely a reason to eat them. Plus, this recipe makes them taste great.

There are many ways to cook collards. But I prefer classic southern with a little kick. Garlic, bacon, red pepper flakes and chicken stock and cook for about 30-45 mins, not that complicated. Or as I like to say “it ain’t rocket science”. Bacon is awesome, it brings flavor to the dish and has a little fat to help everything cook. Problem is, bacon is one of those ingredients you have to have in moderation, it goes by the rule, if it tastes that good, it’s probably bad for you. So, some stores will let you buy individual rashers, go get a couple, that’s all you’ll need.

Cut them up, put them in a pot big enough to cook the collards in. I use a soup pot. Over medium heat, let them cook a little, let some of the fat render out. Now add the garlic and pepper flakes. The idea is not to burn the garlic or the bacon, so keep an eye and adjust the heat. Once the garlic is cooked add the collards. To prep the collards start with a good wash, read this. Cut the leaf down the stem, then cut across into inch wide strips. Add the collards to the garlic bacon mixture. You’ll notice that the leaves will wilt down and not be as bulky in the pan. When they’ve all wilted down add the chicken stock, bring to a boil, lower heat to simmer and serve when done. And that is southern style collard greens, thank you and enjoy