Growing up in the South, collards greens were a staple in my house. I couldn’t get enough of them then and now. I’m thrilled that my daughter has followed in my footsteps and taken such a liking to them as well.
Greens, greens and more greens seem to be the talk of every doctor, every diet, and every healthy lifestyle out there. I tell my daughter often that green vegetables are extra nutritious. She now repeats that back to me when she’s eating greens and is so proud of herself. It makes me smile. Collard greens are loaded with vitamins and minerals, so this is an excellent green to incorporate into your diet often.
I’m not going to lie. This is a rather labor intensive and lengthy process. I can tell you the end result is worth it. I don’t recommend buying precut collards in a bag. The taste will not even be close to the same. I do buy precut kale. There isn’t much difference in taste for the kale. For collards, there’s a huge difference in taste. So, buy them organic and fresh by the bunch.
My recipe calls for using duck fat. Here’s one on Amazon (this is a 2 pack but a good price; I haven’t tried this brand). Click here for the one I just ordered. I’m very pleased with this one. It is pricier though. There are several recommended substitutions if you don’t have duck fat on hand or if you want to make these vegan. The recipe will still be very good with a substitute oil; however, I feel the duck fat gives the recipe the best flavor.
Remember to use my recipe as just a guide. It is very difficult to make this recipe the exact same way every time because the amount of collards I use every time varies. Every time I buy collards the bunches are different sizes, and sometimes I have to throw away quite a few leaves. Once you make these a few times, you’ll realize you can’t really mess up this recipe as long as you use just about the same amounts of ingredients I recommend every time. You may just want to adjust the spiciness, depending on your preference. There is definitely room to turn up the volume if you are a serious lover of all things hot and spicy! Typically, I add more garlic as I increase the spice.
I hope you find this recipe makes it easier to add more tasty greens into your diet. I love eating 100% ground grass fed beef on a bed of these spicy collard greens. This is one of my weekly meals. It is simply perfection!
- 2¼ cups of filtered water
- 1.5 Tablespoons of duck fat (olive oil or avocado oil can be substituted.)
- 3 large organic garlic cloves plus 1 small organic clove freshly pressed using a stainless steel garlic press; if all the cloves are small, use approximately 7 total.
- ½ of one large organic Vidalia, sweet or regular onion chopped (or approximately 1 small organic onion or ¾ of a medium organic size onion)
- 1.5 Tablespoons Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar with the mother
- 2.5-3 Tablespoons of organic, non irradiated crushed red pepper (spiciness will be by individual preference)
- Approximately 6 bunches of organic collard greens
- Inspect the collard leaves for bugs, dirt, etc. Remove any questionable or bad leaves.
- Tear or trim leaves off of stems than run down the middle of the leaf.
- Place leaves in large glass bowls or large stainless steel bowls. Use 2-3 bowls and spread out the leaves accordingly.
- Fill bowls with filtered water and leave to soak for 10-15 minutes to remove dirt or anything else on leaves.
- Change water one-two times and repeat the process.
- Then drain off water.
- Place two cups of filtered water in a large stainless steel stock pot (make sure you have a glass or stainless steel cover for your pot).
- Combine all of the ingredients listed above in the pot. Then, add the collards and bring to a boil.
- Stir and reduce to medium low.
- Cover and cook for approximately 2 hours or until leaves become tender. Check and stir approximately every 30-45 minutes.
- Sprinkle with pink Himalayan salt.
- Serve and enjoy.
- Notes: To make the collards non-spicy, remove the crushed red pepper and reduce the garlic by about 20%. My daughter doesn't like the spicy ones, so I make a separate batch for her. She loves them without the spice.
These freeze very well in glass Tupperware. I make a large batch of these because they take a lot of work and time. I usually make individual portions for the family to pull out at anytime to eat. Then, we reheat them in the oven for a wonderful side with any meal.
Hope you enjoy!!