The Best Collard Greens
We all have that one dish that is pretty much our signature dish. It just so happens that collard greens happen to be one of mine. My southern soul food style collard greens are simply the best. I truly mean it. EVERYONE that has tasted this collard green recipe LOVES it!
We all have that one dish that is pretty much our signature dish. It just so happens that collard greens happen to be one of mine. My southern soul food style collard greens are simply the best. I truly mean it. EVERYONE that has tasted this collard green recipe LOVES it!
- Carbohydrate 15.6080991735819 g
- Cholesterol 5520 mg
- Fat 1108.61410770982 g
- Fiber 2.88653645014062 g
- Protein 1370.90149946897 g
- Saturated Fat 317.291760232349 g
- Serving Size 1 1 recipe (10262g)
- Sodium 7503.37384215005 mg
- Sugar 12.7215627234413 g
- Trans Fat 94.2556610683672 g
- Calories 15891 calories
Step-by-step
- Place the bacon ends in a pot, and place the pot over medium heat.
- Brown the bacon then add in the diced onions, and cook until the onions start to sweat.
- Add in the minced garlic,then cook for 1 minutes.
- Pour in the chicken broth, and turn the heat up to high and let boil for 20 minutes.
- Pour in the 2 cups of water, and turn the heat down to medium.
- Start adding in the collard greens into the pot.
- Once all of the greens are in the pot, sprinkle in the seasoning salt and ground black pepper.
- Add in the sliced jalapeno, and the vinegar and stir the ingredients.
- Cover the pot, and let simmer for 1 hour and 10 minutes over medium heat. Be sure to peak in and stir periodically.
- Enjoy!
Swapping bacon ends for smoked turkey wings alters the final lipid profile of the pot entirely, shifting the rendered fat from a heavy pork saturation to a lighter, deeply gelatinous collagen base that coats the tongue differently. Maintaining that original pork component, however, requires rendering the bacon ends over steady medium heat until the fat transforms from opaque white to translucent, which provides the necessary medium to sweat diced onions without burning the aromatics. When aromatics soften and turn translucent, minced garlic goes into the pot for exactly one minute before liquids are introduced, preventing bitter sulfur compounds from developing through over-browning.
Substituting vegetable broth for chicken broth strips away the inherent animal fats and amino acids required to balance the natural bitterness of brassicas, necessitating an extra tablespoon of fat or oil to carry flavor across the palate. Water added halfway through dilution tempers the salinity of the simmering broth, preventing the greens from over-concentrating as steam escapes the vessel. Boiling the initial broth mixture aggressively for 20 minutes reduces the liquid slightly while infusing the pot with rendered bacon flavor before the bulky greens ever enter the liquid.
Introducing four pounds of collard greens into a crowded pot requires patience, as the fibrous leaves must wilt down gradually in the simmering liquid to fit beneath the lid. Once submerged, the addition of white distilled vinegar introduces acetic acid, which counters the alkalinity of the cooking water and brightens the dull green pigments by temporarily stabilizing chlorophyll molecules against heat degradation. Sliced jalapenos contribute capsaicin that dissolves efficiently into the simmering fat phase, distributing background heat evenly throughout every spoonful rather than creating isolated pockets of spice.
Covering the pot and maintaining a steady medium simmer for one hour and ten minutes allows structural pectin and hemicellulose within the tough cell walls to fully hydrolyze, transforming rigid greens into tender strands. Periodic stirring guarantees even heat distribution from the bottom of the heavy pot to the surface, stopping scorching from ruining the pot liquor. Overcooking past this window causes bright green cellular structures to collapse into a drab olive drab while sulfurous compounds multiply, turning a clean, earthy vegetable into an unpleasantly pungent dish.
