Not-Yo-Mama’s Collard Greens

Did you know food historians date collard greens back to prehistoric times? These greens are immune-boosting and full of iron, Vitamin A, Vitamin C and other hearty nutrients. Although many people associate greens with southern African American culture, the reality is different. 

Here’s the deal — collard greens are popular plants with a rich soulful history. The Romans and Portuguese have long used collard greens. Even so, I know you might want to hear more about the southern variety of greens that has hammocks or smoked turkey meat added to the collard greens, or the cornbread for dunking but you’ll be shocked to know how “detoxelicious” this dish is without any added meat. It’s just the African slaves and Native Americans shared ideas on how to make the collard greens more flavorful in the South. So, from my grandma’s table to yours, eat “detoxeliciously,” without any complex animal meat proteins. 

Not-Yo-Mama’s Collard Greens

INGREDIENTS:

• Three bunches of collard greens, soak in warm water, de-stemmed & cut 

• 2 tablespoons olive oil or coconut oil 

• 1 large chopped onion 

• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes 

• 1 minced garlic clove or 1 teaspoon granulated garlic 

• 2 tablespoon coconut liquid aminos 

• 2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar 

• 4 cups vegetable stock 

• 2 tomatoes, chopped 

• Garlic salt and pepper to taste. 

INSTRUCTIONS: 

1. Soak collard greens in a large sink or steel bowl. Pick through the greens and discard yellow leaves and any thick stems. 

2. Dry and cut out the thicker stem of the collard greens. 

3. Stack 3-4 leaves and roll the leaves crosswise into tiny strips or chop into 1/4” strips. 

4. In a large pot over medium heat, heat the oil. 

5. Sauté the onions until slightly softened, about 4-5 minutes, then add the red pepper flakes, and garlic. Cook another minute. 

6. Add collard greens and cook another minute. 

7. Add the vegetable stock, coconut liquid aminos and balsamic vinegar, cover and bring to a simmer. Add filtered water as needed. 

8. Cook until greens are tender, about 40 minutes. Add or garnish with tomatoes and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. 

ProTip: It takes a lot of will power and patience to get rid of the grit that loves to cling to these green leaves. Because rinsing is not enough, I recommend you soak them ahead of time. You can fill a clean sink with cold water and sprinkle the greens with salt. I recommend you clean the sink again then let the greens soak one to two more times. After soaking, then remove the coarse stem from the leaves with a knife. Cleaning greens can be fun for the kids since they have little fingers. It helps them to understand the concept of “farm-to-table” foods. 

Recipe and Photo reprinted with permission from Detoxelicious by Dena Dodd Perry, Balboa Press/2019