Frugal Veggies: Collard Greens

I was at the eye doctor yesterday for a routine checkup.  The doctor uses some high powered instrument to image the eye and was showing me the images they use to look for indications of detached retinas or glaucoma.  Interestingly, when she pointed to the macula, she indicated that mine looked nice and healthy and pigmented, but that some of her patients, who don’t eat a lot of vegetables, suffer from macular degeneration.  Maintaining healthy eyes is certainly a great motivation for eating more colorful vegetables.

One of the very healthy vegetables that I now prepare with some frequency is collard greens.  Collards are generally inexpensive and full of wonderful phytochemicals of leafy greens.  And, unlike spinach, collards have calcium that is more easily absorbable.  Having spent some time the American South, I have always braised collard greens, leaves and stems, until they are very tender.  I usually prepare them vegetarian style, braised with onions, garlic, and apple cider vinegar.  Sometimes, I prepare collards in a stew with black eyed peas and sweet potatoes. Either way, they usually simmer for at least 45 minutes.

While I love the long simmered collard greens (you will notice them on the weekly menu about once a week) served with pinto beans or red beans and rice, I discovered another marvelous preparation of collards in Brazil.  In a dish they serve with the national dish feijoada (black beans stewed with pork), Brazilians serve a delightful, very thinly sliced collard leaves, quick stir fried. The texture is quite different from the long-braised greens.  I have never been able to cut the collards as thin as the ones I had in Brazil, but the cutting is the hard part.  The cooking takes less than 5 minutes.

Brazilian Collards

1 pound collard greens, washed well
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T olive oil
salt to taste

Remove stems and reserve for another use.  Take the collard leaves and roll up like a cigar, then slice as thin as possible (aim for 1/16 of an inch).  When the prepared collards are all cut into thin ribbons, heat the olive oil in a skillet or wok to medium high.  Add the garlic and stir until fragrant about 30 seconds.  Add the cut collard greens and quickly stir fry over the high heat until just softened, about 3-5 minutes.  Season and serve immediately.

see other tips at Frugal Friday and Food Renegade