Deep South Greens
Ahhh, Ill bet you didn't even know I was from the South. Well, does South San Mateo count? Actually, my Grandfather on my Mom's side grew up in the mid-south area. He was born in Tennessee and moved to Arkansas when he was younger. My Grandfather was a real meat and potatoes kinda guy. Fought in WW2, owned his own business for over 30 years and pretty much worked his ass off 24/7 to support his family. He also liked his southern food. Is this a handed down recipe from deep in the Shelton family archives? No, I wish I could say it was, but it's just a recipe I found online years ago and altered to fit my tastes.
Growing up I really wasn't exposed to southern food. I had to discover it on my own. Back in the 80's we had a great local southern BBQ restaurant called "Dessie's Too". Run by a sweet couple in their had to be 70's. They turned out the best BBQ in town by a landslide. Their hot links were mind-blowing and they did great chicken, ribs and sides as well. I was truly crestfallen when they closed only a few years later before they retired. Once I figured out what foods I liked and didn't in my early 20's, I made it a point to try some more southern food based on my great memories of Dessie's. Turns out I should have been born in Mississippi or Alabama instead of the San Francisco Bay Area.
So, ya' all like greens? I got a recipe for you. Really simple...takes a little time to cook, but prep is super easy. So, put on your Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters or Buddy Guy 45's and get to cookin'!
When I make greens I like to make a pretty decent size batch as the flavors meld together better after a day or two in the fridge. So, this recipe will easily feed 8 people and still will have some left over. If you can't find mustard greens, you can substitute with some kind of kale.
Ingredients:
Two bunches of Collard Greens
One bunch of Mustard Greens (or kale)
One bunch of Swiss Chard
Six slices of thick cut quality bacon chopped into one inch slices
Two medium Sweet Onions
1 large or 2 small Ham Shanks (about 1 to 1.5 lbs total cut into pieces if possible)
10, or more, smashed Garlic Cloves
1 quart chicken stock
4 cups Water
Bay Seasoning
Chicken Bouillon granules
Apple Cider Vinegar
Hot Sauce
Preparation:
Prep time should take you about 15-20 minutes max...even if you are a slug or a three toed sloth in the kitchen. Trust me, after it's said and done you will think how can something that took such little prep time taste so good.
1. Get a large stockpot out (8 quart minimum), and fry up your bacon over medium heat. When the bacon is done (about 10-15 minutes) place on paper towel and keep about 2-3 TBS of bacon fat in the pot.
2. Chop up your onions (I always use a food processor because I'm lazy and I don't want a finger in my greens). Once chopped saute'e them in the bacon fat until softened...about 5 minutes or so.
3. Pour into the pot your stock and water and place your ham shanks and smashed garlic in as well. Bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer of about 2.5 out of 10. Cover the pot and simmer for about an hour.
4. While the stock mixture is cooking, rinse off your greens to make sure you get any dirt or grit off. After that is done, tear the greens into manageable pieces. Leave the middle stalk and just use the leafy part of the greens. You can use the stalk of the chard though.
5. When the stock has simmered for an hour, place your collards into the broth (push down into the liquid) and simmer for one hour.
6. After the collards have been in for 30 minutes, then you can put in your mustard greens, or kale and your chard. These greens don't need as long to cook. Again press them down into the liquid and re-cover the pot.
7. Once all the greens have simmered, get some tongs and remove your chunks of ham shank and shred into bite size pieces. Discard the bones and place the ham back into the stock.
8. Now is the time you want to taste and start spicing it up. Taste first. If you are using a low sodium stock it will likely need some more flavor. If you used broth, it might be salty enough for you. I usually use stock that has about 500mg of sodium per cup, so a fair amount of sodium already. I usually add a few tsp's of bay seasoning and then add a tsp at a time of chicken bouillon until it reaches the level of spice that I like. At this time I also add in my apple cider vinegar. I like a fair amount of vinegar. I usually add about 4-5 TBS for a large pot like this. But, you can add less or more if you like.
9. After spicing it up, I turn the heat to low and lust leave on the stove for a couple hours. It's technically good to go at this point, but I like to let the flavors meld a little more. Once it's done you can put on any other things you like.....hot sauce like Tabasco or Tapatia work great if you like some heat. A nice sweet cornbread goes incredible with this...BUT...I gotta keep you on your toes, so you'll have to keep checking back for a future recipe for it :)
Greens are a tough fit to pair with either wine or beer. If you have a fair amount of vinegar in your greens I would not suggest pairing with any kind of wine. As for beer; you can get away with a nice Saison; think Ommegang, Hennepin, Saison Dupont or Fantome (my favorite, but hard to find). You can also try a nice Witbier such as St Bernardus, Blanche de Chambly or God forbid even Blue Moon or Shock Top as other options.