Braised Collard Greens With Bacon Recipe Courtesy Kelsey Nixon Recipes

COLLARD GREENS WITH BACON

Steps:

• Cook the bacon and onions: Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the bacon in the skillet until it just begins to brown around the edges, stirring occasionally. Add the onion and cook until it's softened and just starting to brown.
• Add the garlic, salt, pepper, sugar, and hot sauce: Cook until the garlic becomes fragrant, about 1 minute.
• Add the vinegar and simmer: Simmer until the amount of liquid is reduced by half, stirring and scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet.
• Add the collard greens and the chicken stock (or water): Return to a simmer. Reduce the temperature to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally until the collard greens have wilted and lost their brightness. Season to taste with additional vinegar and hot sauce. Serve with some of the juices from the pan.

QUICK-BRAISED GREENS WITH BACON AND SWEET ONIONS

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. When water boils, add greens and cook until wilted and tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• Place bacon in a large frying pan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until browned and fat is rendered, about 3 minutes. Add onion and cook until softened, about 4 minutes. Add greens and turn to coat well. Add broth - it should cover greens and let cook until broth is reduced and greens are very tender, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve.

COLLARD GREENS WITH BACON

Steps:

• Place bacon in a heavy pot and cook over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until fat begins to render, about 5 minutes. Drain off 1/2 of the bacon grease.
• Reduce heat to medium and add onion. Cook, stirring often, for about 5 minutes. Add garlic, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper; cook and stir for 2 minutes.
• Increase heat to high and immediately pour in 3 cups water. Bring to a boil, stirring to scrape up browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Add chopped collard greens and 1 more cup of water. Bring back to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until greens are tender, about 1 hour.

BRAISED COLLARD GREENS

Steps:

• Place ham hocks, salt pork, onion, bay leaves, red pepper flakes, and sugar in a large pot with the chicken stock. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer, and cook for 30 minutes.
• Stir collard greens into the pot, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer, and cook for 30 minutes, or until greens are tender. Season with red wine vinegar and salt and pepper to taste.

BRAISED COLLARD GREENS

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot with a lid over medium-high. When hot, add ham hocks. When they're sizzling, flip and crisp the other side.
• Add the onions and stir so they are coated in the fat and nestled under and around the hocks. Turn the heat down to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft, 6 to 8 minutes.
• Add the garlic, paprika, cumin, cayenne, salt and brown sugar, and stir until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
• Pour in the chicken stock and hard cider and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 2 hours, until the ham hocks are very tender.
• Remove the ham hocks and allow to cool slightly. Skim the fat off the surface of the stock. When cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bone (discard the fat and the skin) and chop into 1/4- to 1/2-inch pieces and set aside.
• Bring the stock back to a boil, then add the greens in large handfuls, pressing them down to wilt in the hot stock before adding more leaves. Add the reserved ham hock meat.
• Reduce heat to low, cover the pot, and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, until the greens are silky and tender. Season with salt and serve with hot sauce and a splash of apple cider vinegar, if desired.

BOOZY BRAISED COLLARD GREENS

Steps:

• Remove stems from greens and discard. Roll up like a cigar and slice into ribbons.
• In a large pot over medium heat, add bacon, onion, and garlic. Render bacon until crisp and the onion is tender, about 6 minutes.
• Stir in brown sugar, vinegar, broth, and bourbon. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and stir in the collard greens in batches. Cover and cook for 1 1/2 hours until tender and soft.

BRAISED COLLARD GREENS

Steps:

• Cook the bacon in a deep saute pan on medium-high heat until crisp, then set aside, leaving the fat in the pan. Add the red pepper flakes, garlic and lemon zest, and saute until fragrant. Add the collard greens and cook until they begin to wilt. Add the chicken stock and 1/2 cup water and cover, lowering the heat to a simmer. Let cook until the greens are tender, 30 to 40 minutes. Uncover, add back the bacon, raise the heat to medium-high, and reduce the liquid by one-quarter, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the lemon juice, and season with salt and pepper.

BRAISED COLLARD GREENS

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium heat. Add the garlic, onion and 1 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Cook until the onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the Cajun seasoning and cook 30 seconds. Add the ham hocks, chicken broth and 4 cups water. Increase the heat to high and bring to a low boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the ham is tender and falling off the bone, about 2 hours.
• Remove the ham hocks from the liquid. Remove and discard the skin and bones. Roughly chop the meat into bite-size pieces. Return the meat to the cooking liquid along with the collard greens and vinegar. Increase the heat and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the greens are tender, about 30 minutes. Serve the collards with some of the liquid.