It’s Easy Being Green: 4 Greens I Love
Before I begin, let me express my disdain for iceberg lettuce. I’m not sure why it’s sold. I’m not sure why it’s served. The only reason it was ever palatable was because it was wedged and smothered in blue cheese..and it preceded a giant steak. It is tasteless, has no nutritional value, and it is only able to be prepared in one way…chopped raw and on a plate. That being said, this is not a salad post, but I hope you have found other greens to dress in a lighter and more inventive manner. Even the grab bag of “mixed greens” or mesclun are a giant step up when preparing a salad course. There, I’ve said my peace. Moving on…
I’ve been a fan of greens since my youth, when my mother’s southern cooking influences had her preparing food that was cheap, delicious, and always started with pork fat. I remember at the time that greens were still considered peasant food and hard to find in white suburbia, usually only available at the farmer’s market that we frequented from July to September. Later in life, I would find that collards aren’t even in their peak season in most of the country until January…but maybe that’s just the way things are in Michigan. I remember thinking how amazing it was that you could get a bushel basket full of food for a dollar or two. I also remember how a giant pile of greens would cook down to barely fill a cast iron Dutch oven. My love for the bitterness and the bacon or ham hock induced smokiness stayed with me as I grew up and got to experience so many different greens prepared in so many different ways.
Collard Greens: Somewhere between cabbage and kale, collard greens are definitely lifelong members of the slow food movement…around long before the moniker even existed. They have roots in southern cooking, and are a consummate side item at BBQ houses nationwide. They are known for taking on the flavors around them in the pot very well, but they also impart their own unique aroma and unique bitterness to the dish. And as long as you put the time in, they are very easy to prepare and hard to screw up. I’m not going to say stay away from the frozen bags of collards you find in the grocery, but trust me, once you go fresh…you won’t go back.
- Recipe: Gina’s Best Collard Greens – Gina is half of the Neely tandem that hosts their own show on food network and runs Neely’s Memphis BBQ.
Mustard Greens: Mustard greens are a thinner and less fibrous than collards, so they require less cooking time. Basically, they are closer to spinach than they are to kale. Mustard greens give off a spicier flavor, not “hot” spicy, but spices spicy, if that makes any sense. Probably due to the fact that mustard greens are, in fact, from the mustard plant, the same one that produces the seeds that make the grey poupon that you’ve had sitting in the door of your fridge for way too long. They are also less bitter and have a little less of the cabbage-like pungency of collards. You can easily substitute mustard greens for collard greens, or mustard greens for spinach in most recipes.
- Recipe: Bacon-Braised Mustard Greens – New York Times adaption from Donald Link’s Herbsaint Restaurant in New Orleans. I used a tablespoon less sugar and cooked it about ten minutes longer, but it might just be me misjudging my crappy burners. At 30 minutes, they were a perfect al dente. Just keep testing them as you go, and you’ll have them done to your liking…as always, time varies by kitchen.
Arugula: Common in raw form in salads, arugula also makes a great cooked bitter green. It should be handled like spinach, wilted but not overcooked. It also has a short shelf life, even if that shelf is in your fridge. You’ve got 72-hours…use it. It is almost always described as having a peppery flavor, and that flavor really comes out and seasons the food around it. Arugula is an integral part of one of my favorite quick recipes that was featured on The Kitchen a year ago.
- Recipe: Anelletti Pasta with Sausage and Greens – This recipe doesn’t specifically call for arugula, but it should. Also remember that this dish is almost entirely dependent on the quality and flavor of the sausage you use. Don’t skimp…get the good stuff…fresh ground from the butcher. And while you could substitute a different pasta shape, the anelletti is unique and fun. It makes the whole dish an adult speghetti-o.
Kale: It’s one of those greens that I used to pass by in the vegetable display and loathe. I somehow made an association between Kale and the tofu-loving meat haters that at the time I had little patience for. Hey, we all grow up sometime. Kale is thick and rich, and imparts a certain creamy starchiness to soups and stews when slowly simmered for long periods of time. It’s actually very difficult to overcook the fibrous nutrient filled leaf, making it perfect for broth based applications. Eating it makes you feel good, like vitamins, which it is full of. Plus, it’s delicious. Yes, winter is over, but you can still get your hands on winter veggies here in Michigan…and if you can, use them to make this soup…
- Recipe: Kale and Roasted Vegetable Soup – Don’t hesitate to improvise and add some of your favorite roasted root veggies that aren’t on this list…anything that you think will stand up to slow simmering for hours. And don’t forget to wait for that maillard reaction when you are roasting. That’s where the flavor comes from!
This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 15th, 2009 at 12:05 am and is filed under Food, Recipes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
