There’s nothing like a bowl of delicious, tender collard greens–mm.mm.MM! It’s presence is always known at family gatherings and a dish that stands strong on its own.
This collard greens or ‘greens’ recipe has been in our family since I can remember. My father, a southern man from Georgia, took great pride in his greens recipe and was sure to pass it on to my mother before his passing.
Growing up, this dish was ALWAYS accompanied with my dad’s ribs and cornbread. When we saw the collards go into the shopping basket, we knew we were in for a treat.
What really makes these greens so.damn.good. is the smoked ham hocks that hang out in a hot bath for an hour (or more)–which tenderizes the meat, yielding fall-off-the-bone goodness. It’s quite easy to make, just give it some time.
Southern Collard Greens
Ingredients
- 2 smoked ham hocks or smoked turkey neck/wings
- 4 slices of bacon + 2 tablespoon rendered fat
- 2 bunches of collard greens
- 2 cups bone broth
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 ½ tsp of salt + more to taste
- ¼ tsp pepper + more to taste
Instructions
- Add ham hocks to a pan and fill with water until ham hocks are fully covered. Cover pan with lid and cook over medium high flame for one hour or until meat is very tender.
- While ham hocks are cooking, cook the bacon as directed on the package. Once bacon is cooked, place on a paper towel to dry. Set aside 2 tablespoons of bacon fat for later use.
- Cut the collard greens into thin shreds; remove the lower 1½ – 2 inches of the stems. Layer the leaves on-top of one-another and roll into itself, like a log. Chop every ½-inch. You should have long, thin shreds.
- Check the ham hocks. If they’re tender, add the collards, bacon + bacon fat, bone broth, bell pepper, onion, salt, and pepper.
- Cover with lid and cook for 1 hour or until greens are very tender. Stir occasionally, and make sure the greens are immersed in the broth.
NOTES
(Remember, my momma is Filipina, so rice is always at the dinner table).