My mom and I are getting ready for our big New Years Day meal so we’re busy in the kitchen cooking up greens, passion peas and cornbread. I absolutely love this meal anytime of year, but especially on New Years Day. It’s tradition!
Greens are a staple in the South and I’ve been eating them since I was little. You can use any hardy, leafy green in this recipe, be it collard, turnip or mustard greens. I happened across some really nice turnip greens, so that’s what I am using today. Cooked greens are super easy to make, and while they do take a couple of hours to cook, this dish takes only a short amount of hands-on time.
The key to good greens is salt, so don’t be shy. The salt not only adds flavor, but it also takes away the bitterness from the greens. This recipe calls for salt that’s in the creole seasoning, as well as the salted pork. I use a smoked ham hock in this dish, but smoked ham or bacon can be used as a substitute. If you want to keep these greens vegan or vegetarian, omit the meat altogether and replace the fat with olive oil and a bit of extra salt. See details below for suggested amounts. Serve these greens with pepper sauce (cayenne pepper-infused vinegar; recipe below) and enjoy!
To start, fill a very clean sink with cold water. Soak the fresh greens in the water to thoroughly rinse the grit away. Once clean, remove about ¾ of the stem from each leaf, leaving just the tender stem and leaf behind. Roughly chop the leaves and add them to a large stock pot or enameled Dutch oven, along with 1 chopped onion, 1 chopped whole jalapeno (including the seeds), 1 tablespoon of Cajun or creole seasoning, 64 ounces of chicken stock and one ½ pound smoked ham hock. If you do not have a ham hock, ½ pound of any smoked pork will do; or, you can omit the meat altogether to keep this dish vegan and vegetarian. If you omit the meat, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 teaspoon of kosher salt instead.
Cover the pot of greens, bring to a boil and simmer for 2 ½ hours until the greens are dark green and very tender. Serve these greens with cornmeal dumplings, if desired.
To make the cornmeal dumplings to go along with your greens, simply mix 1 ½ cups of white or yellow cornmeal, 1 ½ tablespoons of all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 1 tablespoon of melted butter, 1 tablespoon of minced scallion, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of hot sauce in a medium-sized bowl. Mix until just combined. Using a tablespoon, take a scoop of dough and scrape it into the simmer greens and liquid (or pot liquor, as it’s typically referred to). Repeat until all dumplings have been added to the pot of greens. Cover the pot and let the greens simmer for 15 minutes; the steam will cook the dumplings. Do not open the lid while the dumplings are cooking. Once cooked through, serve the greens and cornmeal dumplings immediately with pepper sauce.
As for the pepper sauce, you can buy it in the store, but it’s much better homemade. To make pepper sauce, empty a pint glass jar of white vinegar into a saucepan along with 1 teaspoon of sugar. While the vinegar is heating, fill the (now empty) glass vinegar jar with fresh, whole cayenne peppers. Once the vinegar is piping hot, carefully refill the vinegar jar until the peppers are completely submerged in the hot vinegar. Seal the jar and let it sit on the counter for one week before using. There is no need to refrigerate the pepper sauce. Use it on greens, or in soups or chilis until gone.
Turnip Greens
Ingredients
- 1 large (two-handed) bunch of turnip, collard or mustard greens
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 jalapeño, chopped
- 1 tbsp cajun or creole seasoning
- 64 oz chicken stock
- ½ lb smoked ham hock (or other smoked pork)
Instructions
- Wash and remove ¾ of the stem from turnip, mustard or collard greens. Roughly chop.
- Add to a large stock pot, along with chopped onion, chopped jalapeño, creole seasoning, chicken stock and salted pork. If keeping these vegetarian or vegan, omit the meat and add one tablespoon of olive oil and one teaspoon of kosher salt.
- Bring greens to a boil, then reduce heat to a low simmer. Cook for 2 ½ hours or until dark green and very tender.
- Serve with cornbread dumplings and/or pepper sauce (see narrative above for details).
- Store any uneaten greens in their juices (pot liquor) in the refrigerator.
