We’re coming into the season of greens. In your CSA’s and at your local markets you’ll find beautiful bunches of mustard greens, collard greens, kale, swiss chard, spinach, turnip greens, asian greens, and more. Each variety offers its own subtle (and some not so subtle!) flavors.
Many people aren’t quite sure what to do with these greens, and while there are many wonderful recipes worth experimenting with, here’s what I do for a quick weeknight fix:
fill the sink with water and cover the greens, swishing them around to wash the dirt off. Leave them there while you warm up the skillet and add a couple of rounds of olive oil (or bacon here in the south). Then take the greens out of the sink, trim the largest portion of the stems off and stack the leaves one on top of the other. When you have a nice stack, roll them up together like a big fat cigar and slice them crosswise. Add the chopped greens to the hot skillet, dripping wet. This should be enough water. I usually add a mashed garlic clove at this time. Lid on for 5 minutes, lid off for 5 minutes. Season with salt. ta da. Now. Little minor details: spinach is so tender, it might not even take this long to cook. Mustard greens, with their stronger flavor, might need to cook a little longer. If so, you could add more water. Experiment! My DH likes to sprinkle balsamic vinegar on his greens. I like hot pepper juice. We both like a little soy on our asian greens. So enjoy. And trust me, you’ll have plenty of Green options to practice with this season!