As beneficial as leafy greens are, not many like to have them on the menu. Take kale, for instance, and you can vividly picture the frowns on your children’s faces at the serving of every platter. But we love our family and want the best for them, so we bear the squirms and disinterest. Still, knowing a way to turn the commonly dreaded kale into a mouth-watering option would make all the difference.
Enter southern-style kale! This recipe offers the goodness of leafy greens with the tasty flavors of other ingredients as well. With the southern-style kale, it’s a win-win, a healthy dish on the menu, and a warm sight of smiles around you. And why won’t the recipe be so sumptuous? It’s a combination of kale with aromatics, spices, oil, and bacon strips!
Cooking Southern-Style Kale Greens
Southern-style kale is so fantastic; you’ll have your family and guests asking for it again. So, if you want to keep those faces happy at every sight of leafy greens, try following these steps;
Prepare the Kale
You’ll want to use fresh kale for this recipe, or if you must, recently frozen ones. This way, the leaves are still richly green and free of discoloration. Still, be sure to take off any yellowish leaflets from the bunch as you wash the kale greens. Then, drain them thoroughly and chop the leaves into small pieces.
Prepare the Stock
Bring about two and a half cups of water to boil in a pot. You want to use as little water as possible, but enough to cook the kale without making it too soft. When the water reaches a boil, put some strips of bacon and let it boil for about 30 to 45 minutes on medium-high heat. The bacon should release its flavor into the water, making sure the boil doesn’t dry the pot out. And when it’s done, you can leave the bacon whole or cut it into tiny pieces in the saucepan.
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Season the Stock
Add the seasonings and spices you’ve selected, along with any chopped aromatics you’d like. Then, pour in some olive oil and vinegar to the mix, and stir, so it mixes. A good vinegar choice for this recipe is apple cider, but white also works just a well.
Cook the Kale
Once the stock is thoroughly stirred, you can add the kale greens. If you’re worried about overflowing the pot, try putting in a handful at a time. As you pour in each handful, stir the stock around the leaves and add another till you’ve combined everything. Then, let the mixture boil for 10 minutes and reduce the heat, so it simmers for about two-and-a-half hours. As the kale simmers, the flavor from the stock penetrates the leaves. Make sure to check the broth for taste and adjust the seasoning and water as required. And when it’s ready, set the pot down and serve the dish.
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Southern-Style Kale Greens
Ingredients
- Six bundles of kale greens washed and chopped
- Four strips bacon
- One teaspoon olive oil, extra-virgin
- One teaspoon black pepper
- One teaspoon salt
- One teaspoon distilled white vinegar
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- ¼ onion, chopped
Instructions
- Bring about two and a half cups of water to boil in a pot. Then, add four bacon strips and let it cook for 30 to 45 minutes at medium-high. When the bacon softens, cut them into small pieces if you’d like.
- Toss in the rest of the seasoning, along with the vinegar, and stir thoroughly into the bacon stock. Then, add the kale greens and stir the leaves in till it thoroughly mixes. You can put the chopped kale greens in handfuls as you do.
- Once the kale has been thoroughly stirred into the stock, let the pot boil for 10 minutes. Then, lower the heat, so it simmers the greens for 2½ hours. Make sure to adjust the seasoning and water as required, as the stock shouldn’t completely dry out.
- When the southern-style kale greens are ready, take the pot down and serve as desired.
You can also watch his video recipe for more ways to cook this dish.