Soul Food Collard Greens Recipe

Southern Soul Food Collard Greens Recipe simmered in chicken broth with smoked turkey wings, green and red bell peppers, onions, garlic, white vinegar and red pepper flakes make this dish so tasty. No one will complain about not having enough meat with these hearty and flavorful collard greens.  Perfect for Thanksgiving or any day of the week. Check out the entire post and the easy step by step pic tutorial!

I enjoy southern style collard greens all year round. Give me some mac and cheese and candied yams on the side, oh and fried chicken and I’m a happy woman. Yum! Before I forget, my candied yams and mac and cheese will be on the blog soon.

Since the holidays near, I figured I’d share this collard green recipe with you plus one of my readers requested it.  Stay tuned for some of my other favorite soul food and southern recipes that are perfect for the upcoming holidays!

My simmered to perfection collard greens taste oh soooo good.  They’re cooked low and slow in a rich and robust chicken broth. I always get great feedback from anyone who tries them. They absolutely love them. My mom and southern grandmother taught me how to make collard greens with ham hocks as a kid, so of course, I make them very similar theirs.

Southern collard greens was a staple in my home growing up. We ate them all year round. We would normally eat them on Sundays. I still remember the smell of the kitchen. It smelled wonderful. I think the smell of the vinegar in my mom’s greens was pretty strong but it still smelled amazing! Memories!

I make my soul food collard greens with smoked turkey wings since I no longer eat pork. Smoked turkey wings are lower in fat plus it’s perfect for anyone on a special diet.   These collard greens are AMAZINGLY good and just about as southern as they can be! Add ham hocks if you prefer.  Eliminate the peppers if you like,  but they won’t taste the same. I’m telling you right now, these collard greens taste and look amazing with the added veggies. Collard greens ingredients

2 cups of onions diced

4 garlic cloves minced

1 green pepper diced

1 sweet bell peppers diced

1 tablespoon jalapeno diced

1 tsp cajun seasoning (optional)

2 teaspoons crushed red pepper

2 tsp onion powder

2 tsp garlic powder

3 cups chicken broth. I used Better than Bouillon chicken base

2 lbs smoked turkey wings

3 bunches of collard greens

white vinegar

2-3 tablespoons of sugar (optional) but not really. Sugar helps balance out the bitterness of collard greens.

salt for taste

pepper for taste

How to make southern collard greens:

Step 1:

Clean your collard greens to remove the dirt and grit. To do this, fill up a sink with cold water. Add 1 tablespoon of baking soda into the sink of water. Add the greens to the water. Swoosh them around so that the sand and dirt can settle to the bottom of the sink.  Swoosh the greens once again. Drain the water from the sink. Rinse each leaf under cold water thoroughly.

Step 2:

Get rid of any brown or yellow collard green leaves. Take one leaf. Fold it lengthwise (in half) using a knife, slice off each side of the stem. Alternatively, fold the leave in half and then carefully tear the leaves off each side of the leaf. Discard the stems or store them in the freezer to use later in soups or stir-frys.

Step 3:

Stack the collard green leaves going in the same direction on top of the cutting board.  Fold the leaves up. Then cut them up into two-inch squares a bunch at a time.

Step 4:

Cooking the collard greens is usually the last step. Cook the smoked turkey wings first. To a large pot or dutch oven, add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil over medium heat. Add the green peppers,  sweet red bell peppers, jalapeño, and onions. Saute until soft. Add the minced garlic and saute for one minute.

Step 5:

Add the broth to the Dutch oven then add the crushed red pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and cajun seasoning. Mix well. Add the smoked turkey wings. Simmer for an hour. If you want to use the Better than Bouillon chicken base please DO NOT ADD THE ENTIRE JAR!  Make sure to read the instruction on the jar FIRST.

Step 6:

Add the collard greens on top of the smoked turkey wings. Add the vinegar and sugar. Push the greens down and gently stir. The greens will seem like they won’t fit but don’t worry, they will wilt and reduce in size greatly as it hits the water. Once the collard greens are wilted and completely in the pot or dutch oven Cover and simmer for 1.5 -2 hours or until very tender and dark green and the meat has fallen off the smoked turkey wings.

Step 7:

Remove the bones from the pot. Add salt and pepper and sugar to taste. Stir to combine. Serve immediately with your choice of sides like baked sweet potato, candied yams, cornbread, cranberry sauce, fried chicken, mashed potatoes, stuffing or mac and cheese.

FYI…you’ll notice some leftover liquid in the pot. It’s called potlikker or pot liquor. Serve the potlikker individually in small bowls.  Some people like to sop their cornbread up with the potlikker. I’m one of those peoples.  Potlikker also makes tasty soup or gravy. So don’t get rid of it :).  I hope you can give this collard greens recipe a try!

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5 from 11 votes

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Collard Greens

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

3 hrs

Total Time

3 hrs 10 mins

 

Southern Soul Food Collard Greens Recipe simmered in chicken broth with smoked turkey wings, green and red peppers, onions, garlic, white vinegar, red pepper flakes make this dish so tasty. No one will complain about not having enough meat with these hearty and flavorful collard greens.  Perfect for Thanksgiving or any day of the week. Check out the entire post and the easy step by step pic tutorial!

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Southern American

Keyword: black folk food, holiday food, Soul food, southern food

Servings: 5 people

Calories: 200 kcal

Author: April

Ingredients

• 2 cups onion diced
• 4 garlic cloves minced
• 1 green pepper diced
• 1 sweet bell pepper diced
• 1 tbsp jalapeno pepper diced
• 3 bunches collard greens
• 2 lbs whole smoked turkey wings
• 1 tsp cajun seasoning (optional)
• 2-3 tsp crushed red pepper
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 3 cups chicken broth I used Better Than Bouillon
• 2 tbsp distilled white vinegar
• 2 tbsp granulated sugar
• salt for taste
• pepper for taste

Instructions

1. To a large pot or dutch oven, add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil over medium heat. Add the green peppers,  sweet red bell peppers, jalapeño, and onions. Saute until soft. Add the minced garlic and saute for one minute.

2. In a large stock pot or dutch oven over medium heat, add the smoked turkey wings, crushed red peppers, the sauteed vegetables and chicken broth. Cover and simmer for about an hour.

3. Next, add the collard greens, vinegar, sugar, garlic powder, onion powder and salt and pepper to taste. Mix to combine. If the greens seem like too much. Keep stirring until they have wilted down. They should be able to fit once they have wilted down. Cover and simmer for 2 hours or until the meat has fallen completely off the bone. Once done. Serve immediately.