Collard Greens & Eggs

Growing up in the Carolinas I miss collard greens often.  But those are super tender and cooked forever. While my Brasilian (that’s how it’s spelled in Brasil) wife introduced me to the very quick cooked and fresh tasting way they do in Brasil.

I do like both but they each have a different ‘spirit’.  We will cook a twist on the dish to harmonize both ‘spirits’ of the collard green.  I am doing a quick cooked collard greens with slow braised turnips, just dug carrots and grapefruit.

Ingredients:

Slow braised turnips & carrots

½ pound turnips

¼ pound carrots

Your choice of stock (beef, chicken, pork or veggie)

2 teaspoons pepper vinegar

Peel and dice the turnip/s and peel and thinly slice the carrot/s

Cook in stock separately until just tender not mushy

Drain the vegetables, put in a bowl. Reserve about a ½ cup of the stock. Season with salt & pepper to taste, toss with pepper vinegar and set aside.

Grapefruit segments:

1-2 Texas ruby red grapefruits

Using a microplane or another similar contraption, zest about a quarter of a grapefruit or until you have about a quarter teaspoon of clean grapefruit zest and set aside.

Using a sharp knife, carefully slice off the top and bottom of the grapefruit.

Using even strokes following the curve of the grapefruit, slice downward the skin away from the flesh and discard.

Remove any remaining white pith and discard the pith. Cut between the membranes to segment the grapefruit, retaining any juices.

Roast the grapefruit segments in a 350-degree F oven for 10 minutes or until slightly darker.  Do not overcook. Let cool.

Set aside in their juices in a glass or any non-metal bowl.

Collards

2-3 big bunches of small Texas collard greens

Stem all the collards.

Lay the stemmed leaves on top of each other & tightly roll lengthwise.

Cut the rolled collards very thinly crosswise.

Set aside.

Cooking & assembly:

In a large fry pan (12-14inches) add any fat you prefer (oil, butter, bacon fat, sesame seed oil etc.).  I prefer duck fat.

Over medium high heat quickly sauté the chiffonade (a fancy culinary term of rolled and thinly sliced) of the collard greens stirring continuously for a minute or so until the collards are glistening and tender. Add the carrots and turnips with about a ¼ cup total of reserved stock and any grapefruit juice.  Turn the heat on high and bring to a quick boil and cook until the liquid is absorbed (about a minute).  Turn off the heat and add the grapefruit zest.  Season with salt & pepper to taste. Put in a dish for service and top decoratively with the toasted grapefruit segments.

Serve as a side dish with poultry or enjoy with a soft poached egg garnished with some chives & crusty bread.