An American friend who has lived in France for a number of years has gone back to his southern roots and sowed some collards. We are the beneficiaries of a box of seedlings. We have never grown, seen or eaten collards before. Any help would be welcome.
1
vinnyd
They're a kind of non-heading cabbage. Anything you can do with cabbage or kale you can do with collards. They like hot weather and will grow where ordinary cabbage won't, e.g. the deep American South. This doesn't seem the right season for seedlings to me in the temperate zones of the northern hemisphere, but it might be OK. I used to plant them about now in Saudi Arabia and they'd be ready by early spring, but that climate is a lot different from yours.
2
fan
A couple of simple recipes...
Couve Mineira: Stack several collard leaves together and roll them. With a sharp kitchen knife cut very thin strips (as thin as possible). Heat 1T oil in a frying pan and sautee the collards with garlic and onions, add salt and pepper to taste.
Caldo Verde: Add collard green cut in thin strips (as in the recipe above) to boiling potato soup.
3
realitychex
Lucky you, Baz. We used to eat collards where I grew up. In a big pot with some smoked, meaty ham hocks, a little salt, and a couple pepperoncini. Cover with water. Cook slowly for an hour or so. At least until the ham has fallen off the bone. Add water if needed. Simple, easy, and probably has all the nutrition cooked out of the greens, but so very tasty. Mom always threw in a pinch of sugar. We always ate it out of a bowl so that we could "sop up the pot likker" with corn bread.
4
baz_faz
Vinny, I agree that it seems a bizarre time to plant these titchy collards. Their true leaves are only just showing. But the guy who gave them to us is not an experienced gardener. I have put half a dozen miserable specimens in our small vegetable patch so if I meet him at the market tomorrow I can thank him.
Thanks for the idea, FaN and Chex. If the tiddly plants survive into next spring I might be able to harvest and cook some.
5
fluffygoat
Since collards are in the stores year 'round here, it's hard to tell, but I thought they were a spring crop. Do you have Swiss chard in your area? Collards are similar but require more cooking. Most of the recipes I've used boil the hell out of them.
Remove the thick stems from the collards. Place the greens in a large pot with water to cover. Bring to a boil, then remove from the heat and drain. Return to the pot, cover with water again and add a bit of salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cook, covered, until tender (about 10 minutes). Drain again. At this point you can chop the collards and sauté with garlic, raisins and pine nuts (a Catalan preparation), or with garlic and croutons.
In terms of quantities, you need 100 grams of raw collards (weight after thick stems removed) per serving. If you weigh them before removing the stems, allow 150 grams.
I also have a Spanish recipe for a soup of collards, Arborio rice and large white beans that is good hearty winter fare. In that case you don't have to do all that parboiling stuff. The procedure is much as #3 describes.
7
ceb
Most I know people cook them too long & hot, with too much salt, and with pig products.
I like them closer to what they were when they grew out of the ground. Just cook the spines a bit longer.
Also: quiche, stew, and pasta sauces are good, as well as the standard "green veg side dish."
Maybe you can treat it like a leek, as in a post above (soon to be below).
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