I grew up with a certain idea of sautéed greens – bright, vibrant, and quickly cooked with garlic, red pepper, and a touch of citrus. In my mind, greens were meant to be emerald green, full of life and freshness. This preconceived notion was completely overturned when I first encountered Southern-style collard greens.
Discovering Southern Collard Greens
It was over two decades ago when I was working at a black-owned weekly newspaper in Madison, Wisconsin. During a spring company picnic, I came across a dish that was unlike anything I had ever seen. Stewing in an olive drab pot was a mass of army green leaves, interspersed with chunks of smoked pork. Intrigued, I asked my boss, Ms. Franklin, about it. She chuckled, almost in disbelief, “Those are collards, son! You’ve never had collards before?”
Coming from New Jersey, from a predominantly Italian-Jewish-WASP background, collard greens were not a part of my culinary landscape. Ms. Franklin explained that collard greens were a robust leafy green that required long cooking times to become tender and were traditionally prepared with smoked pork, ideally a ham hock, to infuse them with flavor.
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Sally Vargas
The Secret is in the Potlikker
Ms. Franklin then revealed the soul of collard greens: the potlikker. This is the rich, smoky broth at the bottom of the pot, created during the long simmering process. She explained that the potlikker is where all the nutrients and deep flavors reside after the greens have been cooked down.
Some cooks even save the potlikker to start their next batch of collard greens, while others enrich it with beans or more pork to transform it into a hearty soup. Whatever you do, throwing away the potlikker is simply not an option.
Southern collard greens, as I learned, are a dish with endless variations. Every region, and indeed every cook, brings their own unique touch to the recipe. This recipe is inspired by those company picnics from years ago, or at least how I remember them. This one is for you, Betty!
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Sally Vargas
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Sally Vargas
