Recipes - Sides

Collard Greens

• 2 - 3 medium smoked ham hocks or 2 pounds smoked pork neck bones
• 5 pounds of collards or several large bunches
• 2 teaspoons of salt

Take 2 or 3 smoked ham hocks and put them in a large (6 quart) pot of water. (If you use smoked neck bones, they usually don’t take as long to cook as ham hocks.) Bring the water to a boil and let it boil for about 1 1/2 hours. Add more water as it boils down. Boil the ham hocks until they begin to fall apart. The ham hocks should fall apart before you add the collard greens.

Take the collard greens and separate the leaves. (If you used frozen collards, simply pour them - frozen - right from the package to the pot.) Now rinse each leaf individually under cold running water. After you rinse the collard greens thoroughly, stack several leaves on top of each other. Roll these leaves together. Then slice the leaves into thin strips using a cutting board and large knife. Rolling them together speeds up the process as you are slicking through several leaves at once.

Next, add your collard greens to the pot. Since this is a lot of collards, you will need to add them slowly until the pot is full. Allow them to wilt as they cook - then keep adding more. Add salt, cover and cook for thirty minutes on medium heat. Stir every few minutes to distribute the smoked meat-taste evenly. Taste to confirm they are the tenderness you prefer.

Serve with your favorite meat dish such as chitterlings. Eat the ham hocks or neck bones right along with the collards.You can sprinkle lots of hot sauce on the collards.