You betcha! Cut a block of cheese into pieces that will fit your food processor and run them through with the grating disc. You'll have great shredded cheese in seconds that you can use to top salads, mix into scrambled eggs, or melt into a gooey cheese sauce.
Does vinegar tenderize collard greens? the vinegar will help it tenderize. Add about 1/8 cup of vinegar per pot of greens. I use about 1/4 cup of the broth and lay the hamhock and whole hot pepper laid on top.
If you're new to making collard greens, this might seem like a strange addition, but the vinegar adds a welcome tangy note that brightens the dish and balances out the salty, savory flavors. A tablespoon of sugar also helps balance out the dish.
First things first: Kale and collard stems are tough, chewy, and fibrous. While we enjoy the occasional raw collard or kale salad, you should never eat the stems raw. Otherwise, the exteriors will burn before the stems have cooked through, making them both bitter and too tough to chew.
If you find collard stems too tough to eat or if you simply prefer them cooked longer than the leaves, you can remove them and either discard them or cook them longer than the leaves. You can remove the stem from a collard leaf by grasping the stem with one hand and pulling the leaf away with the other hand.
Because the stems are very tough, conventional wisdom dictates that we cook with, and eat, the leaves of Collard Greens and avoid or discard the stems, but the stems can be used like Broccoli stems, by stripping out the ribs before Mincing them pretty fine to make them more palatable and a Good Chew.
Can you overcook collard greens? I think it is nearly impossible to overcook collard greens. On the stove top this usually translates to anywhere between one and a half hours to four hours. In a slow-cooker -provided you have enough 'pot liquor' (cooking liquid) you can easily let them simmer away overnight.
Collard greens have a tough stem and prominent veins on the back of the leaves. These veiny crevices can sometimes harbor sand and dirt so you'll want to wash them well.
Using a sink filled with water to wash produce is never recommended. Never wash leafy greens with soap, detergent or bleach, since these can leave residues that are not meant to be consumed.
Harvest leaves when they are up to 10 inches long, dark green, and still young. Old leaves may be tough or stringy. Pick the lower leaves first, working your way up the plant. You can even harvest leaves when frozen in the garden, but be careful because the frozen plant is brittle.
Salt is a friend to bitter greens, whether you plan to eat them raw or cooked. Mellow the bitter flavor with a sprinkle of salt on endive or radicchio, or include anchovies or cured meat (like bacon, pancetta, or proscuitto) along with mustard, beet, or collard greens.
Keep the wrapped greens in an open plastic bag in the refrigerator for up to about 5 days. When you are ready to cook the greens, you'll need to wash them.
Luck! Anddon't forget, Collard Greens are HIGH in Potassium Chloride and thus taste "salty" all by themselves. Infact cooking greens (most have the same characteristic) will impart a slight saltiness to plain water when boiled.
The easiest way to wash collard greens is to place them in a 9×13 baking dish or a large rectangular food storage container. Fill the dish or container with cold water, and let the collards soak for a few minutes to loosen the dirt. Use your hands to swish the greens in the water to remove any dirt.
Spoiled collard greens will get soft, wilt, become slimy, or get discolored. They may also start to smell bad.
10 Delicious Ways to Eat Collard Greens
- Rolled up in a Wrap. This is where the sturdiness of these leaves pays off big time.
- Mixed into a Meaty Braise.
- Stirred into Soup.
- Cooked into a Stir-Fry.
- Shredded into a Casserole.
- Puréed into Pesto.
- Added to Chili.
- In Salads and Slaws.
