So, I Realize we here at the Bud have some catching up to do STAT, sorry for the unexpected Hiatus!!!
As promised a good old Mustard Green Recipe! Its actually super duper simple and easy, just takes a little TLC. And, have no fear these are in my opinion much tastier, and less leathery than Collard, or Turnip Greens, so it makes getting those good old nutrients in the diet much easier! The extra plus is that this is straight from one of the best Creole handbooks ever; the author is an extended member of my dear family straight out of Madisonville, LA, owner of the famous Dooky Chase Restaurant in NOLA, and contributor to Disney’s Princess Frog; Mrs. Leah Chase’s The Dooky Chase Cookbook. (if you don’t have it, you should go get it)
Just FYI I cut this recipe in half because usually it’s just me eating the grubs.. so this is the “in half” version from the book. Here’s what you need:
1lb pickled pork (I used 1 packet of the Bear Creek Salt Pork you find at Publix)
1 qt water
2 bunches mustard greens
water to cover greens
½ red bell pepper
½ bay leaf
1 medium white potato quartered (I didn’t use potato in my version because I already had a potato dish on hand.)
So greens are notorious for being super duper dirty! One of the things mom always said was that greens had to be washed and washed and washed. Today I think places take care to clean them off a little bit before they get to market but don’t be fooled a good way to ruin any meal is to eat dirt, so just wash ‘em!
And uh, just FYI… I got two water changes in before A GIGANTIC GREY MOTH CLIMBED OUT OF MY GREENS, WONDERING WHAT ALL THE COMOTION WAS ABOUT… so yeah. *Yelp! *
First find yourself a pot and put in that chunk of pork, cover with water, and boil….
Now you can officially start! You need to take the bundles and unwind them, separate the leaves, and fill up your sink with warm water. This is technically not a lot of greens but it sure does take up a whole lot of space in the raw form so you might want to fill up both sides. To help “sterilize” put a little salt in the baths and soak the leaves for little bit changing the bath about 2 to 3 times. If you feel like you need to save some space, you can remove the stems before the bath.
So if you haven’t already, remove those stems! They are bitter and tough and just don’t belong in the dish, think of them as inner banana peel! (just thinking of something you wouldn’t try to eat unless you were trapped in opposite world) You need to remove almost the entire thing, you don’t have to but the more you remove, the less cook time you will need, and the less bitter you will combat! Take a knife and cut along the outer edge of the stem, on each side, at the inside of each leaf (kind of making a slim upside down “V”, and chuck it in el garbagio. Or maybe compost it! After washing your greens by changing the water a couple times and removing the stems take your leaves and shred them up into small pieces. Don’t be afraid to tear them to bits. The smaller you tear them the softer the end result will be… uh don’t pull out the Food Processor though, that’s overkill. Place your greens in a pot, cover with water, and boil for 10 mins.
Now you can chop up your onion, bell pepper, and potatoes if using. After 10 minutes drain the water from the pot, saving at least 1 cup of the liquid. (you will probably need more so maybe save 2 cups just in case). Now add back the saved liquid, your Bell pepper, Onion, and Bay leaf (add potatoes here if using!). The meat you’ve been boiling should have at least been boiling for roughly an hour; you want it to be tender (its easy, just look to see when it starts to look pinkish after about at least an hour). You can remove it from the pot, separate the meat bits, and discard the fat. Take about a cup of this liquid too and add it into the greens pot.
Cook this for at least another half an hour to blend all your seasoning. You are welcome to cook as long as you like, they will only get softer and more blended--- just make sure they don’t dry out and burn.
Et Voila!
