FOOD NEWS
How To Clean Your Collard Greens
by SARAH MARTINEZ
Collard greens are a great and hearty side dish for any meal and an important ingredient in Southern cuisine. They take a bit of prep to clean, but the payoff is well worth it.
Before cleaning, some like removing the stems as they take longer to cook and taste bitter. Unlike other greens, collards cannot simply be rinsed before cooking.
Fill your sink or a large bowl with cold tap water and soak the greens for 10 to 15 minutes for all the grit, dirt, and bugs to release into the water.
Once you see dirt in the water, remove each stalk and run it under fresh water a few times so it gets a good rinse. You can then blot the leaves dry on a paper towel.
If your greens have a lot of visible dirt or grime, mix some white vinegar and salt into the water to help extract any tricky dirt that won't come out in tap water alone.
Now, you can cook your beloved collard greens. The key is to stew the greens for a long time to soften them and remove bitterness, which takes about 45 minutes to an hour.