Learn how to cook collard greens the ultimate way, cooked low and slow with bacon, ham, and spices for the most tender greens and to-die-for pot likker. You'll never want them any other way.
Southern Collard Greens Recipe
We're cooking up a big batch of collard greens in the Chili Pepper Madness kitchen tonight, my friends. Are you a fan of collard greens?
Southern style collard greens are something special. With Southern Collard Greens, the greens are treated more like a tough cut of meat, simmered low and slow until they are wonderfully tender and loaded with flavor.
If you've never tried collards before, or are just not a fan of them, this is the recipe you need to try.
What are Collard Greens?
Collard greens are leafy vegetables known for their dark green leaves and slightly bitter taste. They belong to the same plant family as cabbage and kale.
Collard greens are popular in Southern cuisine in the United States and are rich in vitamins and minerals, and can be enjoyed raw or cooked.
They are versatile in cooking and can be sautéed, braised, steamed, or boiled, often seasoned with ingredients like garlic, onions, and bacon.
Let's talk about how to make collard greens, shall we?
Southern Collard Greens Ingredients
- Collard Greens. Yes, you need fresh collard greens to make collard greens! You can usually find them in the grocery store produce section.
- Bacon. I love smoked bacon for my collard greens.
- Smoked Ham. Extra flavor and meatiness. Ham hocks are wonderful here, too. I love collard greens with ham hocks.
- Vegetables. Onion, jalapeno peppers (or use milder peppers, or hotter!), garlic. Peppers are not traditional when making southern collards, but I just love them, as you may have already discovered.
- Chicken Stock. Chicken broth is great, or use vegetable stock.
- Liquids. Apple cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, honey for a touch of sweet, hot sauce.
- Seasonings. Red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. You can use others to your preference.
How to Make Collard Greens - the Recipe Method
Rinse and Trim the Collard Greens. Thoroughly clean the collard greens to remove any grit. Trim them into ribbons, remove the stems, and set aside in a large bowl.
Collards can be pretty gritty and have lots of dirt clinging to them, so the rinsing and cleaning step is very important.
You'll notice if any of the grit gets into the pot. It isn't pleasant.
Cook the Bacon. Heat a large pot to medium heat and add the bacon. Cook for 10 minutes, or until they begin to crisp up.
Cook the Onions, Peppers, Ham and Garlic. Add the onion and peppers (with a little olive oil, if needed - you should have plenty of bacon grease in the pan).
Cook for 5 minutes, stirring here and there, until softened.
Add garlic and ham. Cook for 1 minute.
Remaining Ingredients. Stir in the chicken stock or chicken broth, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, honey, chili flakes, salt and pepper, hot sauce.
Add the greens to the pot.
Simmer the Collard Greens. Reduce heat, cover and cook the collard greens for 1 hour, then taste for tenderness. Some people like to cook for 2 hours, and some for 3 hours for super tender collard greens.
Boom! Done! You collard greens are ready to serve. They look so good, don't they? Sprinkle on the red pepper flakes, maybe a couple splashes of hot sauce.
So good! Such a great side dish.
Recipe Tips & Notes
About the Pot Liquor (or Pot Likker). After slow cooking the collard greens, you'll notice the color of the liquid in the pot has darkened and taken on the wonderful flavor of the collards and other ingredients.
This liquid is called "collard liquor" or "pot liquor", or "pot likker", and it is delicious.
Pot liquor is essentially the liquid remaining from simmering any type of greens or beans. It is enriched with many nutrients from the greens cooking process.
You can enhance the flavor with smoked meats and seasonings, making it not only good for you, but extra tasty, as we've done here.
Cooking Time. I sometimes prefer to simmer my collard greens for the whole 3 hours, but they are nice and tender with a bit of bite after 1-2 hours. Just cook to your preference.
You can get away with a stronger simmer for 45 minutes, but much will depend on the collard greens themselves, whether or not your particular batch wants to soften up enough for you.
Other Greens. You can definitely use other leafy greens for this recipe. Consider mustard greens, kale, beet greens, dandelion greens or other green leaves.
You may need to adjust your simmering time.
Meat Options. Pork is most often used, like bacon and ham. Ham hocks are very popular and add lots of flavor. Smoked turkey is also a nice addition or substitute.
You can realistically use any of your favorite meats. Serve this up with fried chicken!
Storage and Leftover Collard Greens
You can store your leftover collard greens in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Use them to enhance soups, sandwiches, wraps and more.
That's it, my friends. I hope you enjoy my southern collard greens recipe. Let me know if you make it. I'd love to hear how it turned out for you. Keep it spicy!
Cookbook Recommendations
If you're interested in southern cooking and cuisine, check out these cookbooks for some great southern recipes and history. I'm learning quite a lot about southern food and barbecue from them. Definitely some great eating!
- The Southerner's Cookbook: Recipes, Wisdom, and Stories (affiliate link, my friends!)
- North Carolina Barbecue: Flavored by Time, by Bob Gardner (affiliate link, my friends!)
Got any questions? Ask away! I’m happy to help. If you enjoy this recipe, I hope you’ll leave a comment with some STARS. Also, please share it on social media. Don’t forget to tag us at #ChiliPepperMadness. I’ll be sure to share! Thanks! — Mike H.
Southern Collard Greens Recipe (How to Cook Collard Greens)
Ingredients
- 1 large bunch of collard greens about 3 pounds
- 1 pound bacon chopped (smoked bacon is ideal)
- 1 large white onion chopped
- 2 jalapeno peppers chopped - optional (use milder peppers for less heat)
- 1 pound smoked ham chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced (or more to taste)
- 12 cups chicken stock 3 quarts
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon honey or use sugar
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Salt and pepper to taste I use 1 tsp each
- Hot sauce to taste a few dashes will do - use your favorite hot sauce
Instructions
- Thoroughly rinse and wash the collard greens to remove any grit. Trim the collard greens into ribbons and set aside.
- Heat a large pot to medium heat and add the bacon. Cook for 10 minutes, or until they begin to crisp up.
- Add the onion and peppers. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring here and there, until softened.
- Add the ham and garlic. Cook for 1 minute.
- Stir in the chicken stock, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, honey, chili flakes, salt and pepper, hot sauce, and reserved collard greens.
- Cover and simmer for 1-2 hours, or until done to your desired tenderness. You can simmer up to 3 hours for VERY tender collard greens.
- Serve.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
NOTE: This recipe was updated on 12/15/23 to include new information, photos, and video. It was originally published on 10/6/21.
Christina says
Your collard greens are the best I’ve ever had.
Thank you for the recipe.
Mike Hultquist says
Thanks so much, Christina! These are a favorite of mine for sure.
Ashley R. says
These collard greens are the absolute best!!! I’m So glad I found your recipe! Thank you! Would I be able to can these so I can enjoy them year round?
Mike H. says
Thank you very much, Ashley! Yes, you can, but they must be pressure canned to ensure safety.
Diana says
I like that they cooked for three hours, which freed me up awhile and made it easier to time other dishes so everything is ready at once. Some recipes warn that overcooking may lead to bitter greens. Nothing bitter about these!
I used a pork shank instead of ham. I plated along with Mike's black-eyed peas recipe and mixing some of the collard green juice to the peas with each bite was perfect. Happy New Year!
Mike H. says
Thank you for the review, Diana, and Happy New Year!
Valerie Boulay says
ohhh yummy and leftover after 4-5 days in fridge served over rice crispy homemade baguette with strong cheese ; Amazing !!!
Mike Hultquist says
Outstanding!!! Thanks, Valerie!
Jessica says
Absolutely delicious! I am so happy I found this recipe, as I have not had a good pot of greens since my Nanny passed. Sooo good and healthy too! 🙂 Thank you!
Mike Hultquist says
Great! Thanks, Jessica! Glad you found it! And very happy you enjoyed it.
Shari says
I had never eaten greens other than the ones that came in a can. After trying this recipe I will never buy the canned ones again. This takes a bit of time with the prep work, but my oh my, is it ever worth the effort! And that pot linker is amazing! The only change I made on this recipe is using half mustard greens with the other half collard greens. This is most definitely a five star recipe!!
Mike Hultquist says
Thanks so much, Shari, for sharing this. Yes, once you go homemade, it's hard to go back. Glad you enjoyed it!!
Drew says
I love these greens!!! I've had my recipe(s) over the years, but after finding this one, it has become my favorite! Much of this I was already doing, but the cider vinegar, chicken stock, and jalapenos take it to a new level! This is definitely my favorite recipe for collards and I am done with (the usual) searching for "an ever better recipe". This is.... THE ONE!!! Many, many, many thanks to the author!!!
Mike H. says
You are very very welcome, Drew. So happy that you enjoying my recipe so much!
Susan Griffin says
I have previously commented on how much I love this recipe. I was challenged because I had a vegan who stayed with us. I do not have a vegan bone in my body. I added smoked paprika and she loved it. Of course the greens were extra spicy. I also used venison sausage. However.it is the vinegar and other spices that make this so delicious.
Mike H. says
Thank you, Susan. I am really happy to read this. Enjoy!
Barbara says
I never liked collard green until this recipe was served to me by a neighbor. A bit about myself: I’m southern and 64, I’ve tried many a “green”, so this review should mean a lot. This is so good, I wanted to drink the likkor. Instead, I’m saving it for the next batch of greens. Just one bit of advice; watch the amount of chicken broth, 3 quarts was 1 too many for my bunch.
Mike H. says
Thank you, Barbara. I am so glad that my recipe made such an influence... I love it!
Ruth Edwards says
I had some frozen ham hocks so I boiled them in enough water to cover then used that liquid and added enough chicken broth to make 12 cups. I added another 1/4 c ACV and another TBS Worchestershire sauce to make it a little tangier for my taste.
My husband and I love these collards. (He didn’t think he liked collards). I made it once before for a party and everyone said they were the best collard greens they ever had!!!
Thank you very much for this recipe!!!!
Mike Hultquist says
Boom! This is so great to hear, Ruth. Honestly, this comment is pure joy to me. Thanks for sharing. I hope it is something you can enjoy for years to come!
Susan Griffin says
OMG! My family farmed. We grew greens. My Grandmother made collard, turnip, etc. greens. I love to cook, but never cooked them. The grocery had beautiful collard greens. I decided to cook them for New Years instead of cabbage. They were the best I have ever tasted. This recipe is perfect. My Dad used to put vinegar and pepper sauce on his. No need. This recipe is perfect. I used more garlic, but that is it. . I could have eaten the entire pot myself. Homemade cornbread and it is the perfect, healthy meal.
Mike Hultquist says
Awesome! Thanks for sharing this, Susan! I know, I LOVE LOVE LOVE collards! Glad you enjoyed them! I can eat the whole pot, too. =)
Emily F says
First time making collard greens and the whole family approved. This is going to become a staple!
Mike H. says
That's what I am talking about, Emily. Well done!