Sweet and Spicy Collard Greens! Pile these tasty greens high because they are packed with nutrients and flavors.
Bold, healthy, and oh-so-satisfying, this Sweet and Spicy Collard Greens recipe is loaded with flavor and perfect for dinner with hearty brown rice or filling potatoes. These collards have a hint sweetness with a tiny bit of spiciness and are 100% totally irresistible. Savory collard greens with jalapeno, red and green bell peppers, garlic, and onions makes for a perfectly tasty summer dish.
Whole Food Plant Based, Vegan, plant based, oil free, refined sugar free, no highly processed ingredients and gluten free.
Hi there, Ameera here!
This Sweet and Spicy Collard Greens is a fabulous collard greens recipe that combines the best of sweet and spicy flavors. It’s absolutely delicious with tender greens and an awesome sauce.
Yasmeen loved this dish. She ate it all up. We did go easy on the red pepper flakes when making it for Yasmeen as we didn’t want this dish to have too much heat for her.
Collard Greens Nutrition
Collard greens are part of the cruciferous family. They are full of delicious health benefits containing Vitamin K which aids in improving bone health. One cup of cooked collard greens provides 770mg of Vitamin K.
Folks who eats plenty of cruciferous vegetables have a lower risk of developing various types of cancer, like upper digestive track, colorectal, breast cancer, and kidney cancer. Just another awesome reason to add collard greens into your diet.
Tips for Success:
- Flavors to Marry: Make sure you allow at least 5 minutes for the flavors to marry. The flavors continue to develop once the dish slightly cools.
- Stove Top Simmer: Do not cook this at a rolling boil, but rather a low tempered boil. Use a tight-fitting lid to ensure that you do not evaporate too much liquid.
- Spiciness: This recipe is full of flavor with a hint of spiciness. Feel free to leave out the jalapeno pepper and red pepper flakes to tame down the dish.
- Amount of Collard Greens: The amount of collard greens used was 1 lb. This was about 10-11 large leaves, or 7 to 8 cups chopped.
- Toppings: We suggest adding a tiny splash of apple cider vinegar or hot sauce when serving.
- Cornstarch: We preferred the sauce to be on thinner side (using 1 teaspoon), although we could see where some would prefer a slightly thicker or sauce (1 ½ to 2 teaspoons).
Leftovers and Freezing:
Leftovers will generally keep for 4-5 days in the refrigerator. Store in a covered container. Reheating can be done on the stovetop, or in the microwave.
This dish freezes well. For best results thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
Pantry Products Used:
- Vegetable Stock: We use Pacific Organic Low Sodium Vegetable Stock. We love this brand because it is Whole Food Plant Based compliant, as it does not contain MSG, has no oil, and does not contain any highly-processed ingredients.
- Tamari: We used San J Tamari Soy Sauce, Gluten Free, Reduced Sodium. You can substitute the tamari with reduced sodium soy sauce, Braggs Liquid Aminos, or Braggs Coconut Liquid Aminos.
Kitchen Products Used:
- Ceramic/Enamel Lined Skillet or Dutch Oven or similarly large stock pot with a tight-fitting lid
We certainly hope you give this deliciousness a try.
If you try these tasty greens, we would love to know if you enjoy it as much as we do! Please leave us a review! Post a picture on Facebook or Instagram and tag us! We would love to hear from you.
PrintSweet and Spicy Collard Greens
- Prep Time: 25 Minutes
- Cook Time: 40 Minutes
- Total Time: 65 Minutes
- Yield: 4-6 Servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Bold, healthy, and oh-so-satisfying, this Sweet and Spicy Collard Greens recipe is loaded with flavor and perfect for dinner with hearty brown rice or filling potatoes.
Ingredients
Base Ingredients:
- 1 medium yellow onion, fine dice
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 jalapeno pepper, fine dice (optional)
- 2 Tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon tomato paste
- 1 lb. collard greens, chopped into 1 ½ inch pieces *
Sauce Ingredients:
- 2 Tablespoons reduced-sodium tamari *
- 1 ¼ cups low-sodium vegetable broth *
- ½ cup water
- 1 Tablespoon pure maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon distilled white vinegar
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 Tablespoons dried minced onions
- pinch to ½ teaspoon sea salt (+/-) *
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper (+/-)
Other Ingredients:
- Pinch to ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
Slurry Ingredients:
- 1 to 2 teaspoons cornstarch (or arrowroot powder) *
- 1 Tablespoon water
Optional Toppings:
- Splash apple cider vinegar
- Splash hot sauce
- Chopped fresh parsley
Serving Ideas:
- Steamed Rice
- Baked Potato
Instructions
- Rinse the collard greens well, then place a collard green leaf on a flat surface, remove the center vein (discard center vein), set aside. Once all the center veins have been removed, lay the collards on top of each other and cut into squares. Set aside.
- Place the Sauce Ingredients in a small bowl, whisk well to combine, set aside.
- In a large ceramic/enamel-lined pot or similar stock pot, add the diced onions, jalapeno pepper, red and green bell peppers. Sauté over medium-high heat until the veggies begin to soften, approximately 7 to 9 minutes, stirring periodically to prevent burning. Add a tablespoon or so of water if they start to stick and/or to prevent burning.
- Add the minced garlic and tomato paste, sauté for 1 minute, stirring constantly, then add the collards and the Sauce Mixture. Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower to a low-boiling simmer, stir to combine. Cover with a tight-fitting lid. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until the collards have reached the desired tenderness, stirring occasionally.
- Sprinkle in the red pepper flakes, stir to combine. Allow to simmer for one minute.
- Make the Slurry by combining the cornstarch (or arrowroot powder) with the water. Whisk to remove any lumps, then increase the heat and pour the slurry into the skillet with the collards. Heat until slightly thickened. Simmer for several minutes.
- Remove from the stove and rest for 5 minutes to allow the flavors to marry.
- Serve over steam rice or baked potato.
Notes
*Please reference the blog post for Tips for Success, Pantry Items Used, Storage and Freezing, and Kitchen Products Used.
*Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
*Serving: 4-6
This post contains affiliate links, and we may receive a very small commission if you purchase through those links at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting Monkey and Me Kitchen Adventures! For more information, see our disclosures here.
I’m making this tonight. Should I use a stockpot or a skillet for this recipe? It mentions both.
Hi there Jaime 🙂
Thank you so much for reaching out to us. We recommend using a stockpot. If you have a large, deep skillet you could use that as well.
-Ameera and Robin 🙂
I just made this for lunch today. L served with brown rice, black eyed peas, some banana peppers, and their brine. It was great! Thank you so much for sharing. I never know how to make collards and this will help us use what we grow.
Hi there Kim,
YAYYYYY!!! We are so happy that you enjoyed this recipe! We appreciate you taking time to write us a great review. Thank you!
-Ameera and Robin