Ohhh Weeeeee…this was a HOT one! I once prided myself as being able to eat some pretty hot stuff so diving right into the “Spicy like Me” chapter of Legendary Patti LaBelle’s Recipes for the Good Life cookbook happened without the least bit of caution. But baybaeeeee, this songbird put me in my place….stagehand. lol Don’t get me wrong, it was delicious!!!! However, it got to the point that I was picking out the minced pieces of jalepeno and habanero peppers with my fingers (at the dinner table) to get the tiniest bit of relief. It didn’t work. It was insufferable and my diners, Greg and Tera, shared my sentiment. lol I definitely recommend this dish………….MINUS 2/3′s of the peppers. TRUST ME! A Fiercefodie is ALWAYS HOT but panting and gagging is NEVER sexy….well, unless you’re into that I guess. lol

(Below, the recipe I believe will work next time with 1/3 of the heat)

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes (I used Yukon Gold instead, since that’s what I had in the house–it was fine)

2 medium carrots, peeled, trimmed and cut, crosswise, into thick slices

1 medium onion, peeled and sliced

1 large red bell pepper, well-washed, cored, seeded, membrane removed, and sliced

1/3 habanero chile, trimmed and sliced, or to taste

1/3 jalapeno chile, trimmed and sliced, or to taste

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste

1 medium head green cabbage, cored and thinly sliced

Salt and pepper to taste

2 cups low-sodium chicken broth, or water

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (I’m not really a big cilantro fan so I skipped this, but I bet it helps to cool off and balance the heat from the peppers.)

Instructions

1. Place a large nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. When just hot, add the oil.

2. When the oil is hot, add the potatoes, carrots, onion, bell pepper, chiles and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes or just until very fragrant and beginning to soften. Add the cabbage, season with salt and pepper, and continue to cook, stirring, for 4 minutes.

3. Add the broth, stirring to blend. Lower the heat and cook, tossing and stirring, for about 15 minutes or until the vegetables are tender and the flavors have blended.

4. Remove from the heat, stir in the cilantro, and serve.

All of my cooking life, I have been warned of the perils involved in purchasing pre-cut fresh greens because they are notorious for being too “stemmy”. You know, big pieces of bitter, twiggy collard green stalks that interrupt the pleasure of eating cooked greens. However, for the first time, I bought GLORY pre-cut collards and they were surprisingly ok. Don’t get me wrong, I DID have to pour them into a pan and re-de-stem them, lol. But I think mommy would be  as pleasantly surprised as I was that they weren’t full of stems.

If you know me, you know that I DO NOT cook collards. I’ve always associated greens with cooking a day before the meal. You know, Christmas Eve, New Year’s Eve, Easter Eve(?)…you get it, lol. That, coupled with the fact that I have always been hell-bent on cooking them without pork fat, made them unappealing. Today, on New Year’s, I got over all of that and put on a pot of greens!! I’m not superstitious but eating a good bowl of greens aint never hurt nobody! : )

2 - 1lb bags Glory Brand Pre-cut Collard Greens (Publix BOGO, baby!)

2 medium white onions, roughly chopped

4 cups chicken broth

1 whole jalapeno pepper

2 tbs vinegar

2 tea. sugar

1/2 tea. + 1/8 tea. cayenne pepper

1/2 tbs. black pepper

1/2 tbs. salt

Cleaning vs Washing

I’m not sure if it’s required since I was using pre-cut and hence, somewhat processed greens but out of tradition (and the fact that it couldn’t hurt) I “washed” the greens in a sink full of cold water. To wash them, push them down in the water several times to release any grit that may be on them. Drain the sink and repeat. “Cleaning” in greens terminology, means to de-stem them. This would be done if you bought whole bunches of collards. Since I didn’t, the next step is to remove them in batches from the sink, shaking excess water off, and begin to de-stem. 

Heat olive oil in a large stock pot. It should be enough to coat the pan. Add onions and enjoy that sizzle. Spread a little more oil over onions. After they cook a little, add jalepeno pepper and pour broth in pot and cut the heat up to high. Bring the broth to a boil and as you de-stem them, add them to the pot. Occassionally toss the greens to get the greens on top into the broth. Gradually continue adding greens to pot. Once all the greens are in, add red pepper, vinegar and sugar. Reduce heat to medium-low for 35 minutes or until tender.  I heard somewhere (I think from “Good Eats”, I love Alton Brown) that adding salt to greens will toughen them so I chose to reserve both, the salt and pepper, until the end.

If you want them spicier, I would suggest chopping the pepper before adding to the pot. Remember, the heat is in the seeds so you can control it by reserving some if needed. And always, be sure to wear gloves when working with peppers. Peppers can burn the skin just on contact, let alone what they can do if you touch your eyes. :(