Southern Style Turnip Greens.

Southern Style Turnip Greens, mildly bitter, so good for you, and such an easy harvesting method for ongoing greens, for your dinner table. Perfect with meat or as a meatless meal with beans and cornbread. 

My husband had planted an envelope of turnip seeds in late summer. 

We are still in learning mode here in East Texas, regarding this first year of gardening. And since we really did not know what to expect, the cost of the seeds, would offer lessons of more value, than the price of the seeds. And learn, we did! 

At the same time he also planted beets, green beans, pea pods, and Bok Choi. Interestingly we were too late with the first planting of green beans, and peas. As garden season starts early, but we were still building planting beds!  Once they were up and ready to be trained onto the trellis, it was too hot for growth. Finally I pulled them and tossed the entire mess into the compost frame. It was the same story with the first planting of peas. Now looking back on the second planting at the beginning of fall, we were once again too late. 

Where we originally gardened in the Pacific Northwest.

You would not think of planting anything until about the end of April. But here in East Texas, you better get your seeds in for the first planting by late February! And then don't wait for the first crop to be harvested! In 30 days complete the second planting so you will have plenty for the freezer or for canning, which ever is your preference. Because when the hot summer begins, for many plants, growing season is over. All in all I think we did learn a lot, from that original investment of seeds.

 

But this lesson, will be repeated! 

We will regularly plant turnips in late summer so we can harvest turnip greens until they are coming out of our ears! While I am not the biggest turnip fan, I do love greens of all kinds. And around here you cannot go out to eat without collard greens being offered as one of the vegetables on the menu. And for good reason, greens are delicious and the bonus, is that they are also good for us. 

Add easy to prep and let simmer until dinner time arrives. Perfect with chicken or a pork chop and cornbread on the side. To be able to harvest greens until the frost takes over your plants, simply cut the stems one inch above the ground, leaving the root intact in the ground. Those left behind roots, will grow more greens. 

Turnip greens are the middle green. What?

Not as tender as Swiss Chard but not as tough as Collard Greens either. They have a small amount of bitter/spicy flavor, but are not as hot as mustard greens. Personally I like adding a pleasant bitter element to our meals, and cooked greens are an easy way to accomplish this. We have Swiss Chard (harvested in the same manner) on a regular basis, and now we can add turnip greens on regular rotation as well. Plus the tiny baby leaves of each plant are delicious as salad greens. Adding a a second serving option to your field of greens!

Some additional thoughts on this recipe:

While not traditional, there is no harm in adding chicken pieces to the pan to simmer along with the greens for a one pot dinner. 

Most recipes have you use lots of broth. This one does not, the greens cook down quickly allowing you to keep adding more cut greens to the pan. 

For the best flavored pot liquor, use double strength broth. Save and serve the pot liquor in mugs, sip like soup, it is delicious!

Ingredients needed for this recipe:

• turnip greens
• chicken stock
• onion
• garlic
• bacon, ham hock or smoked turkey leg
• salt and pepper

You will also need the following:

• large stock pot with lid
• cutting board
• kitchen knife
• measuring cups
• kitchen spoon

Now we are ready to begin!

Southern Style Turnip Greens

inspired by: Southern Bite

Turnip Greens, at least 2 pounds

large onion

2 to 3 cloves of garlic

bacon OR ham hock OR smoked turkey leg

1 quart double strength Chicken broth, I used Better than Bouillon

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste

vinegar for serving

Inspect the greens and remove any that are withered, yellow or buggy. 

Wash and fill your kitchen sink with water, add the greens. Gently swish around to dislodge any dirt or pine needles, etc.  

Lift out of the sink into a large bowl. If your greens are particularly dirty, repeat the washing process. Once drained, remove the larger and tougher stems. 

Dice the bacon and the onion. 

Add the bacon to the stockpot over medium heat, when a bit of fat has accumulated in the pan, add the onion and garlic if using. Sauté briefly, add the double strength chicken stock. 

While the bacon onion mixture is cooking, begin cutting the greens into bit size pieces. 

When the chicken stock is boiling, begin adding the greens. Continue to cut the greens and add them to the pot. Since they cook down quickly there will be room to add the greens. Personally I add the greens until the broth is filled with greens. 

Cover, reduce the heat and simmer for 1 hour. When done, taste and adjust the final flavor with salt and pepper, let simmer another minute to cook the added salt and pepper flavors into the broth. Serve with a slotted spoon. Offering vinegar for those who enjoy the added tang. 

PS, I decided for future batches, I would make it easy on the cook and remove the stems while sorting and inspecting the greens, before washing them.

 Which is exactly what I did...

Storage options for Southern Style Turnip Greens. Store covered in the refrigerator for up to three days. You may freeze Southern Style Turnip Greens for longer storage times, but there may be a reduction in flavor and texture when served after freezing. Remove from the freezer and let thaw in the refrigerator before reheating. 

 

UPDATE:  For your convenience, a "copy and paste" version of Southern Style Turnip Greens has been included below. 

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Printable "copy and paste" version:

Southern Style Turnip Greens

inspired by: Southern Bite

Turnip Greens, at least 2 pounds

large onion

2 to 3 cloves of garlic

bacon OR ham hock OR smoked turkey leg

1 quart double strength Chicken broth, I used Better than Bouillon

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste

vinegar for serving

Inspect the greens and remove any that are withered, yellow or buggy. 

Wash and fill your kitchen sink with water, add the greens. Gently swish around to dislodge any dirt or pine needles, etc. 

 Lift out of the sink into a large bowl. If your greens are particularly dirty, repeat the washing process. Once drained, remove the larger and tougher stems. 

Dice the bacon and the onion. 

Add the bacon to the stockpot over medium heat, when a bit of fat has accumulated in the pan, add the onion and garlic if using. Sauté briefly, add the double strength chicken stock. 

While the bacon onion mixture is cooking, begin cutting the greens into bit size pieces. 

When the chicken stock is boiling, begin adding the greens. Continue to cut the greens and add them to the pot. Since they cook down quickly there will be room to add the greens. Personally I add the greens until the broth is filled with greens. 

Cover, reduce the heat and simmer for 1 hour. When done, taste and adjust the final flavor with salt and pepper, let simmer another minute to cook the added salt and pepper flavors into the broth. Serve with a slotted spoon. Offering vinegar for those who enjoy the added tang. 

PS, I decided for future batches, I would make it easy on the cook and remove the stems while inspecting the greens, before washing them. 

Storage options for Southern Style Turnip Greens. Store covered in the refrigerator for up to three days. You may freeze Southern Style Turnip Greens for longer storage times, but there may be a reduction in flavor and texture when served after freezing. Remove from the freezer and let thaw in the refrigerator before reheating. 

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