A lot of my favorite ways to prepare vegetables have two steps. Boil first, sear second. Potatoes, Corn, and Greens all get a variation of this treatment.
For greens, I boil them in salted water first to soften, and then saute to retain shape and some crispy edges. You can use different greens. Hearty ones like kale and mustard greens need the blanching first. Softer ones like chard get sauteed only.
Ingredients
2 heads Lacinto kale, de-stemmed, torn into big pieces
1 head rainbow chard, de-stemmed, cut into big pieces
3 cloves garlic, sliced
2 tablespoons avocado oil
Sea Salt
lemon, lime or some type of acid
Chili flakes, optional
Instructions
Bring a big pot of salted water to a boil. Add the kale. Set a timer for 5 minutes.
While the kale in in the water, saute the garlic and oil in a big saute pan. Cook until it begins to get tan colored. Then add a glug of the kale water and pull it off the heat to keep it from burning.
After 5 minutes, add the kale and chard to the saute pan on medium heat. Set a timer for 5 minutes.
After the second 5 minute timer, taste the greens. Are they tender enough? If no, cook a couple of minutes more. Add more salt as needed.
Once the texture is to your satisfaction, add half a lemon or lime juice and some chile flakes.
If I'm making Asian food I might add soy sauce instead of more salt, and korean chile flakes. If it's middle eastern, I'll use Marash chile, if it's Mexican, I use lime juice.
I keep these greens on hand all week and add a bit to my dinners each night to round out my plates with ample plant foods.
