How I Cooked It: Mustard Greens

My weekly CSA box from Yokna Bottoms Farms has contained mustard greens the past three weeks. At least I think they are mustard greens. They definitely aren't collards, but I guess they could be turnip greens. Point being, I really don't know what they are, which is why I had a hard time finding ways to use them.

As always, Susan Voisin over at the Fat Free Vegan Kitchen had a good recipe for me to try: Balsamic-Glazed Chickpeas and Mustard Greens. 

Photo credit: FatFreeVegan.com

I made a few adjustments to the recipe, so here is my version.

Mustard Greens with Glazed White Beans

Ingredients:
2 large bunches mustard greens
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 15 oz can of Great Northern beans
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp low-sodium soy sauce
2 tsp oyster sauce

Directions:

1. Remove stems from greens, tear leaves into bite-sized pieces, and soak leaves is a large bowl of cool water to remove grit. Agitate the leaves a bit, and the grit will settle to the bottom. Remove leaves from water by grabbing them and placing in a colander. Do not pour out the greens & water! The grit should stay in the bottom of the bowl. 
2. In a deep saute pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add onions. Saute the onion until translucent, then add garlic and red pepper flakes. Saute for a minute more. Add mustard greens and 1/4 cup water and cover for 5 minutes to allow the greens to wilt to a bright green (do not overcook). 
3. Remove greens and onions from the pan with a slotted spoon, allowing liquid to drain into the pan, and place greens in a bowl. 
4. To the remaining liquid in the pan, add balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, and oyster sauce. Add beans. Cook, stirring occasionally, over medium-high heat until the liquid is almost gone and the beans have a nice glaze over them. 
5. To serve, spoon the greens onto serving plates and top with glazed beans. Top with remaining glaze.

I had it for lunch today over brown basmati rice - it was really yummy! I'd say that 2 bunches of greens cooks down to about 2 servings. Not nearly as much as I thought it would be. Stemming and washing greens is a ton of work for not a lot of reward because you get so little food from a TON of greens. I will say though that the greens from the farm were really clean to begin with, so I didn't have to be super vigilant about soaking and rinsing them. 

Next up I need a recipe for all the green bell peppers I had in this week's box. I am not a fan of green bell peppers, so I may make up freezer mirepoix like I did with the last batch... perfect for quick weekday soup making.